Breaking the kiss, his lips traveled from her mouth to her ear. “We need to slow down.”
Lack of experience be darned, she was ready to strip off her dress. “I’m not a virgin,” she whispered, and immediately regretted the slip. Her face heated and embarrassment made her head heavy. She pinched her eyes closed.
Edging back, he looked down at her. “I didn’t ask.”
“I figured you might think . . . with the information I gave you . . .”
The pad of his thumb pressed over her lower lip and he smiled, his gaze focused there. Moving his thumb across her lip, his eyes darkened, his lids closing to half-mast. “We should still take this slow. I’m going home to cool off.” He leaned in and pressed his lips to hers, gently this time. “I still owe you that knock-you-off-your-feet kiss.”
“That wasn’t it?”
He grinned, and she had to lock her knees to stay upright. “You’re still standing, so no, that wasn’t it.” He closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath, brushing his nose to hers. Groaning, he pulled away. “Next time, Faith.”
When the door closed behind him, she sank to the floor and patted her chest, not recognizing the crazy sensations whirling inside. She pressing a hand to her forehead and laughed like an idiot. It took her too long to realize the feeling was . . . happiness.
* * *
Faith was dusting lemon bars with powdered sugar and checking Ginny’s progress on adding sprinkles to the cupcakes when Lacey strolled in the kitchen door.
“Who’s ready for the best sleepover ever?”
“I am, I am,” Ginny chanted.
Faith laughed. “We definitely have enough sugar to keep us up all night.”
“My party, my menu,” Ginny said.
Lacey kissed her cheek. “You are so right, Ginny girl.” She glanced around the kitchen. “I brought margarita mix. Do they have a blender?”
“Above the fridge.” Faith moved to the sink to wash her hands. “I’m a lightweight with regards to alcohol, as it turns out.”
“Oh,” Lacey drawled. “Did we get a little tipsy on our date last night?” She set the blender on the island and plugged it in.
“You had a date?” Ginny was awed.
Lacey filled the blender with ice. “She sure did. With guess who? Alec.”
“You did?” Ginny said, clapping her hands. “Is he a good kisser?”
“Oh boy. Mia’s gonna kill me.”
Lacey waved her hand, dumping margarita mix into the blender with the other and switching it on. Noise clattered as the ice crushed. “Mia won’t care if we talk about boys,” she shouted. “That’s what sleepovers are for!”
Faith wouldn’t know. She’d never been to one.
Lacey poured a virgin margarita into a cup and handed it to Ginny. Then she poured a generous finger—or five—of tequila into the blender. “Think that’s enough?”
Faith laughed. “Uh, yes.”
Lacey added more mix and ice. She switched the blender on again and shouted over the noise. “So, is Alec a good kisser or not?”
Faith pressed her lips together, unable to hide the giddy smile. “Yes.”
Lacey’s brows rose, pretending not to have heard. “What?”
“Yes, he’s a good—”
The blender stopped.
“—kisser.” Faith rubbed her forehead. “You tricked me into screaming that. Is he right outside the door or something?”
Lacey poured two drinks. “Nope. Just us girls. And great kisses are worth shouting about.” She handed Faith a cup and clacked her own cup against it. “To the best sleepover ever!”
“Yeah!”
Faith smiled at Ginny and took a sip. The drink, despite being blended with ice, burned all the way down. “Wow, Lacey.”
“It is a little strong.” Her pretty mouth twisted. “I’ve never made margaritas before. Never been to a sleepover either.”
“You haven’t?” Ginny asked.
“My mom was pretty snobby. Thought we were above things like that. It wasn’t proper.”
Faith connected with Lacey in that minute, a bond of sorts forming. “I haven’t been to a sleepover either. My sister was the one with all the friends growing up. I never got invited to any parties.”
“Well,” Lacey said, tilting her head. “Guess it’s a first for us then. It really is the best sleepover ever. Cole has a ton of movies in his collection for us to choose from. Plus, I brought my cosmetics bag. We can do makeovers.”
Oh boy.
Ginny bounced and clapped. “Me first.”
“You got it.”
They settled on the living room floor with blankets and pillows. High School Musical—Ginny’s choice—played on the huge flat screen while they stuffed their faces with cupcakes and lemon bars and popcorn.
Faith had never had such an overdose of sugar in her life. She was always so careful what she ate that she decided she was going to let herself go just for tonight. She was young and healthy and it was silly to be so overcautious just because her parents were. Her parents had good reasons, with Hope’s illness and needing a lot from Faith to keep her treatments going, but Hope had been dead ten years now. It was probably time to let her go. It didn’t mean Faith had to forget her, right? Just move on.
The movie ended at the same time Faith’s margarita cup emptied. Huh. When did that happen? She was feeling a little light-headed.
Lacey pulled out a bagful of cosmetics and got to work on Ginny’s makeover. While they were busy, Faith cleaned up some of the wrappers and changed movies. Deciding she’d had enough tequila, she brought out bottled water from the fridge for everyone.
“So,” Lacey said, applying lipstick on Ginny. “Mia loves Cole. I love Jake. Is there romance brewing for Faith and Alec? Whatcha think, Ginny?”
“Yeah!”
Faith tucked her feet under her and sat on the couch. “It’s pretty new, guys. Besides, Alec lives in New York. I think it’s just going to be a summer thing.”
“Are you okay with that?”
“Not much choice.” She shrugged. “It is what it is. May as well enjoy it while he’s here.”
It had taken all her courage to reach out and ask for what she wanted from Alec. She had no idea how to go about fully living. She’d simply seized the opportunity. Later, she’d probably think it was insane, but for now, he made her heart pound and her body want. Her response to him every time he was near reminded her she was alive.
Lacey nodded. “I see your point. I don’t know if I could do that, though. I get attached—at least I do when I’m interested. I think I knew I loved Jake after our first date.”
“Did he kiss you?” Ginny asked.
“Yes. He’s a really great kisser.” She brushed her hands together. “You, my dear, are done. You look beautiful.”
“I do?”
Faith nodded. Lacey hadn’t done much, just a hint of blush, gloss, and shadow, like she’d done for Faith last night for her date with Alec. “You do look very pretty.”
“I’m going to go see.” Ginny ran off down the hall to the bathroom.
“I’m sorry about Alec. I didn’t realize it wasn’t serious.”
Faith smiled. “It’s okay. I don’t mind talking about it. It’s just . . . I’ve never had close girlfriends before. Been a long time since a guy was interested, too. I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do.”
From her spot on the floor, Lacey propped her elbow on the cushion and tugged on her earlobe. “Before Mia came back to Wilmington, I didn’t have anyone. I was on committees and in clubs, but no one I could talk to like this, you know?”
Faith nodded. “I know. Not the committees part, but alone I understand.”
Ginny came back in the room. Lacey took some pictures on her phone and texted them to Mia. They gathered for a group selfie before getting comfy to watch Grease. Ginny fell asleep halfway through the movie, so Faith went to brush her teeth and made sure the alarm was set before turning off the lamps. Propping her head on a pillow, she tuned back into the movie.