It was a setup. She knew it. And it was going to be trouble.
Not just any kind of trouble, but the weak-at-the-knees, Taylor-Swift-had-probably-written-a-song-about-it variety that ripped away Shelby Marlowe's ability to speak. That was new. Shelby always had something to say and often said it, and not once in her twenty-six years of life had she stopped in her tracks or become speechless at the sight of a guy.
None of this went unnoticed by Emily Watts, Shelby's best friend and roommate. Emily didn't say anything, but she didn't have to, since the twitch at the corners of her lips gave her away. She recovered quickly, but not before Shelby saw the knowing glance she shot at her boyfriend, Raine Kingston.
Shelby pursed her lips and also looked at Raine. For someone whose acting ability had earned him Hollywood A-list status and who raked in millions of dollars per film for the same reason, he was doing a horrible job of hiding what was really going on. Shelby couldn't decide what made Raine's plans for her and the hottie sitting at his dining room table more obvious: the merry twinkle in his chocolate-brown eyes, or the smile that grew wider when Emily nudged him with her elbow. Now Shelby knew why both of them had insisted she come to this dinner party at Raine's house tonight.
A few choice words ran through Shelby's mind, but she couldn't say them here where she was also in the company of Raine's friends Olivia and Matt, who were visiting from New York. And she definitely couldn't voice her thoughts in front of the yet-to-be-identified, drool-worthy Adonis who'd clearly been invited here to be her dinner companion, whether he knew it or not.
Shelby leaned in close to Emily, her light brown curls bouncing around her shoulders as she did. "Nice try," she murmured, keeping her voice at a volume only the two of them could hear. "You know I need some time off."
"Time off?" Emily repeated. "Aren't you taking a few weeks off from work soon?"
"That's not what I meant."
Emily's forehead crinkled at Shelby's words and then her hazel eyes widened. Shelby had to give her credit—she was better at feigning innocence than Raine was, and Raine was the actor in the room.
"Can you help me with something?" Emily turned toward the dining room entrance, gesturing for Shelby to come with her.
Shelby followed her out of the room and down a hallway. Emily stopped walking when she got to the kitchen and waited for her to catch up.
"There's no 'nice try' going on here," Emily said, keeping her voice low. "Or if there is, Raine didn't tell me about it."
Right, Shelby thought, folding her arms across her chest. She leaned against the kitchen counter and studied Emily's face, searching for any signs of a cover up.
"There are six people here and only two aren't part of a couple," she pointed out. "If you and Raine were trying to be subtle about it, you failed."
"We're not trying to be anything, or at least I'm not," Emily said. "I don't even know who the guy in the dining room is or that he isn't dating someone. He could just be a friend of Raine's who also knows Olivia and Matt."
"Uh-huh. So explain why you looked overjoyed when you spotted him at the table?"
"I looked overjoyed?" Emily asked.
"I saw you trying not to laugh."
Now Emily did laugh. "You're right, but that was about the look on your face. I know you, and I've never seen you react that way to anyone. Admit it—you want him to be single."
"No. I want me to be single, and for a very long time. You know I just ended things with Darren."
Shelby waited for Emily to flinch at the mention of Darren's name and was impressed when she didn't. It was more than Shelby could say for herself after the last couple weeks of reliving her decision to let her lying and cheating ex-boyfriend from college back into her life. She should have known better. She did know better. That was why she had ended things. It was also why Shelby had vowed that until she had some time on her own to clear her head and figure out why she'd let herself be in a relationship with Darren again, and why all of the dating choices she had made since high school had been a complete disaster, she wasn't going to get involved with anyone. Period. That included so-called harmless flirting and innocent coffee or dinner dates.
"You were the one who had the sense to break up with him this time," Emily reminded her. "Maybe you should let yourself be open to someone new."
Shelby shook her head and started to reply. She paused when she heard footsteps in the hallway.
"There you both are." Raine's voice carried into the kitchen. He appeared in the doorway a moment later. "Are you guarding the food?"
Emily's face lit up when she saw him, even though they'd been out of each other's sight for under five minutes. "I needed to talk to Shel about something I didn't think anyone else would be interested in. Whatever is cooking in here smells amazing, though."
Raine was at Emily's side in an instant. The tall, dark-haired movie star and the petite, blond-haired writer were like magnets to one another. Shelby watched them, transfixed. She had never seen Emily as happy as she was when she was with Raine, and the adoring look in his eyes told Shelby he was equally as crazy about Emily. While Emily and Raine had only been dating for a couple of months, Shelby had a hunch they had found their Hollywood ending.
"Have you met Aiden yet?" Raine asked, looping his arm around Emily's waist.
