17
Drew rubbed his hair with a towel before picking up a pair of gray slacks that lay folded on his bedspread. He stepped into them and had just fastened the button when his phone rang, vibrating its way slowly across the top of his nightstand. He answered on the third ring. “Hello?”
“Hey! Is it okay if I get dressed at your place? Or is that weird?” Savannah asked.
Drew put her on speaker and set the phone down before reaching for a white undershirt. “I don’t mind picking you up. There’s no reason for you to come all the way out here.”
“Oh, I know, but the store downstairs is having some kind of formal showcase, and I’m honestly afraid that if I go down in a dress, somebody’s going to think I’m part of the show, and I’ll never make it out of here.”
Drew pulled the shirt over his head and looked at Ryker, who was lying belly-up on the hallway threshold, snoring like a trucker. “I mean, yeah, you can come if you want,” he said.
“Okay good, because I just turned into your driveway,” she replied.
Drew rolled his eyes but smiled good-naturedly. He should have known.
“But don’t worry, I already showered, so I smell like me and not like you,” Savannah added, her tone teasing now.
“Oh good, I’d hate for people to get us mixed up,” he joked back. He heard the faint sound of car tires on the gravel outside, and Ryker rolled over, his ears instantly alert. “What would you have done if I’d said you couldn’t come?” Drew asked.
“I’d have gone to your parents’ house and had girl-talk time with Brooklyn. Probably asked to see your most embarrassing baby pictures,” she answered. “Actually, that sounds like fun, now that I think about it. I think I’ll turn around and go do that.”
“No, it’s fine!” Drew blurted. “No photos. Just come in, the door should be open.”
“See you soon!” she replied, and then the call ended.
Drew did a quick check to make sure he hadn’t left a pair of boxers on the floor or hair in the sink, and then he grabbed his dress shirt and tie from the hanger by the door and carried them both into the living room.
Savannah was already there, rubbing Ryker’s ears and beaming at him. She had a white garment bag slung over one arm and a small makeup case hanging from her wrist. “Well, don’t you look nice!” she said when she looked up.
Drew held his arms wide and looked down at his T-shirt. “I’m not done yet,” he said.
“I know! So just think how handsome you’ll be when you are,” she replied coyly.
Then she straightened before putting her hand flat on his chest and pushing up to kiss him on the cheek.
“And just so you’re aware, the ‘I just got out of the shower’ look really works for you,” she whispered into his ear.
Drew felt heat shoot up the back of his neck and into every inch of his face.
Savannah winked cheekily, fully aware of the havoc she was wreaking on his nervous system. “I won’t be long, I promise. I’ve already done all the hard stuff; I just have to change clothes and finish my hair.”
“Take your time,” Drew answered, though the words came out a bit strangled. He cleared his throat. “It’s your party.”
“It’s my boss’s party,” she corrected him, already on her way down the hall. “And it’ll be fun! I promise, the people I work with are cool. Dr. Timson’s wife is the one that likes the fancy dress-up stuff. Apparently, it’s her only excuse to get her husband in a tux once a year.”
Drew froze, glancing down at his slacks then back up at his reflection in the darkened TV screen.
Was this a tuxedo kind of party? He didn’t own a tuxedo.
He didn’t even know anyone who owned a tuxedo!
Panic started to bloom at the base of his throat.
The last thing he wanted to do was show up underdressed and unprepared and make Savannah have to apologize for him all night.
Suddenly, this felt a lot like the sorority formals he’d attended with Alaina.
She’d have told you if you needed to wear something special, the rational part of his mind reminded him. She just walked through here and said you look great. She wouldn’t set you up for failure.
He caught his own eye in the television again. “Breathe,” he said firmly, speaking to his reflection. “It’s a Christmas party, not a final exam.” Though he would be meeting her bosses and her coworkers and some of her friends . . .
He turned sharply and reached for the dress shirt he’d draped over the back of the couch. Think about something else. Anything else!
He threaded his arms into the shirt sleeves and fastened the buttons before finally tucking the hem into his pants.
Then he went to work on his tie. Finally, he heard his bedroom door open, and a pair of high heels clicked on the hardwood floor in the hall.
He straightened the knot at his throat and turned just as Savannah seemed to float into the living room, a hesitant smile on her face.
She’d freshened up her curls, and they cascaded down over one shoulder, held in place by a pearl clip.
