After hanging up, she didn’t even have to go fetch Drew. Her best friend was obviously doing what Charlee suspected she’d been doing ever since she’d stuck her nose in the door at the most opportune moment to tell her that she was cancelling tonight. She was standing somewhere very nearby, listening in, and as soon as Charlee said goodbye, she rushed in the room.
“So what happened?”
Charlee smiled at her suspiciously. “I think you already know.”
Drew’s smile flattened. “Why? What did he say?”
“Oh, that’s right. You couldn’t hear him.” Charlee smiled big, patting the bedspread right next to her for Drew to have a seat. “I don’t know what to think, so I’m not going to. He wants to talk to me, and I have no idea what about, except he said he can hardly wait.”
Drew’s smile slowly resurfaced. “So why didn’t you just ask him?”
Charlee thought about that for a moment. That seemed so simple. Why hadn’t she? “I don’t know. I guess I was just too stunned. I didn’t even think to ask him how he got my number. But he’s on his way now.”
Drew jumped to her feet instantly. “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s get you ready!” She grabbed Charlee’s hand, tugging her to her feet too.
“He said to dress casually. We’re just going somewhere to talk.” Charlee might as well have been talking to the wall because Drew was already hauling her down the hallway toward the bathroom. “And I thought you weren’t feeling well. You were going to take meds and go to bed.”
Drew turned to her with a telling smirk. Her best friend hadn’t been sick for days. “First things first. It’s time to get you looking casually gorgeous. I can sleep later.”
Charlee decided for once to kill the stubborn pessimist in her and just go with it. He could be making excuses to get together with her because he was just looking to have some fun on a Saturday night, and while her head reminded her what a bad idea that was, her heart kept saying, “How bad can that be really?”
They got to the restroom, and she stared at the self-conscious girl in the mirror while Drew searched the cabinets for the straightener and box of combs and brushes—her “weapons.” The corner of her lips twitched into a smile. To hell with it! Whatever happened today, she’d enjoy it for what it was worth. She’d likely regret it later, but for now she could hardly wait either.
~*~
Hector
It was almost funny how hearing his phone announcing that he’d arrived at his destination made his stomach turn. Hector parked in front of the house and turned off the engine, taking a deep breath. As certain as he’d been earlier that this would be easy, he wasn’t so sure now. What the hell was he supposed to do? Ask her to be his girlfriend? Did people even do that anymore? That seemed so high school.
He got out of the truck, muttering under his breath, but as annoyed as he was with himself for not thinking this through a little further, it didn’t take from the excitement of knowing Charlee just might be in his arms very soon. Seeing her at the door took away any misgivings he was beginning to have about this. She was beautiful, and soon she’d be all his—he hoped.
“Hey,” she said, opening the door and stepping out.
The outfit she wore looked comfortable enough. Like she’d said, she wore jeans, but they rode low on her hips, and the short, tight, baby-blue hoodie made the outfit sexier than anything he’d ever seen her in. The shirt she wore underneath was a tiny bit longer but just barely. If she lifted her arm even just a little, Hector would get a glimpse of her bare midriff for sure.
Hector smiled, trying not to swallow up every inch of her with his eyes, but it was difficult. “You look very nice.”
She glanced down at her clothes and shrugged, obviously not getting what was so nice about it. “You said comfortable.”
“Yeah, I did.” He smiled, tearing his eyes away from the sliver of milky white skin showing just between her shirt and jeans. “You ready?”
She nodded and walked to the edge of the porch stairs before he could walk up them. He reached his hand out and she took it. Just like that, they were holding hands already, and they hadn’t even begun to talk. This might be easier than he thought. “You hungry?” He asked.
To his surprise, she turned to him, eyes wide open, and smiled. “You like grilled cheese?”
This excited her? He laughed. “I guess. We don’t eat too much of that at my place, but I had it in high school a lot when they served it for breakfast.”
“Oh no, this doesn’t even compare to high-school grilled cheese. And Drew doesn’t care for it much, so I don’t get to go there as often as I want.”
“What is it, a grilled cheese restaurant?” He opened the door for her.
“No. A food truck.”
He stared at her bright blue eyes for a moment before closing the door. Walking around the truck, the reality of how different this girl was from any of the ones he was used to beginning to set in. Taco trucks in East L.A. were more than abundant. Hell, there was one parked on every corner. And while the idea of them making grilled cheese wasn’t unheard of, he’d never once seen anyone order one, much less get this excited about a food-truck grilled cheese.
“So it’s a truck,” he said as he climbed in and turned the ignition on.
“Yes, well, it’s sort of a specialty truck All they serve is grilled cheese—a bunch of different kinds. When Drew and I first got here, we went to see a game show being aired at NBC studios. Her dad gets all kinds of tickets from his friend. We heard people talking about the food trucks just outside the studio, so we tried the grilled-cheese truck, and I’ve been hooked ever since.”
Hector nodded, pulling out into the street. “All right, that makes more sense.”
“Why? What were you thinking?”
“Never mind,” he said, laughing inwardly.
He wouldn’t tell her he was back to thinking of her as a bit of a snob who walked up to a taco truck with all kinds of greasy Mexican food on the menu and ordered a grilled cheese.
When they got there, he was surprised to see the amount of people standing around the big yellow truck. Obviously he’d been way off. This wasn’t just any grilled cheese. Once they got to the small park just around the corner from the truck where Charlee told him she and Drew ate every time they came here, Hector discovered just how off he’d been. Since he’d never been, he asked Charlee to order for him. Charlee watched him intently as he took the first bite of his grilled cheese. She looked so damn cute. If his mouth weren’t full, he’d just go for it and kiss her.
His thoughts were suddenly on the party going on in his mouth, and he chewed slowly, savoring all the incredible flavors. Looking down at the grilled sandwich he’d barely paid any attention to as he bit into it because he was so into Charlee’s excited eyes, he had to know now. “What’s in this?”
“That’s by far my favorite of theirs,” she said with a very satisfied smile. “It’s mac and cheese and pulled pork with caramelized onions. Isn’t it to die for?”
Hector nodded, taking another bite. It really was incredible. If he weren’t so anxious to talk to her, he would’ve gone back for another when they were done. He gathered up their trash and walked it over to the nearby trash can. On his way back to the picnic table, he saw Charlee spray something in her mouth, and then she turned bright red when she realized he’d seen her. He couldn’t help laughing as he stared in her eyes. “Why does that embarrass you?”
She shook her head and began putting it back in her purse, but he reached out her hand. “Let me have some of that.”
Without making eye contact, she handed it to him. He read the bottle, “Cinnamon Binaca. Hmm I didn’t know people still used breath spray.” He sprayed some in his mouth then smacked his lips, sitting down next to her. “Damn that’s strong.”