That's when Shelby noticed Raine wasn't the only person who had come into the kitchen. The sandy-haired god from the dining room stood in the doorway, and he looked even better standing up than sitting down, if that was possible. With his tall, fit-looking frame, sun-kissed skin, and perfectly-sculpted features, Shelby couldn't help but wonder if he was also an actor, or maybe a model.
"This is my girlfriend, Emily," Raine continued. Aiden stepped forward and extended his hand to her.
"It's great to meet you," he said.
Even his voice is sexy, Shelby thought. This was going to be a long night.
Aiden turned to her. "We haven't met, either."
"Shelby," she managed to get out, right as he took her hand. A tingle ran through her fingers and up her arm, and she was pretty sure her heartbeat quadrupled its speed.
Her gaze flickered up to meet Aiden's, where she saw warmth reflecting back to her from his eyes. Like everything else about him, his eyes were striking. Shelby took in the deep olive green of his irises, which were ringed with gray and lit up with amber flecks. If she'd thought her bodily response to him taking her hand had been something, it was nothing compared to the electricity coursing through her now.
Look away, the voice inside her instructed. She tried to obey and failed. This would have been ridiculous under regular circumstances, but the promise she had made herself to cool it from anything guy-related for a while made it even worse.
"Wine?"
Raine's voice broke the spell Shelby was under and she was grateful. The thought of gulping down a glass of wine right now in hopes of mellowing out was appealing, but she shook her head.
"I'm driving later. None for me tonight."
"Are you sure?" Emily asked. "You could cab or Uber home, and I could drive your car home in the morning."
"I'm good," Shelby insisted.
"Aiden?" Raine tried.
"Same thing over here—it's a bit of a trek from here to Santa Monica." Aiden turned back to Shelby. "I'm happy to drive you home later if you change your mind."
She couldn't see Emily's face, but Shelby would have bet money she was fighting a triumphant smirk. Of course Aiden would be happy to drive her home. Why wouldn't the most attractive guy she had ever laid eyes on in person, who also appeared to be well-mannered, charming, and probably perfect in every possible way, show up in her life and volunteer to do something nice at the one time she was intentionally trying to be alone?
"What if I live way out in Valencia or something?" Shelby brushed a strand of hair away from her face. "That would be quite the drive."
"Valencia's good with me," Aiden said. "Don't they call it 'Awesometown'?"
"Don't listen to her," Emily chided. "We live less than ten minutes from here."
Raine plucked a wine bottle up from the counter and held it out to Shelby. "Merlot?"
"I'll have water," she told him.
"Wine for me," Emily said, giving Raine a peck on the cheek.
Shelby didn't normally feel awkward when the two of them were affectionate in front of her, but with Aiden still standing close to her, she felt heat creep into her cheeks.
"I'm going back to the dining room," she announced to no one in particular. At least there she could distract herself by talking to Olivia and Matt.
Shelby scooted out of the kitchen and into the hallway before anyone could reply. Olivia glanced up from her phone when she walked into the room.
"I was just wondering if I should go to the kitchen," Olivia commented. "Seems like the party moved there."
"That's because the wine is in there."
"The wine is headed this way with Raine and Emily, but I brought us water," Aiden said. He held out a water-filled goblet to her.
Shelby congratulated herself for not jumping out of her skin, since she hadn't realized Aiden was right behind her. She took the glass from him and sat down at the table. Aiden took the seat next to her.
"Have you guys already met?" Shelby asked.
"Can't get away from the guy," Olivia answered. "Aiden has been terrorizing me since kindergarten."
"We grew up across the street from each other," Aiden explained.
"Which is why I now live clear across the country from you and Raine," she kidded. "Small doses after an entire childhood of you guys."
Emily had been right that Aiden was also a friend of Olivia, at least. Still, the cat-ate-the-canary grin forming on her lips was enough to convince Shelby that she also recognized the dinner arrangement for what it was, or that she was in on it with Raine.
"Liv talks a good game, but she can't wait for the right time to bring up an embarrassing story or twelve about what we did as kids," Aiden told her. "I'm counting on you to rescue me after she has a glass or two of that merlot."
"What makes you think I can save you?" Shelby challenged.
"You already are." He took a sip of water while keeping his eyes locked on her.
A fluttery feeling gripped Shelby's stomach. There was no doubt in her mind that Aiden was flirting with her. How she answered him was everything, since she wasn't sure what she would regret more: flirting right back and seeing where it led, or keeping her promise to herself to play it cool.
*❋ ❋ ❋*
What do you think of Aiden so far? Thank you for all of your reads, comments, and votes!