Her dress was some kind of green velvet material that made Drew’s palms itch to touch it, and while it had thin straps, there were also loops of wider fabric that hung off the tips of her shoulders, giving the impression that the whole thing might fall down at any moment.
Don’t think about that! he told himself in a rush. Do not . . . think about . . . that.
“Well?” she asked quietly. “What do you think?”
His mouth came open. “I think . . . that, uh . . .”
That I love you.
“That, I, umm . . .”
I. Love. You. Three words. Say them!
“That you look amazing,” he finished weakly. He couldn’t say the other thing. The words wouldn’t come out, and he didn’t completely know why. They were all words he’d said before, sometimes even in that order, but always to members of his own family.
The briefest hint of disappointment flashed through Savannah’s eyes before they crinkled in a smile. “You really like it?” She turned slowly, keeping her eyes on his until the last second before finishing the spin.
He nodded and swallowed hard. “Yes,” he said, but then his frazzled nerves got the best of him.
“But not because of the dress!” he blurted.
Her forehead wrinkled slightly in confusion, and he barreled on.
“I mean, I like the dress, but you’d look amazing without it.
I mean not without it, without it, that’s not . . . I mean, sure then too, but . . .”
His entire body seemed to be on fire. What was he saying?! And why couldn’t he stop?!
Savannah bit down on her lower lip and stepped forward, raising one hand to press her palm over his runaway mouth. “Thank you,” she said slowly, clearly fighting to contain her laughter.
Drew closed his eyes and let out a long breath against her skin, his shoulders sagging. “I’m sort of nervous,” he mumbled behind her hand. When he peeked at her a moment later, her expression had softened.
“You don’t have to be,” she breathed. “Everyone will love you, but even if they go crazy and decide they don’t for some reason, I don’t care.”
Because I do.
She didn’t say that last part, but the words hung in the air between them anyway.
Drew heaved another sigh, this time part relief, part shame that he couldn’t seem to give her the same sort of sentiment.
He nodded, and she moved her hand away from his mouth, sliding it instead around the nape of his neck.
“Kiss me like you mean it, and that’ll make it alright,” she said softly.
It wasn’t completely clear what she meant, but Drew didn’t care, so he did what she asked, pulling her close and cradling her face in his hands as he moved his lips over hers, swallowing the little sounds she always made when he did.
When they broke apart, he was surprised to find that he did feel more settled. Grounded, even.
“There,” she said, wiping a smudge of lipstick off his mouth with her thumb. “Are we ready?”
He looked around, realizing he still needed a belt and shoes and to at least run a comb through his hair. “Give me five?” he asked.
She smiled and touched the tip of her nose to his in an indulgent sort of way. “If that’s all you want,” she replied, but there was a glint in her eyes that suggested she had more she’d like to say.
Whatever it was, she kept it inside.
Ten minutes later—his hair had been more unruly than he’d thought—they were in his truck on their way to Reelfoot Lake, where the party was being held.
Drew spent most of the forty-minute drive holding Savannah’s hand and soaking in the steady warmth that emanated from it.
It kept him tied to the present instead of letting him obsess over how the next few hours might play out.
No matter what, you’ll have her when you get home, and that’s what matters, he told himself. It wasn’t until they pulled into the parking lot that his anxiety reared its ugly head again.
The venue was enormous. A massive log-cabin-style building sat nestled right against the water’s edge, and floor-to-ceiling windows poured light out onto a wraparound porch.
Through them, Drew could see maybe a hundred people milling around as servers carried trays of appetizers from group to group.
He parked his truck beside a red Nissan sedan and turned the engine off, but that was as far as he got.
So many people. Strangers. Noise. Questions . . .
“Isn’t it beautiful?” Savannah gushed. “Do you think we should—”
Her voice sounded far away, like she was talking to him through a tank of water. Drew wanted to ask her to repeat the question, but his mouth was too dry to speak. He tried to swallow and was unsuccessful. Every molecule in his body seemed to be vibrating. He was afraid he was going to be sick.
“That’s Julie’s car, so she and her husband are here. You’ll like him; I think his name is—”
Drew squeezed his eyes shut, knowing the instant Savannah realized there was something wrong with him. Her words stopped abruptly, and he heard the fabric of her dress slide across the bench seat.