Pining : A holiday slow-burn, friends-to-lovers romance by Stephanie Rose

Author:Stephanie Rose [Rose , Stephanie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-11-19T16:00:00+00:00

My cheeks flushed as I bit back a smile.

Victoria: We’ll see where the night takes us. Sorry to barge in while you’re working.

Anthony: Barge in? I missed you like crazy all day. Get your beautiful ass over here.

“Wow, you really like this guy, don’t you?” Marley asked, elbowing my side.

“Mar, you have no idea. He’s…” I trailed off, a slow grin lifting my cheeks. “He’s different, but in an amazing way.”

“He must be. You never really seemed this into Gavin, or anyone that I’ve seen you with, even back in high school. Your nose was always buried in a book or whatever you were writing at the time, and you never looked up.” She snickered.

I huffed out a laugh, not denying it because she was right. Maybe because this one time, reality was better than the imaginary worlds I’d created or escaped to in my head.

“I have a random question.” Marley leaned against the car door. “When you had sex with Gavin, did he look at himself in the mirror the whole time? I feel like he would.”

I laughed so hard I almost coughed.

“No, he didn’t, but I wouldn’t say he was…giving. He was his priority the whole time.”

Other than a “it’s not too painful, right?” there’d been no tenderness or feelings the night I had sex with Gavin. Yet, every time I saw him around school he would linger as if there had been.

“How about Anthony? Is he giving or no?” Her brows jumped as she leaned back on the seat.

I looked away as my face heated up.

“He is. In all the best ways.”

We pulled up on the quiet, residential street, the tattoo shop’s neon sign impossible not to notice even with the lit-up holiday bows attached to the streetlights.

“Are you sure about this?” I turned back to Marley before I opened the door.

“Yes, I’m sure.” She clicked her tongue against her teeth and rolled her eyes. “What good is college if you don’t graduate with at least some regrets?” She shrugged before her smug smile faded. “Before I get anything inked on, you’ll double check that it’s spelled correctly, right?”

I burst out laughing. “What are English major friends for?” I pulled the door open and followed Marley inside.

“Wow, how do you choose?” she whispered to me as she studied the different tattoo options on the wall.

“I think if you have to live with it forever, it should be something that has some sort of meaning to you, rather than something you pick off the wall like a takeout menu.”

“Very wise,” a deep voice agreed behind me. “Something with meaning, and no boyfriend’s or girlfriend’s names.” A tall, bearded man covered in ink strolled over to us. “I’m Rory. I heard we had two potential customers headed over. You must be Victoria.”

I shook his extended hand. “How did you know?”

“Anthony may have mentioned your eyes a time or twelve. And you are?”

“Marley,” she squeaked out and squared her shoulders. I had a feeling the poor thing was starting to lose her nerve.

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