What Brings Me to You by Loralee Abercrombie Read Free Book Online

being nice. He's not into you like that. He's just being nice. How could he be? Look at you! You’re disgusting. No one, especially not this man, will ever want you!   That understanding made the walk less awkward, even though twice the back of his hand brushed against mine. Once, after I'd switched purse-carrying shoulders, and the other when he reached in his pocket for his car keys. He clicked the keyless entry and pointed at, what I assumed to be a joke, but when the headlights flashed and the doors unlocked my jaw dropped. Teddy drove a brand new Mercedes. Jet black. Limo tinted windows. Chrome detail. The interior was soft cream leather with black trim. I didn't have to ask if it was his. His books in the backseat, the graduation tassel hanging from the rear view and a photo of him and a leggy blond in the console told me all I needed to know.  Leggy blond? Who is she? I felt jealousy tingle the back of my neck, but stopped myself before I got started. Teddy and I are merely acquaintances, he doesn’t even know my last name. He can see whoever he wants. Besides He's just being nice to you, Charley. That’s the kind of girl that gets a boy like this, not you! You’re brown, you’re short, you’re ugly. There’s no contest.
                  As I chanted internally, I couldn't help look at the photo. It was a candid, but it looked like a picture from a magazine. They were both so perfectly matched. She was tall, pale with the most striking eyes like Teddy’s, only hers were green. There was a ring of yellow around her iris that almost seemed to glow in the sunlight. The way he held her waist, the way her head was thrown back in laughter. The way he was beaming while whispering in her delicate ear, there was no way they weren’t involved. I knew it, but jealousy and pride needed him to say it.      Stop it Charley. He's just being nice to you. It shouldn't matter that he's got a beautiful girlfriend He’ll never hold you like that. You’re not her! And truly it shouldn't have mattered so I was content as the car purred to life and we drove off.
                  In the moments leading up to ordering I actually felt nervous, but was reminded of the blond in the photo and my mantra kicked in. The words played over and over until they all ran together and I felt liberated. Besides, it was rare I got to eat plain old drive through food, so I was going to do it up right.      
                  "What do you want?"
                  "A double bacon burger, no mayo and a really large coke. Not diet. Regular."
                  "Okay," he chuckled. “Sure you can handle all that, little girl?”
                  “You have no idea.”
                  "Fries?"
                  "Ew, no. I hate fries, but I'll split an onion ring with you if they've got 'em." I was being totally serious but he was looking at me with an amused expression and I really resented being laughed at. Again.
                  "What is so funny?"     
                  He burst into an all-out guffaw, "You. Jesus, you're persnickety. You may be the only person on Earth who doesn't like fries."
                  "That cannot possibly be true. And anyway it's not like I'm some fast food Nazi.” I realized my mistake too late and hoped he wouldn’t call me on it. Thank god he tried to change the subject after rolling his eyes. While he droned on about something totally nonsensical, I reached in my bag for my wallet. When I'd almost gotten it out his hand came down hard and gripped my wrist. When I looked up, we were almost nose to nose. His pale blue eyes were burning into me.
                  "Stop," he whispered, still clutching my wrist, "I've got this."
                  I wanted to protest. I wanted to point out that insisting on paying was a perpetuation of the 1950s "little woman, big man"