The Girlfriend (Single Wide Female in Love, Book 2) by Lillianna Blake, P. Seymour Page A

almost forgot. Stephanie and I made plans to go out dancing.”  
    “That should be fun.” There was that easy smile. He didn’t question me at all. “If you’re too tired for dessert, just let me know.”  
    “I’m never too tired for dessert.”  
    I lingered by the water for a few minutes after he left.

Chapter 15

    I went back to my apartment to change for dancing. I was sure Stephanie was right. I hadn’t been my usual humorous self lately. I needed to do something to brighten my mood.
    As I dressed my mind wandered. Who might Max be meeting at six o’clock in the evening? Six. I narrowed my eyes. Stephanie had said she had something at six. Why, why, why did they have to be at the same time? I tried to keep my brain from churning over the possibilities, but the more I tried to resist, the more fixated I became.  
    I had over an hour before I was supposed to meet with Stephanie. I thought the best thing to do was to keep my mind off the possibility of Max and Stephanie being together. I decided I would head down the street to do some window-shopping. There was one store in particular that I liked to peek into.
    As I walked toward the shop, I noticed Max’s car parked on the street. It seemed odd to me that he would be so close to my apartment. Then there was also the question of what he could possibly be doing that was personal. My mind spun. Then to make matters worse, I heard a familiar laugh.  
    “Stephanie?” The name popped out of my mouth. I knew it was Stephanie. I knew her laugh.
    Max’s car was parked in the street; Stephanie’s laugh was coming from one of the shops. I wasn’t just being paranoid, they were together!  
    The reality of the situation hit me so hard that I couldn’t even react. A part of me wanted to run right back to my apartment and hide away from it all. Another part wanted to hunt them both down and confront them. My best friend and the love of my life? Why would they do this to me? Not only that, but they had been lying to me about it. Why?  
    Tears flooded my eyes. I was about to melt down into a shivering mass of horror, when I heard the soothing sound of Max’s voice.  
    “Do you think she’ll like it?”  
    “I know she will.”  
    “Are you sure?”  
    “I am.”  
    I blinked back my tears and listened more closely.  
    “It’s so hard to make her wait.”  
    “It’ll be worth it.  
    My heart began to beat again. Air filled my lungs. They were talking about me. Max had a romantic night planned for me? Suddenly I understood that Max and Stephanie weren’t sneaking around behind my back because of a secret love affair, but because they were working together on a surprise for me. I’d been so fixated on my insecurity that I hadn’t even considered that. Even worse, if they caught me listening in, the surprise would be ruined.
    I ducked around the side of a building as their voices drew closer.  
    “So I hear you two are going dancing.”  
    “Don’t worry, I’ll keep an eye on her.” Stephanie laughed.  
    “Oh, I’m not worried. I know Sammy loves me. She would never do anything to hurt me. I just hope she figures out that I feel the same.”  
    “Just give her time, Max.”  
    “I will.”
    As their voices faded away I sniffled back the last of my tears. I felt guilty for thinking such horrible things about the two most important people in my life. It was clear that they only had good things planned for me.
    If Max was planning a romantic evening, I guessed it might be the proposal that I had been waiting for. I felt soothed by what I’d overheard, but at the same time it bugged me that I had even worried about it in the first place.
    I was going out to a dance club and Max wasn’t the least bit jealous because he trusted me. I felt bad for not feeling the same way. I wished there was a way to reach deep down inside me and fix whatever was broken.
    My phone buzzed to let me know I had a text.  

    Samantha, where are you? I’m