The Bet (Addison #2) Read Free Page B

I quickly shower and throw on a pair of jeans, a pair of my turquoise cowgirl boots, and a peach colored short sleeve v-neck. I toss my hair up in a bun and plop on my couch.
    My phone vibrates with a notification from Facebook. I open up the app and see I have a new message. This is the most excitement I’ve had in months—well, besides the coffee date for tonight.
     
    Lucas Boyd: I believe we made a bet.
     
    A bet, what the hell is he talking about?
     
    Excuse me?
     
    Lucas Boyd: I wouldn’t imagine you’d remember. You were pretty…intoxicated to say the least.
     
    Oh Lord…Lucas Boyd isn’t just a professional bull rider or model. He’s the guy from the bar on New Year’s Eve! I don’t even know what to say and now it says I read the message so I have to say something…
     
    Shit…That’s embarrassing. I guess we did make a bet, that’s about all I can remember.
     
    That’s sufficient, I hope. I wonder if he even knows we’ll be working together…Maybe that’s how he found me.
     
    Lucas Boyd: Haha. I’ll be in Florida for a few weeks. I have a silly photo shoot I have to do and my uncle thinks I need a publicist so I won’t be back to Iowa for a little while.
     
    He has no clue we’re working together…What do I do? I’ll be face-to-face with him tomorrow and he has no fucking clue. He thinks I’m still living in Iowa.
     
    I’m actually living in Florida now.
     
    That’s all I can say to him, I can’t say more. I begin scrolling through my newsfeed to pass the time while waiting for a reply from Lucas and stumbled on a status from someone back home. Apparently Liv has just gotten out of rehab and Nolan is doing time. Tears fill my eyes and an ache fills my chest. I pray she stays away from him—far, far away. I click on Liv’s name to take me to her profile and send her a friend request. Hopefully she accepts it, but I guess I can understand if she doesn’t. I walk out onto my balcony. It’s starting to rain again. Thank God I put my hair in a bun. It’s about 7:30 p.m. now. Knowing Garrett he’ll be here any minute, even though he shouldn’t be here for another half hour. Sure enough, there he is pulling up to the curb now. I step back inside to grab my purse and meet Garrett downstairs.
    “Wow. You’re actually following through with this.” His eyes light up and sadness washes over me. I feel so fucking terrible for him. I’m such a bitch. Garrett is a really nice guy. I think that might be the problem, though. He’s nice and who wants the nice guy? Not dumb girls. I am a typical dumb girl. There’s no hiding it. I want love, but I don’t want love right now. I just want fun and I have fun with him, but I have a feeling this thing between us is going to have come to an end. I don’t want him to get the wrong impression.
    “Shit! I forgot something upstairs…come on up.” I pull him by his hand up the stairs with me. I pull out my key and unlock the door. We walk in and I put my purse on the coffee table. I don’t know how I’m going to do this, but I have to. We can’t continue this. I can’t lead him on and hurt him. I know that pain and I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.
    “We need to talk. Sit.” I slowly walk over to the couch and sit down, patting the cushion next to me. He walks over hesitantly and sits.
    “Isn’t that what we’re having coffee for?” I could see the disappointment in his eyes. I’m letting him down again.
    “I just…I don’t want you to get the wrong impression. I don’t want to be with you, Garrett. We don’t have anything. We’re just fuck buddies. Nothing more.” Nothing like getting straight to the point. Garrett ran his fingers through his hair and tugged at the top.
    “Goddamn it, Addison! Getting coffee together doesn’t mean I want anything more with you than what we have, which happens to be nothing!”
    Garrett is about an inch from my face. I back away until my head rests against the back of the