Love & Hate (Book Two: Love) (7 page)

“
Good because I want to ask you on a date and I wanted to be sure there was no one in the way.”

“
Oh…no, I am definitely single.” I say a bit embarrassed.

“
Well in that case, I would love to take you out to dinner tonight.”

“
Uh, okay…sure.” I’m totally surprised at his immediateness.

“
Perfect. Will seven work for you?” He asks through his wide grin. I must admit he has a beautiful smile.

“
Yes but where are we going? A girl needs to plan you know.” I reply with my own giant smile.

“
Just a relaxed dinner and a movie. I was thinking we would go see the new Transformers movie.”

“
That sounds great. I have been looking forward to seeing it. I love the Transformers movies.” I say totally revealing my inner-nerd girl.

“
Well great. I’ll pick you up at seven then.”

“
See you then.” I say and head to the girls locker rooms to change.

Once I have put on dry clothes I head out to the parking lot to find my truck. I’m on a total high. I feel hopefully that maybe, just maybe, swimming will help improve my back. I also am hopeful that my new blossoming friendship with Holden is the exact thing I need to get my mind off Cutter. But of course having shit for luck is the name of my game. As I walk across the parking lot toward my truck I see him across the street walking into the rec center with his gym bag. Thankfully he doesn’t spot me, but seeing him is enough to dash all my happiness in an instant.
Will there ever come a time when seeing him won’t affect me or will I live the rest of my life forever scared of laying eyes on him?

“
I’m full on freaking out here Mills? What do I wear?” I whine as I rapid-fire clothes out of my closet onto my bed. Poor Millie is almost covered by my onslaught of garments.

“
Calm down. It’s just dinner and movie. Most the time you will be in the dark so just wear something comfy. Jeans and a hoodie?”

I let her words sink in a second. “Which hoodie?”

“
Umm….your new teal and gray Northface one.”

“
Okay. I think I chucked that out here a while ago.” I say now madly rifling through the pile of clothes covering Mills.

“
Found it!” I hold it up in victory.

“
Great. Now what jeans?” Millie asks.

“
Well shit…I don’t know. Ah… this is so stressful.” I pace back and forth.

“
Alright calm the hell down. It’s just a date no biggie. Here wear these ones; they make your butt look great.” She tosses a pair of skinny jeans from my dresser at my face.

“
Thanks Mills!” I scream down the hall to her as she makes her escape from my craziness.

Holden will be here any minute to pick me up and I feel totally unprepared. I am a huge ball of nerves. I know that I need to calm down and just relax but I can’t. I’m not good at this type of thing.

“
Paige, get your fine ass out here. Holden just pulled up.” Millie calls from the living room.

“
Be right there.”

I take a deep breath and try to center myself. This is the first step in moving on I tell myself repeatedly as I walk toward the living room.

“
Hi Paige. You ready?” Holden says from the doorway. He is dressed in a dark jeans and a sky blue hoodie that compliments his dirty blonde hair perfectly.
“She sure is!” Millie cuts me off before I can even answer him. She hands me my purse that was sitting on the coffee table and lightly pushes me toward the door.

“
Oh I need my cell phone.” I try to turn back to get it from my room.

“
Already ahead of you, I put it in your purse. Now you two kids have a fun time. Holden don’t bring her back before two, okay? I have a date myself and we have plans.” With that Millie slams the door shut and locks it.
I don’t even know if I have my freaking keys!

“
Well okay then.” Holden says with his signature bright smile playing on his lips. “Shall we get going?” He says as he opens the passenger door to his SUV.

I nod and climb in the car.

“
I hope you like Chinese.”

“
I love Chinese.”

“
Great, the place we are going to is a Mom and Pop shop. It is the best Chinese on the East side by far.”

“
Can’t wait.”

CHAPTER 7

Holden wasn’t lying. The food was amazing at the restaurant he took me too. It was a tiny brick building up on the hillside off-campus. It surprised me how much space there actually was inside and there was even a small water garden in the back part of the restaurant. Holden had recommended I get the lemon or orange chicken. He raved about it and now I know why. It was phenomenal.

Dinner was going great with Holden. We talked about school and our classes. We also mused about what Millie was possibly up to with her date in that empty house. I found being around Holden was just easy, and that was refreshing.

As we walk through the packed parking lot of the sole movie theater in Pullman, Holden reaches out and tucks his hand lightly in mine. I instantly smile and get a boost of confidence.

Holden pays for our tickets and we head into the theater to find our seats. The place is packed because it is the opening day of the new Transformers movie. Thankfully, we have arrived early enough to get good seats. We pick the perfect spot in the middle of the massive room.

