Always Only You by Chloe Liese (z-lib.org).epub

“All the TV you’ve watched, all the books you’ve read, and you don’t know
the metric for ensuring film and fiction don’t just portray women only gathered
to talk about men?”
“Uh. No. Guess I missed that in my quest for ultimate dorkdom.”
She throws a fry at me. “Anyway. We’ve passed it. Caught up plenty about
everything else in life. So, talk about him already.”
“Who?”
Annie rolls her eyes as she slurps her milkshake. “Ren, you goober. He told
you how he feels about you, didn’t he?”
I gape at her. “What? How did you—”
“I didn’t,” she says, hands raised. “It was just a hunch. His attraction seemed
pretty clear.”
“Not to me!”
“Well, I know. As you’ve said yourself, men’s interest is not something you
pick up on. From the first time I met him, I swear, just the way he looked at you
as you introduced us—swoon. But when he joined us for lunch? Confirmed it.”
“Well, how nice to know that everyone else had it figured out except for
me.” I throw my napkin on the table and flop back against the booth. Sometimes
the areas in life to which I seem so utterly blind and clueless are honestly
humiliating.
“Hey. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it to upset you.” Annie sighs. “Frankie, we
both know that even if you did know, you didn’t want to know. You didn’t want
to see it. Because you’re hell-bent on spinsterhood.”
“Annabelle. If you weren’t heavy with child, this spinster would be giving
your breeches an epic wedgie.”
“Women didn’t wear breeches back then, Francesca.”
The bell dings as the diner’s door opens, making me casually glance over my
shoulder.
The floor drops out from underneath me. Ren walks in. With a woman.
“Kill me now.” I sink into the booth, feeling a cold sweat break out across
my skin.
“What?” Annie perks up, like a little baby bird peering out from the nest.
“What?”
“Jesus, Annie,” I hiss. “I’m trying to hide, not draw attention to us.”
Her eyes widen. “Oh, well, hello, handsome. Oof, there is something about
him. Gingers don’t even normally do it for me, but your man is—”
“He’s not my man.” I groan. I can’t believe Ren is here. With a tall, willowy
woman who has gorgeous dark red hair and wide green eyes.
Why would he be here with a woman when we just talked eight hours ago