No wonder Niamh had been so shocked to spot Lana here.
Elmer thought, if Niamh hadn’t specifically asked for his help, he probably wouldn’t have recognized Lana at all..
Tonight, Lana was nothing like the person he and Niamh remembered.
Back in high school, Lana always dressed like a tomboy–baggy jeans, hoodies, and her hair cropped so short it was nearly a buzz cut. He remembered how, once, some of the school bullies mocked her for looking like a guy. Lana had ripped into them with a string of curses, and when they tried to gang up on her afterward, Elmer and Niamh had stood by her side until the bullies backed off. Lana had never forgotten that.
Even as an adult, Lana’s style barely changed. In the dead of winter, she’d show up in the same old black puffer jacket, short and practical.
Her reason? “It doesn’t show dirt and it’s easy to wear.”
After all these years, Elmer and Niamh had grown completely used to Lana’s
no–nonsense look.
Her hair still wasn’t long now, barely grazing her shoulders, and she never bothered to style it.
But tonight, Lana’s hair was done up in two skinny little braids.
She wore a cute headband with cartoon rabbit ears, and her coat was a pale green, baby–doll style puffer with a fluffy faux–fur trim.
What she had on beneath was even more over the top–a light tan wool miniskirt, paired with colorful striped tights that made her legs look impossibly long, and shiny white high–heeled boots.
Elmer had stared for a good long while before he was absolutely sure it was really
Lana.
He opened his mouth, and let out a quiet gasp.
There was no way Lana dressed like this without a good reason.
1/3
10:20
Elmer kept watching and finally noticed the guy walking ahead of her he must be
Lana’s date.
“Lana’s… seeing someone?”
At Elmer’s words, Niamh craned her neck to look in Lana’s direction.
“Wait. Is that… Jarrett Guthrie?”
Niamh’s eyes widened in disbelief.
The man standing next to Lana was none other than Jarrett.
They watched as Lana stretched out her bare hands toward Jarrett, who smiled and, pressing his palms together, gently cupped Lana’s hands in his own to warm them.
The gesture was so tender, so intimate, that Niamh was left speechless.
“So that’s Jarrett!” Elmer couldn’t help but size the guy up.
Though people kept drifting in and out of his line of sight, Elmer got a good look at Jarrett’s face. He might not have been some movie–star heartthrob, but there was no denying his boyish charm, clear features, and a smile that seemed effortlessly
warm.
“I never would’ve guessed… Lana likes this type?”
“I’m just as surprised as you,” Niamh admitted with a wry smile.
Judging by how close Lana and Jarrett seemed, things between them were going pretty well.
“Since we’ve already run into them, should we go say hi?” Elmer asked.
Niamh shook her head instantly. “No way! Look how happy Lana is… They’re in their own little world. We’d just be third–wheeling.”
“All right, you’re the boss.”
Elmer turned away at last.
Now, he finally understood why Niamh had been fretting like a worried mother the other night.
There was something about this Jarrett–something Elmer couldn’t quite put his finger on, like he was looking at the guy through a fogged–up window.
But Niamh had been right: Lana was lost in her own happiness, completely
10:20
Chapter 448
absorbed in her date with Jarrett.
She’d been counting down the days for this–her very first proper date. She’d even worked up the nerve to ask Jarrett out herself, worried he might say no.
But from start to finish, Jarrett had been nothing but attentive and caring, making Lana wonder if maybe, just maybe, he liked her back.
They stayed out until the Lontaris World amusement park finally closed for the night, and then Jarrett led Lana to the Garden Hotel attached to the park.
