Page 45 of For You I'd Mend
Aries dropped my hand. “It’s cool. This was just a coffee date, right?”
“Yes,” I said, relieved he’d come up with a better excuse than I could. “But I had a really great time.”
The tension melted from his forehead, and he smiled. “Yeah, me too. We could grab dinner next week. Things are a little tight for me right now, but I’d like to take you out after I get my first paycheck.”
“Sounds great,” I said.
We pushed away from the table, Lauren and Cammie watching our every move.
“I’ll walk you to your car,” Aries said, pulling on his jacket while I shuffled into mine. “I mean hearse. Awesome ride by the way.”
“Tallulah’s the best.”
“I like that,” he said softly as he held the door open for me. “Did you name her after Tallulah Bankhead?”
“Um, yeah, but no one has ever made that connection.”
“I’m a huge Hitchcock fan,” he said, grabbing my hand again when we stepped onto the sidewalk. “It’s a new thing. I’ve, um, watched all of his films a few times.Lifeboatis one of my favorites.”
“Mine isPsychounless I’m in the mood for a laugh, then it’sThe Birds.”
“You can see the damn strings,” he said, a huge smile breaking across his face, making him look younger, closer to my age than Theo’s. “That settles it. You, me, dinner, andThe Birdsnext week.”
“Sounds great,” I said, smiling back at him. Because it did sound great. But honestly, I’d have jumped at the opportunity to watch the movie if Aiden had asked me, and for an obnoxiously attractive man, I had zero interest in him.
Aries cleared his throat and started to lean forward just as Lauren ran out from Karma.
“Don’t forget you’re giving me a ride to your house,” she said. “I’m helping Rowan narrow down ideas for the centerpieces.”
I tilted my head at her. She hadn’t asked me for a ride anywhere. I gave it less than a twenty-five percent chance my sister was even home and not at Cal’s, but I knew Lauren. She had her reasons, and I trusted her enough to go with it.
“Well, come on then,” I said.
Aries let out a breath and dropped my hand. “I’ll text you later, Poppy.”
“Sounds good.” I waved and he started down the sidewalk in the direction of Marked.
“Well?” I asked Lauren.
“Get in the hearse,” she said, flinging open my passenger door. The inside light came on, illuminating the art supplies we’d salvaged from the shed. There wasn’t much, but it was more than we had room for in the house. Thankfully most of my chisels weren’t damaged, but nearly all my paints and sketch pads were wrecked. The damn ball of clay survived as expected, as well as quite a few brushes.
“I didn’t know you were coming over,” I said, throwing Tallulah into drive.
“I hadn’t planned on it, but I didn’t think you were ready to kiss him,” she said, pulling out her phone and texting furiously.
“Kiss who?”
“Aries, you idiot. What do you think happens when a guy walks you to your car?”
“Um, you say good night and leave?”
Lauren shoved her phone in her apron pocket, but the streetlamps gave me just enough light to see her pinch the bridge of her nose. “What kind of Neanderthals have you dated?”
“The kind who don’t walk me to my car, apparently.”
“Half my hookups get started when the guy walks me to my car. That’s when he makes his move, and I either tell him to get lost or get naked.”
“I think Aries got the hint I didn’t want to get naked tonight when I didn’t go to Church with him for a drink. But more to the point, why would you lip block me? Maybe I wanted him to kiss me goodnight.”
