Lucky 13 by Cat Gardiner

Author:Cat Gardiner [Gardiner, Cat]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Vanity & Pride Press
Published: 2014-10-28T22:00:00+00:00

Liz’s Blog Post Here

Chapter Thirteen – Friday, December 13

12 Days Until Christmas

The date with her speed dating match already had doom written all over it and given Unlucky Thirteen Lizzy’s history, it seemed a disastrous omen.

Standing outside the Bowlmor bowling alley on Chelsea Pier, waiting for the man she matched with wasn’t so bad. Well, apart from looking at her watch six times already and that was six times more than she wanted to. He was late. By her governing Miss Punctuality standard, late was a pretty bad beginning for a first date, and he was late by ten minutes. Not to mention she was freezing. Once the sun went down, the temperature had dropped significantly. Neither Elizabeth’s new blue, wool coat, nor her thick scarf did anything to warm her. She stood before the busy entry door repeatedly withdrawing her frozen hands from the marginal warmth of her deep coat pockets, only to burrow back in while she bounced on the balls of her feet to keep warm.

Preston, her date, approached her nonchalantly, like he didn’t have a notion that he kept her waiting for him.

“Elizabeth, right?” he asked. If not for her blue coat, he definitely would not have recognized her. The cosmetic-less woman with eyeglasses and a bun head before him was visually not the same woman as the night of speed dating, and he was more than a little disappointed.

Elizabeth smiled brightly. “Hi Preston.”

They shook hands. Funny, she remembered him as taller and clean shaven. She had never really appreciated that five o’clock shadow look. No matter, it was a small detail. He was still a handsome enough guy, and the rosy chill to his cheeks and nose was kind of cute as the hot steam came from his mouth when he spoke.

Preston held the door open for her, entering the state-of-the-art entertainment venue. Bowling lanes, game room, pool hall and bar areas surrounded a wide open floor plan of luxury pink leather seating. Towering above, overlooked a private loft reserved for parties and special VIPs. The place was a hive of activity and for a Friday night, they were pretty lucky to have reserved a bowling lane. Accented by the obligatory holiday colors, the dimly lit retro décor of blues and purples set the scene for a fun evening. Crashing bowling pins mixed with pop music and cheers of encouragement to teammates made up the din of the bowling area. Neon lights and TV screens hung from the walls and ceilings. It was exciting and clearly the ‘go to’ place on the Pier.

As soon as they neared the bar area, Preston noticed the ‘Restrooms’ sign and excused himself for a moment leaving Elizabeth to wait around nervously. She occupied the time, taking the opportunity to admire the general splendor of the venue, reflecting how Bowlmor had launched a rock solid advertising campaign, even YouTube commercials, promoting “The Perfect 1st Date.” She smiled and thought optimistically, We’ll see.

Several minutes later, Preston re-joined her, and they walked toward the bowling shoe counter.

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