Four
Picking a Lilly
After finally convincing Renee that I was going to visit family for a while, I made my way toward Charleston. I drove with the windows down and let the cool wind cut across my face. I could use as much fresh air as humanly possible. The radio was off as I contemplated how to go about pursuing this girl. As crazy as it sounded, I’ve never really had to pursue a female before.
The rumble of Lucy’s engine soothed me. I had to stay focused. I’d be fine as long as I remembered that this wasn’t just for me and Dad. I was doing this for Jenny…for our home and our business. No matter what, I couldn’t allow my conscience to get the best of me. This was a cut and dry job, and all I had to do was not get involved. Being emotionally disconnected was easy for me, so this job should’ve been a piece of cake.
I got to Franklin’s Jewelry store and it took me three tries at parallel parking before I got it right. Digging out some change for the parking meter, I sat and gave myself a “hell yeah” pep talk. I’m sure I looked like a creeper just sitting in my car, but I wanted to plan. I just needed to go in, buy something, and get a good look at her so I’d know what I was dealing with. I should’ve asked to see a picture so I’d at least know who she was. Hopefully, she was the only fat girl working here.
After putting two dollars in the parking meter, I walked to the store. The entire time I prayed that everyone inside wore name tags.
It’d be more believable if I approached her at the little café, so right now called for just a little harmless flirting as I browsed the jewelry. Getting her to notice me was my number one goal.
The little bell over the door rang out as I walked into the empty store. The only reason I knew the place was even open was because of the big bright open sign in the front window.
I walked to one of the jewelry counters and started to look at all the expensive rings in the case. I made my way down to the earrings and decided they were more in my price range. In all reality, I didn’t have a price range, but I figured this was worth digging out of the savings for the loan payment. Besides, if this worked I’d have all the money we needed plus more.
“Anything in particular you’re looking for?” A female voice called from in front of me.
I looked up at the girl on the other side of the counter. She was short and chunky. Long, dark hair cascaded over her shoulders and down her back while a thick set of bangs swooped over her right eye. Her cute, round face boasted clear skin and a juicy set of pouty lips.
Stylishly dressed in a low cut top, I was able to see the rise of her soft cleavage from my height. One of the perks of being a big girl had to be an amazing rack because she sure as hell had a nice set of tits on her.
She reached up and pushed her bangs from her face. The movement pushed a wave feminine scent straight at me. She smelled amazing, like vanilla and cherries. It was really nice, not too over bearing like the horrible perfumes Renee liked to smother herself in.
I took a better look at her as she pushed her hair out of her face and smiled. She had the biggest brown eyes…deep-set bedroom eyes with a sexy tilt that hid the secrets of a sensual woman. Honestly, she was kind of pretty…. in a chunky cute girl kind of way, if you’re into that.
While I checked out her tits, her name tag popped out at me. She was Lilly…my financial savior.
“Actually, I’m kind of lost when it comes to jewelry,” I said, as I nibbled my bottom lip. I was happy to see her eyes dip to my mouth. “I’m not really sure what she likes.” I shot her my “I want you” smile and let my eyes noticeably wander over her face.
I relished in the deep blush that invaded her cheeks since it signified that I was doing my job well. I was just getting started and she was already blushing. This was going to be a walk in the park.
“What kind of girl is she? What do you think she’d like?” She nervously bit the inside of her mouth.
“I don’t really know. What do you like?” I leaned my elbows against the counter to be eye level with her.
“I like lots of things.” She quietly giggled as she started to fidget. It was charming. “But she may not like what I like.”
“Ah, come on. Play along with me. If you could have anything in here what would it be?” I asked.
I kept hoping she’d show me something that wasn’t too expensive. This chick was rich and I didn’t want her thinking I was a poor guy when I couldn’t afford what she picked out.
“You’re serious? You want me to pick out jewelry for someone I don’t know?” She flashed me a weird confused look.
“No, I want you to pick out jewelry that you like. I’m positive that if you like it then she will, too. Humor me, please.” I tilted my head and gave her my puppy dog eyes.
Her face turned pink again and I felt a rush of primal satisfaction. I’ve affected woman before, but for some strange reason seeing her reaction gave me a rush.
