Free Convincing Cara (Wishing Well, Texas Book 2) by Melanie Shawn Page A

um…no, I’m not really the random-hookup kind of girl.”
    By the time I got the last word in my explanation out, the light of Peter’s interest flickered and died.
    “I’ve been…just, you know, really focused on school and, you know, then work,” I explained.
    But he was already looking at his phone again.
    As much as I wanted to call it a night, throw in the towel, chalk this up to an uncomfortable life experience, and move on, I had to make it through dinner, at least. Harmony had gone to the trouble to set this up. Peter had gone to the trouble of putting on a button-up shirt, and I was wearing a dress that had been hanging in my closet for the past six months and heels I’d worn a grand total of one other time. Not to mention this steakhouse was known for its filet mignon, which was exactly what I’d ordered. I just hoped that this night wasn’t a preview of what was to come in my adventures in dating.
    Although, maybe it wouldn’t be all bad if it was a total crash and burn. I couldn’t count the number of dating horror stories I’d heard from Destiny and Harmony. I’d been a good audience when they were sharing their war stories, but I’d never had anything to contribute. Now, I would. Maybe this was like a rite of passage.
    “Here you are.” The waiter set our plates in front of us.
    I smiled. “Thank you.”
    “I need steak sauce,” Peter demanded without even giving the waiter the courtesy of glancing up from his phone.
    Being rude or dismissive to anyone , but especially people in any kind of a service industry, was a huge pet peeve of mine.
    “Of course, and can I get anything for you, ma’am?” The waiter lifted the empty food tray off the stand.
    Still smiling brightly, I assured him, “No. I’m good. Thank you.”
    As I cut into my meat, I tried to stay in the present and really experience the evening. My mind was already back home though, in Wishing Well, at the bar where Harmony and Destiny had agreed to meet me after this date.
    “Oh shit!” Peter exclaimed.
    My gaze shot up from my food. His hand was in a fist, held up to his mouth, as he laughed hysterically while still looking at his phone.
    Now, it was my turn to sound alarmed. “Is everything okay?”
    “Yeah, yeah… It’s just my friend. He sent… He’s just…” he managed to say between fits of laughter. After wiping his thumb and his forefinger under his eyes, which were watering because he’d laughed so hard, he said, “You know how it is. He’s just crazy.”
    “Oh yeah, for sure, totally,” I agreed as if I knew what he was talking about. I didn’t.
    “Oh man, I can’t believe he did that! I gotta forward it.” He motioned his head in my direction. “Right? I gotta forward it.”
    I nodded on autopilot. But I still didn’t have a freakin’ clue.
    “Oh damn!” he called out like he’d just won the lottery. “Everyone is snapping it now.”
    My eyes shot to the diners around us. Peter was definitely not using his inside voice, and we were getting quite a few stares. Lowering my head, I started cutting my meat into larger bites and eating as fast as I could. The sooner my plate was clean, the sooner the night could be over. At least that’s how it worked when I was a child and my parents wouldn’t let us get up from the table until we’d finished.
    “Oh shit! I’m being so rude.” Peter looked up from his phone as if he’d just been hit with a lightning bolt of epiphany.
    “No, it’s fine,” I said with a mouth full of food.
    “No, you gotta see this. It’s hilarious,” he insisted as if he were about to let me in on the funniest thing in the world.
    He held his phone out, and I swallowed as I leaned closer to try to see what he was showing me. The screen was tilted and dark. As I got closer, he tipped the device up, and I had never been so happy that I wasn’t eating or drinking anything, because I would have definitely needed the Heimlich if I had been.
    I’d always heard the saying