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Chapter 11 - Slow Dance

CHAPTER 11

CARLY

"You still haven't answered my question," John told me, his hands buried in the pockets of his blue jeans. I looked up at him, my heart beating fast and my cheeks still tinged with red. He seemed too calm, too casual, not at all flustered by my uncle's interruption.

"What question was that again?" I asked, proud of myself for keeping my voice steady as I tried my hand at teasing him.

"You're really gonna make me say it again?" he chuckled, taking his hat off and running his fingers through his hair.

I watched him take a step towards me, having to tilt my chin up slightly to meet his gaze. There was a kind of mischief in his dark eyes and his mouth was stretched into a lopsided grin.

"Do you wanna go out on a date with me?" he asked.

My breath caught in my throat.

"Yes, I'll go on a date with you," I smiled,

"Okay," he said, wriggling his brows.

"Okay," I replied, giggling.

We settled on Friday for our date, which was a completely reasonable time considering it would be the start of the weekend and we wouldn't have to worry too much about work.

As the rest of the week unfolded however, I couldn't help but feel anxious and antsy. The days weren't going by fast enough, and to make things even worse for my poor heart, John was making himself way too scarce.

We still ate dinner together every evening, and although he seemed to be getting a little more comfortable opening his mouth around me, there was still some residual awkwardness lingering between us.

I silently wondered, as I was getting ready on Friday, what it would be like to really know him – all of him. What was he like with his guards down and that goofy grin of his plastered on his face? What would it be like eating dinner with him then?

What was he like when he was truly happy or excited about something? What was he like when he was worried or scared? What kind of movies did he like? What was his favorite book? Did he root for specific sports teams? I already knew he was a Rangers fan from the hat he wore almost every single day. Did he also root for the Cowboys?

If not, I wasn't sure I'd be able to date him.

Smiling, I plugged in my curling iron and looked at my reflection in my vanity mirror. John wouldn't tell me what he had up his sleeve for our date, his only hint being to dress casual. Did he even know what he was talking about when it came to women's fashion?

So I chose a light blue, printed Maxi dress and a pair of strappy sandals. I applied a light amount of make-up, feeling very girly and attractive as I danced around my bedroom to Taylor Swift's latest music.

When my curling iron was hot enough, I proceeded to do my hair, letting it fall down in loose curls down my back.

He was used to seeing me in jeans and my ugliest t-shirts or sweaters, so I was kind of excited to see his reaction tonight. I was nervous too. God, I really hoped it wouldn't show.

JOHN

She told me she'd be ready for six o'clock but came downstairs twenty minutes later, looking a little red in the face but absolutely breathtaking.