“OK, well—um—I’m more of a necklace girl,” she said as she walked down to another case with necklaces in it.
“I’m not really into expensive jewelry,” she continued. “So, that knocks out everything on this side of the case.”
A rich girl who didn’t like expensive jewelry? Fascinating.
I listened as she continued picking out the perfect necklace for herself.
“I prefer silver over gold, so that knocks out half of the necklaces on this side of the case.”
Her fingers moved softly over the different necklaces and for a brief moment I wondered what those hands would feel like against my skin. She had cute fingers…nice nails, too. I appreciated that her medium length, baby pink nails were her own. I hated those God-awful acrylic nails that most girls wore. Short was fine, but some girls went overboard with the length. My boys and I would laugh as we wondered how girls wiped their asses with nails that long.
She swung her hair around once more and again the light scent of vanilla and cherries rushed me.
“What kind of perfume are you wearing?” I blurted out without thinking.
“Um…I’m not wearing any perfume. Why? Does something stink?” Her perfect brow pulled down in question.
“Actually, something smells really good and since I didn’t smell it until you came around, I just assumed it was you. You smell sweet…I like it,” I said, as I threw out another flirty smile.
Her face lit up darker than before and I swam in my playboy ego for a bit. She didn’t stand a chance…poor girl. Her breathing picked up and her large chest pressed against her low top with every breath. It’d been a while since I held a good handful that weren’t bags of silicone and Lilly was definitely more than a real handful. My mouth watered with the thought of tasting vanilla and cherries. Oh, she’d been a sweet snack if I were allowed to taste.
Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all. She was untouchable to me, but I was in need of a good tease.
Brown eyes flickered away from me as she put her head down. Her deep breaths cut through our silence until finally she snapped her head up and held out a necklace.
“What about this? Do you think she’d like this?” she asked.
She wasn’t making any eye contact at all.
After being with so many aggressive women like Renee, her shyness was kind of a turn on. I liked how sexy she made me feel without even realizing it. I made her uncomfortable in a good way and she couldn’t even look me in the face without blushing. It was a boost to my manly pride since her reactions were genuine, and not like the usual overly dramatic reactions of a slutty girl trying to get laid. I liked her response to me. I liked how she made me feel. A soft growl of appreciation slipped from my throat and it earned me a brief flicker of chocolate eyes. I fought the tilt of my mouth.
The necklace she held up was nice. It was a sterling silver rope chain with a little silver heart shaped locket. It was only a hundred and fifty bucks so I could afford it, and she liked it so I’d buy it.
“I think she would,” I said. “What do I put in it?”
“Anything you want really. You could put a picture of the two of you in it or maybe have something engraved on the inside. That’s completely up to you.”
“OK, I’ll take it.”
I followed her up to the cash register and watched as she neatly put the necklace in a little red box. She did everything so softly, she wasn’t in any rush. Her plump fingers brushed gently across the necklace and then lightly over the box. I watched as she rang it up, touching the cash register again with what seemed like the softest touch. I found myself wondering how soft her hands felt. Her touch was relaxing and it blasted me with a quick rush of chills.
I looked up at her when she gave me the total, again noticing how deep her eyes were.
“You have really beautiful eyes,” I blurted out.
That wasn’t a part of my strategy. It was a stupid moment of unwelcomed honesty. I’d be sure that didn’t happen again.
The tips of her cheeks warmed.
“Are you flirting with me?” Genuine confusion laced her expression.
I didn’t have to be a mind reader to know she was thinking of how unlikely it was for a man like me to be flirting with a girl like her. Either that or she really had no idea what flirting looked like and really wanted to know for reference purposes.
“Maybe,” I smirked and shrugged my shoulders.
Her eyes filled with panic and the part of me I never used with strangers lit up with sorrow for her. She really had no idea how to respond to me and my tiny advances.
“Um…thank you, I guess. For…for the eye comment,” she stuttered.
“Don’t thank me…it’s the truth.” I held out the money to her.
She finished the transaction and then put my receipt in the little black bag containing the necklace. I stood there a minute smiling at her and enjoying how nervous I made her, before I thanked her and left the store.
Part one of my mission was complete.
