Total pages in book: 40
Estimated words: 38908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 195(@200wpm)___ 156(@250wpm)___ 130(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 38908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 195(@200wpm)___ 156(@250wpm)___ 130(@300wpm)
This was why she hated dating. At twenty-five years old, she was still a freaking virgin and hadn’t been on a real date ever.
Most of the guys she knew, she didn’t want to date.
“What do you think?” she asked, passing June her cell phone.
June had given birth to a little bouncy boy a few months ago, but even though she shouldn’t be in the shop, she always found a reason to stop by. Motherhood suited the other woman, and Aria couldn’t help but envy her. She had a wonderful, attentive husband, good friends, and now an angel for a son.
While Aria had her work and her books.
That was all she had.
No one to snuggle up with. No one to go see a movie with. She’d stopped going to the movies as waiting in line behind so many couples and even guys and girls as friends, and all combinations in between, she would be the lonely loser with a single ticket.
It sucked, big time.
“Wow, do you know him?” June asked.
“No. Isn’t that the point of a dating website? To not know who they are.” She sighed.
“We’re back to my original question, what’s wrong?”
“I don’t know. I think I’m going insane.” She didn’t respond to the message and slid the phone back into her pocket, grabbing her coffee to take a sip.
“Okay, something is clearly bugging you. Why didn’t you respond to that guy?” June asked.
Swallowing the hot coffee, Aria stared at her friend, hearing Molly deal with the customers. Aria had been in the kitchen since a little after three baking for the entire day. It was close to closing time, and she was exhausted. The thought of going on any date right now didn’t exactly thrill her.
“I don’t think I’m cut out for all of this dating stuff. I don’t have what it takes to hold a conversation with a guy.”
“You talk with Dale and Trey perfectly fine. Even Max. Admittedly, you don’t say much to him, but it’s a start.”
“It’s not a date though. I mean, what am I going to talk about? What do men expect on dates?”
June gave her a pointed look.
“See, that’s my point. I don’t know. I’m not good with this.” The more she started to think about going on a date, the less Aria even wanted to.
“You totally should go on this date,” June said. “I think it’ll be good for you.”
“Why?”
“This guy isn’t a local, and you can get a feel for what dating is really like rather than being terrified.” June shrugged. “It’s the only way you’re going to feel even a little safe about it.”
Reaching into her cell phone, Aria nibbled her lip and felt completely out of her comfort zone. This was the point though. The only reason she went on the dating site was to find someone. Her soulmate.
“Okay, yes.” She agreed to dinner and drinks, pressing the “send” button.
The moment she did, she started to panic.
“I can’t do this,” she said.
“Yes, you can,” June said. “You’re more capable of doing these things than you give yourself credit for.”
“What’s going on?” Molly asked.
“Aria is going on a date, and tomorrow this place is opening up later. You don’t have to worry about getting in here so early. I know you’re probably tired after a long day.”
She had started to get tired, but she’d not been sleeping well at night, either.
“How exciting. We need to get you ready. This place is spotless as usual. We need to shut up shop and get her ready,” Molly said.
“Guys, it’s fine. Really. I can do this.”
“You can?” June asked.
“Yes, of course. I can dress myself and get to wherever he wants to go for drinks. It’s easy.” She forced a smile to her lips.
“We can finish up here,” June said. “Go on. We want pics of how good you look. Go on.”
Aria was herded out of the shop within a matter of minutes. Much to her surprise, Molly and June were really excited about her date, while she was terrified.
This would be her first official date.
Pulling her bag high up onto her shoulder, she walked the short distance home. This was the first time in a while she’d walked home alone. Max was always there to talk to her about something or just to keep her company, not that she enjoyed his company, or even missed him. Of course not. She had more interesting things to think about and to do than think about the guy who used to bully her.
Aria pushed thoughts of Max out of her head as she entered her home, and went straight to the bathroom. Stripping out of her clothes, she threw them into the laundry basket, as she hated mess of any kind. There were times her need for cleanliness got in the way of her baking as she hated to be a messy baker or cook. She was always cleaning her utensils, wiping down counters. It was a habit she’d gotten into early in life, and it had only extended from there.