Chapter 22
The next evening as I got ready for Samantha’s award ceremony, I thought about the best way to approach Trent. I still couldn’t be sure what had changed between us, but my best guess was that he was put off by my attempt at kissing him.
I was determined to make sure that I kept a friendly distance from him, and even though I knew that my crush wouldn’t be so easy to get rid of, I would do my best to keep it to myself. I was certain that we could be friends again if he saw that it was all I wanted.
As the time ticked by to his arrival, I grew more and more nervous. Which was ridiculous. I’d rarely been nervous in my life. The last thing I wanted was to start feeling that way now. I took a few deep breaths, read some affirmations, and reminded myself of my inner strength. I didn’t have to be afraid of anything.
I was in the middle of one of those reminders when there was a knock at the door.
My heart lurched.
“No, behave yourself, Zoe.” I stared hard in the mirror. “Friends don’t try to kiss friends, got it?” After another deep breath I opened the door.
There he was, even more handsome than usual. He’d put on a dress shirt and trousers. He hadn’t gone so far as to wear a tie, but he’d combed his hair neatly. It was a far different look than his usual t-shirts and jeans.
“Hi, Trent.” I lingered in the doorway, pretending not to be nervous. I’d worn the new blouse I’d bought while working with Melanie and simple black pants. It was a toned-down look for me.
“Hi, Zoe.” His eyes locked to mine, before he glanced away. “Ready to go?”
“Yes.” I grabbed my purse and stepped outside, then turned back to lock the door.
“Oh, here.” His fingertips coasted along my waist. I glanced over my shoulder in surprise.
“Sorry, the edge of your blouse was tucked in.” He raised an eyebrow. “Unless that was the look you were going for?”
“No.” I laughed. “Thanks. You saved me from an embarrassing wardrobe malfunction.”
“It looks great, tucked in or not.” He smiled as I turned back to face him.
“Thanks. You look good too.”
“Next time, you’ll have to help me shop. I never know what to buy. I figure pants, shirt—good to go.” He chuckled as he held the passenger door open for me.
“It works for you.” I grinned as I met his eyes. “But it’s possible that I could spice up your wardrobe.” I bit into my bottom lip as I realized I was on the verge of flirting.
“I’d like that.” He closed the door and walked around to the driver’s side.
As we headed to the hotel where the event was being hosted, silence settled between us. I searched my mind for anything we could safely talk about without straying into dangerous territory.
Before I could come up with anything, Trent cleared his throat. I glanced over at him, in the same moment that he looked toward me. He held my gaze as he eased to a stop at a red light.
“I feel like I owe you an apology.”
“You do?” I stared at him and willed the light to stay red.
“I know the last time we saw one another, things were—well, I wasn’t my usual self.” He rubbed his hand across his neck just before the light turned green.
“It’s okay.” I watched as he turned his attention back to the road.
“It’s really not. I just want you to know that I appreciate our friendship.” He turned into the parking lot of the hotel.
As we rolled to a stop, I was tempted to reach out and touch his hand, but I resisted.
“I do too. I would never want to do anything to change it.”
“No?” He looked over at me.
“No.” I held his gaze. “You’re really important to me.”
“You’re important to me too, Zoe.” He rested his hand on top of mine. “We should probably get in there. We don’t want to be late.”
“Yes, you’re right.” I didn’t draw my hand back. Neither did he.
As he stared into my eyes, I thought he might have more to say. I had so many things floating through my mind, but none of them were about friendship.
“Thanks for tonight.” He gave my hand a light squeeze, then stepped out of the car.
I followed after him, confused as ever. Did he want me to say more? Did he want to say more?
Luckily, I didn’t have too long to think about it as we were swept right inside and into the banquet hall where the ceremony was about to start. Our seats were in the front row. I smiled and waved to Samantha as she made her way onto the stage.
She grinned and winked back at me.
“You two really are friends, huh?” Trent smiled as he settled in the chair next to me. “That doesn’t surprise me.”
“It doesn’t?” I glanced over at him.
“No. You’re always so confident, so outgoing. Honestly, you remind me of that character in Samantha’s book—Zara.” He grinned just as the light dimmed to put the focus on the stage.
Maybe he’d never know it, but he couldn’t have paid me a higher compliment. I was still bubbling with pleasure over it when Samantha approached the microphone.