A Valentine Surprise Read Free Page A

amazing, it's perfect!” And Kendra did mean it. She hated to admit it but he was looking much hotter than Mark. Perfect for the role of the hot new boyfriend. Things were looking up.
    “ Thank you! And thank Libby, too. She's the one responsible for this.”
    “ Libby?”
    “ Yeah, I told her I was going to get a haircut and she thought that was a great idea until I told her I was going to Cheap Cuts next to the gas station by school. She put her hand over her heart and I thought she was going into cardiac arrest!”
    Kendra laughed. “That sounds like Libby! She's so dramatic!”  Secretly though, Kendra thanked her for keeping Josh out of Cheap Cuts or she'd probably be standing in front of a man with either a bowl cut, buzz cut or spike top.
    “So she set up an appointment for me at the salon she goes to and told them the story about how I was helping you and everyone there wanted to help me do it, I was shocked. They only charged me for the hair cut but they gave me a facial, shaped my eyebrows, they even gave me a manicure,” he said as he held up his hands in proof.
    “ Very fancy!” Kendra smiled and touched his smooth hand. She felt butterflies flutter in her stomach at the touch.
    “ And that's not all Libby did for me. I went to the mall today and she met me to help pick out some clothes to go with my new look.” He turned around in a circle.
    “ Wait a minute, how could Libby have met you at the mall, she was with ME at the mall today.”
    Josh smiled smugly.
    “I know she was. She actually snuck away from you and met me in secret. She's really fast about picking things out, she knew exactly what would look good on me. Seriously, it was spooky. She definitely has a gift. It was when you guys were at lunch. She didn't want to tell you because she wanted it to be a surprise.”
    “ Ohhhhh...” Kendra nodded in understanding. “That explains why she left me at the lunch table for so long; I thought it was the Chinese food she ate-she told me had to run to the bathroom because her IBS was acting up.”
    Josh laughed. “That's a good one, I'll have to remember that. She didn't tell me that part. But it was either new clothes or I would have had to bring out my dressy sweatpants.”
    “Dressy sweatpants? Is that the surprise you had in your closet for me?”
    “ Yeah, I think those would not have made as much of an impact. So, anyways, I hope you're surprised.”
    “ Well, I'm definitely surprised. I owe Libby big. And you too, I can't believe how much you must have spent today. I'll go grab my wallet so I can pay you for it.”
    She turned to head into the kitchen for her purse when Josh grabbed her arm. Butterflies again with his touch. What was going on with that?
    “Wait, you don't have to pay me, honestly. I really like my new look and if it wasn't for you I never would have done it. You should have seen all the attention I got from women at the mall. I'm not used to that. I kind of liked it.” He flashed that infectious smile with dazzlingly white teeth-did he get his teeth whitened, too? Kendra felt just the slightest twinge of jealousy but pushed it aside quickly. Josh was her friend, why would she have to feel jealous that he enjoyed female attention. They were only f riends . Friends .
    “ And I like the new clothes I bought. I'm pretty lucky that I have a job where I get to wear sweats and sneakers but that doesn't mean I can't wear something nicer when I go out.”
    “ Do you go out a lot?” She asked casually. “I mean, we never really talk about your love life at work, do you go on a lot of dates?”
    He smiled coyly at her, “The reason I don't talk about my love life is because I really don't have one. A few dates here and there, but it's been a long time since there was someone serious.”
    The pain in his eyes betrayed his light tone and she wondered who it was that broke his heart.
    “ I'm a good listener, if you ever want to talk about it. And I may have been burned once