I ended up sitting in the café her mother told me about and drinking way too much cappuccino. I paid close attention to all the people coming in. I heard every order they made…a double shot of this and an extra pump of that. I’d never sleep again if I drank something like that. Shit, I’m probably not going to sleep tonight after all this cappuccino.
“Come on already, Lilly,” I whispered into the lid of my coffee cup.
I was about five minutes away from giving up for the day and trying again tomorrow when I noticed her through the window. She walked in and breezed right by me. I was happy she didn’t notice me right away. I pretended to focus on the car magazine I had in my hand as I listened closely to her order.
“Hey, Joey, just the usual,” she said.
“Hey, girl! How’s it going? No mom meeting today?” he laughed.
“That’s not funny, punk,” she giggled. “No, there’s no meeting today. I’m on my lunch break. Go ahead and throw in a turkey sandwich with that.”
She sat at a little table in the corner across the café from me. I watched as she pulled out a little book and started to write something. This was it, this was the perfect time to go and join her. I stood up and grabbed my cappuccino. Slowly, I walked over to her table. She was so involved in what she was writing she didn’t even hear me approach.
“If it isn’t the brown-eyed beauty from the jewelry store,” I said.
She looked up at me and her full lips spread into a tiny smile.
“If it isn’t the guy who knows nothing about his girlfriend,” she said, as she sat her pen down.
“Girlfriend? Who says that locket was for my girlfriend? Maybe it’s for my mom or my sister or…”
“OK, are you seriously gonna play the no girlfriend game with me?” She lifted a cocky brow.
“I’m sorry…I’m not sure I’m familiar with any game like that.”
“I seriously doubt you’re single,” she said.
“And why is that?”
I slipped into the chair next to her and rested my chin against my fist. This was getting pretty interesting. She was going to attempt to psychoanalyze me. Good luck, sweet girl.
“Guys like you are never single.”
“Guys like me?” I laughed “And exactly what kind of guy am I?”
“You want me to be honest or you want me to sugar coat it?”
“I’ve always been a fan of honesty.” I bit my bottom lip and smiled inside when her eyes followed my action. She was thinking of what it would be like to kiss me…good. I wanted her to think things like that.
“You’re that guy—tall, dark, handsome and totally untouchable. You’re mysterious, which drives the girls wild, and all that confidence you have wrapped around yourself is a turn on, too. You’re a challenge and it’s like encoded in human DNA to go after a challenge. I’m willing to bet you have a hundred different walls up to keep people out, which of course makes the girls even crazier. They all want to be the first one to know the real you and I bet you love your car…which is probably some really great classic mustang that you’ve named Bertha or some other horrible old lady name.” She paused.
Finally, she looked me in the eye and I felt her deep gaze inside my boxers. Holy shit! She was turning me on.
“Am I warm?” She asked with a questioning tilt to her head.
I sat there sifting through everything she had said. She was so close to the truth it freaked me out.
“You’re hot,” I gave her a direct gaze as I let the different meanings behind my words sink in. “Have you been watching me, naughty girl?” I attempted to shake the seriousness away.
“Are you saying that I was right?” she smiled.
She was so right it wasn’t even funny anymore.
“No, I’m just curious where all that came from.”
“I just described any man that would have nothing to do with me, so now my question to you is…why are you talking to me?” she lifted one eyebrow as if accusing me of something.
This girl was very strange. Obviously she had self-esteem issues, but at the same time she was the most confident, outspoken woman I’d ever met…other than my sister, Jenny.
Her honest eyes flipped my insides and I felt a tiny bit of panic run up my spine. I was slowly losing control of the conversation, which was completely unacceptable. I internally shook myself and went in for the kill.
“You think I’m handsome?” I flirted.
“Don’t change the subject,” she blushed.
“No, I think it’s you who’s changing the subject. Then it’s settled!” I said as I playfully smacked the table top.
“What’s settled?”
“As long as you’re not seeing anyone and since you obviously think I’m handsome…I’m taking you out.”
“What do you mean out? Like a date, out?”
“Yes, like a date out. What do ya say?” I shrugged.
I was praying that I made some kind of impression on this girl, at least enough to get her to agree to go on a date with me. Everything was riding on this girl and making her happy for three months.