Falling Into You (Geek to Chic) by Nikki Brinks Read Free Book Online Page A

invite yourself out to be around a girl that the last
time you saw her, she left her hand imprinted on your face?” Derek was
completely bewildered by his friend’s behavior.  
    “I am trying
to help you out.   Girls are far more
comfortable going out with a new guy if it is a group outing.   You should know this by your age.”   Alex seemed to believe his own bullshit, but
Derek was far from sold.
    “So let me get
this straight.   You are giving up a
Friday night, a night you could be hooking up with some poor unsuspecting woman
for a night between the sheets, just so you can help your ex-nerd buddy land
the girl of his dreams?” Derek said his voice laced with heavy sarcasm. “Wow, I
am such a lucky guy to have a friend like you.”  
    Alex gave him
the bird and pulled his night blue Porsche 918 Spyder into the small parking
lot of the downtown brewery Derek and Roni had chosen for the evening.   Derek knew his friend had his own agenda for
the night.   He only hoped that it did not
interfere with his own.  
    Lunch between
Roni and Derek had gone perfectly.   The
two sat for a couple of hours talking about everything from their favorite
seasons in their college days.   She managed
to make it through the entire lunch without causing him physical pain.   Well, until he dropped her off at her car
back at Starbucks. She opened the car door at the same time he tried to. He now
had a nice bruise on his knee to remind him of her.   He liked that she was clumsy.   It made him feel more comfortable around
her.   His nerd days might be behind him,
but Derek was still learning to accept that he had outgrown that awkward
stage.   Roni was beautiful, smart and
funny. Her almost landing him in the hospital every ten minutes were what
allowed him to see them as equals instead of way out of his reach.
      Derek was so lost in his thoughts he had not
even realized Alex had parked the car and was walking into the brewery without
him.   Oh
shit! He had to move to catch up or have Alex be alone with Roni and her
friend. Derek bolted from the car. He grabbed Alex by the arm right before he
reached for the door.   “You are to be on
your best behavior tonight! No crude jokes, or bad pickup lines.   In fact, it would be best if you said
nothing.   I don’t want a repeat of last
night.”   Alex only laughed.  
    Derek pushed
Alex aside, scanning the room to find the girls.   Once he located them near the back of the
brewery he made a beeline for them.   Each
and every time he had seen Roni over the last six months she had made his heart
stop.   Tonight was no different.   She was dressed casually again in jeans that
looked like they were made for her and a red sweater.   Her hair was up in some twisty thing, leaving
her long neck exposed.   The thoughts that
ran through his head had him wishing he could causally adjust himself.   
    “Hey
there.”   His voice had turned husky even
to his own ears.   He put his hand on her
shoulder so he could touch her, even in this small way.   Six months of wanting her were hitting him in
one hard wave of lust.   Roni and Izzy sat
at a booth, each on one side of the table.   He slid in next to Roni placing and arm around the back of the booth
kissing her chastely on the cheek.   She
even blushed for him.   Perfect.
    “Hey there
yourself. We ordered the sampler tray of beers since they have the new beers
out for the spring season.” She smiled at him nervously.  
    “That sounds
great.”   At that moment he noticed Izzy
and Alex had already began glaring at each other.   “I guess I should introduce myself formally,
I’m Derek, and Super Asshole over there is actually my friend and business
partner Alex.” Derek held his hand out to Izzy who turned a warm smile on him.
    “It is nice to
meet you Derek.   Super Asshole, I mean
Alex,” she smiled, “can have a seat I promise not to slap him…. as long as he
plays nice that is.”  
    “Oh honey, I
can play