“
Do you want any snacks or a drink?” Holden asks as we settle into our seats.

“
Umm…maybe a Coke. I’m still really full from dinner.”

“
Alright, I’ll be right back.” I watch as Holden walks in front of the theater and out the exit.

I begin to check my phone to see if I have any new messages. I’m half way through scrolling through my Facebook feed when I hear that dark sexy laugh.
Crap of all craps. What are the chances?

I look up to find Cutter and Laney arm in arm searching for seats. I sink lower in my seat hoping to go unnoticed. Luckily, they choose a spot a few rows in front of me. I relax a bit knowing they won’t be sitting right next to Holden and me.

Call it a sick curiosity or an utter lack of self-preservation, but I couldn’t help it, I had to watch them. I studied their every interaction trying to decipher its exact meaning. Like the way she would playfully punch his arm, clearly an attempt to flirt with him, or the way he would share his drink with her. But the worst was when the lights started to dim and she snuggled up next to him leaning her head on his shoulder. That broke me. I couldn’t sit here and watch any of it anymore. I was just about to stand to leave when I saw Holden enter the theater with my drink and a bag of popcorn.
You can do this Paige, just focus on Holden. He is good for you.

I guess I should have considered maybe Cutter would recognize Holden; after all he did attempt to beat the hell out of him. As Holden passes in front of where Cutter and Laney are sitting, I notice Cutter sit up straight in his seat watching Holden like how a lion would stalk his prey.
Oh crap the jig is up!

Holden is completely unaware as he climbs the stairs that Cutter is tracking his every movement. I feel like I should warn Holden or something but there is no time. Holden turns down the aisle towards me and I quickly steal a glance back at Cutter.
Big mistake.

I watch as Cutter makes the connection that Holden and I are here together. His face flashes with anger as his eyes catch mine. I know I have no reason to feel bad, but I do.

Holden sets our drinks down and settles in next to me. He is completely ignorant to the hostility that is occurring around him. I’m glad he hasn’t caught on. I would hate for there to be another repeat of what happened on the cruise.

The movie starts and I finally exhale a bit. Holden finds my hand on the arm rest next to his and tucks it into his. It feels nice and it is the exact thing I need to get my mind off the resident dickwad sitting two rows up. I’m thankful for Holden and his ability to steal my focus, even if it is for just a short time.

The movie was pretty good; I still will always love the first Transformers the most. Holden seemed to have really enjoyed it. He was engrossed staring at the screen the entire time. I unfortunately had another movie that was holding part of my attention. It was definitely a horror flick. For the majority of the movie I sat and watched Laney Davis lean and cuddle against Cutter’s side. At one point Cutter even bent over and kissed her on the forehead. I immediately felt a sharp pain in my gut like I may lose my dinner, or worse, I might cry. I had to resort to counting the lights on the wall to preoccupy my mind enough to prevent my emotions from bursting out. I had held it together and now it was time to exit the theater.

I stall a bit hoping to give us enough time to avoid Cutter and Laney who will be making their own exit. After riffling through my purse for my phone I finally think I have given us enough time. I stare at where I had last seen Cutter and I am relieved that I no longer see him. I let out a deep sigh and relax. Holden and I head out to the parking lot. He busily chats about his favorite parts of the movie. I feel bad I didn’t enjoy it more. I give Holden my best pretend smile and continue our chatting.

When we get to Holden’s SUV he opens the door for me but he doesn’t move out of my way enough to let me get in the car, he just stands there smiling at me.

“
Thanks for coming with me tonight, Paige.” He beams.

“
I had a really wonderful time Holden. Thank you for inviting me.”

“
It’s still early, do you want to go home or would you like to come over to my house for a while?”
Oh geez. What do I do?

“
Oh uh…”

“
No pressure. I just thought since Millie didn’t really want you to come home until late we could kill sometime at my house.”
Damn Millie!

“
Okay, sounds good to me.”

“
Great.”

I watch Holden run around the front of the car and hop inside next to me. We pull out of the parking space and out of the corner of my eye I notice something reflected in the side mirror. I catch a stoned-faced Cutter Daniels standing in the darkness watching our car move away from him. His hands are fisted at his sides and his shoulders are bowed forward in anger. My mind begins racing, wondering if he had heard Holden and me talking. Did he hear Holden invite me back to his house? And worse did he hear me agree to go home with him? A heavy pang of guilt washes over me as I watch the landscape outside stream by.
I’m at an important crossroads here and if I choose poorly there will be no going back.