Handcuffs, Kisses and Awkward Situations (PUBLISHED, SAMPLE)

Chapter [10]

Because this book is now published, content stops after chapter twenty. Please proceed with this information in mind.  

T e n 

            I had thought of this night over and over since the day I met Chris Baker.

            I also thought I'd be wearing something a lot more... suitable for the occasion. Since I couldn't exactly wear sleeves, I had to squeeze into a strapless dress. The material was soft and silky, the kind that slipped between your fingers like delicate and icy waves. Tossing Chris' blazer over my shoulders, Ryder and I headed downstairs to where Chris was waiting.

            Dressed in a pair of dark washed jeans and a grey button down, Chris stood at the door, engaging in small talk with Patrick. Eve was there too; completely convinced that Chris had brought her a ham. Eve really liked ham and according to her, Chris smelt like ham.

            "If it's not ham, is it bacon?" Eve asked, sniffing around.

            Chris looked a little startled as she advanced towards his chest pockets. "I, uh, didn't know I was meant to bring a ham..." He looked at Patrick in desperation.

            Patrick just wrapped his arms around Eve, placing his hands on her stomach as he pulled her away and pressed her against him. "We have some leftover ham in the fridge, baby," he soothed; Eve instantly melting.

            We had reached the bottom of the stairs then. Chris' looked suddenly so young and awkward as he watched my sister and her boyfriend contently wrapped in each other's arms. He looked away from the couple, suddenly finding the wall across the room extremely fascinating.  Then, his eyes flickered towards us.

            "Nora," he breathed, watching as we made our way towards him.

            "Hey," I mumbled nervously, tucking a piece of golden hair behind my ear and wrapping the jacket around me tighter.

            "You look beautiful," he commented, before looking over at Ryder. His tone turned to ice as he said, "How cute. You colour coordinated with my gorgeous date."

            I looked over at Ryder. Patrick had lent him another one of his T-shirts and this time, it was grey. I hadn't realised how impeccably it matched the silvery material of my dress. Ryder and I exchanged quick glimpses, just a quick flicker before we returned our gazes back to Chris. Ryder stepped forward for a single second and briefly whispered something to my date. Chris narrowed his eyes, lips tightening to a thin line as Ryder stepped back. Together, they stared each other down with a silent intensity. Chris returned his gaze to me a moment later and smiled.

            "You ready to go?" He held out his hand.

            Linking my arm through his, we stepped out into the night and towards his car. It was dark and sleek, gazed with a metallic coat of paint that glittered under the faint, golden flow of the streetlights. Ryder and I, since we were now conjoined twins, were forced to sit in the back seat. Chris still held the door open for me, but stepped away once I was in and let Ryder finish off what he started.

            The serious tension between the two guys was starting to bug me and I had the urge to demand answers to avoid awkwardness for my date, but the way Chris looked through his rear view mirror every so often to sharply stare Ryder down made me pause. Sighing, I gazed out the tinted windows and out into the night, as if I could really see anything.

            The ride to the pizza parlour was short. It wasn't in town, which had surprised me. As Chris made every smooth turn and passed every streetlight, I started to become unfamiliar with the roads. I realised we weren't heading towards where the main shopping attractions were. In fact, we were just passing through streets full of houses.