The Love Trap ℰ𝓅𝒾𝓈𝑜𝒹𝑒 3 - The Dating Disaster

“You look gorgeous,” the young woman says from across the make-up counter. Samantha highly doubts the word gorgeous is the right description for her, but she’s hoping that the professional make over will help bring out her best features.

Collecting her purchases and heading back to her car, Samantha has less than an hour to get home and finish dressing for her date.

Dear God, is she really going to go out with the super hot man from next door?

Mentally rehearsing her small talk while she returns to her house, Samantha ticks off her list of ‘suitable’ conversation topics.

1. Work: Her job might be a little boring but being the head accountant for her firm is nothing to sneeze at.

2. Pets: Harry is a great cat, even if he does have a sock fettish.

3. Entertainment: Samantha plans to discuss the movies she likes and books she’s read.

Her list is flawless! Now all Samantha has to do is avoid any embarrassing stories and she should fine. Reaching home, Samantha quickly lets herself in and rushes to her room. The outfit she has picked for tonight looks amazing, a sexy red dress that clings to her body in all the right places. She is barely ready when her door bell rings.

“I’ll be right there,” she calls out, rushing To the door

“Good evening,” Blake greets, his easy smile making her heart beat a little faster.

“Hello,” Samantha replies, suddenly breathless. The man really is gorgeous, in a dark blue button down and slim fitting black pants, he’s every woman’s walking fantasy.

“Ready?” He asks, and before Samantha knows it, they are on their way to dinner....

“So, tell me a bit about yourself,” Blake asks, and Samantha states blankly across the table.

I can do this, she thinks resolutely, remembering that she had prepared for this question. But as she looks into those dark brown eyes, Samantha feels her mind go completely blank.

“Ah Samantha?” Blake asks, “it’s not a hard question.”

Great, now he’s laughing at me she thinks, but the grin that spreads across Blake’s face is more endearing than amused.

“I fell into a sand sculpture last year,” she blurts out, instantly freezing in horror. What the hell is wrong with me?

“I’m sorry, you did what...?”

“Oh holy dog’s balls, can you please just forget that I ever said that?”

“No, I don’t think I can,” Blake replies, his grin spreading. “Now you have to tell me about it,” he adds, waiting expectantly.

Samantha shakes her head vigorously, her lips pressing together into a mutinous line. To her absolute amazement, Blake pulls out his phone and googles ‘woman falling into sand sculpture’ right in front of her.

“Dear God,” she says, trying to snatch the phone from him. Easily dodging her grasping hands, Blake pulls up a YouTube video of her at the sand sculpture event.

Samantha is standing there, her head tilted to the side as she leans too close to the Disney Princess exhibit. She can hear someone calling out, “you’re going to fall in,” just before there’s a scream and Samantha topples over the barrier and into the display.

“Kill me now,” Samantha groans, burying her face into her hands as Blake stares at the video in fascination. She knows without looking that the woman screaming is her, clawing desperately to be out of the sliding sand, as part of the Disney themed sculpture caves in.

“And here we are at the local sand sculpture event where children of all ages have come to see they’re favourite TV characters. Even the popular Disney princesses are....Dear God, there is someone trying to vandalise the Disney Princess exhibit,” says a voice on the screen, before a live TV crew rushes over to film the the ‘vandal’ annihilating the children’s exhibit.

“Can someone please help me?” Screams Samantha, while ten people hold up their camera phones, filming the TV crew and herself, floundering around in the shifting sand.

By the time they finally pull Samantha out of the decimated sand sculpture, Ariel, Jasmine and Sleeping Beauty have all had their heads caved in. The sound of children crying is the last of the audio before the video cuts out and Blake stares up at her.

“There is like two hundred thousand hits on this YouTube,” he says, further adding to her humiliation.

”Excuse me while I crawl under this table and die,” Samantha says, her face a bright shade of red.

“Are you kidding? This is the best thing I’ve ever seen!” Blake replies, his grin wide enough to rival the rising sun.

“Are you serious?” Samantha asks, her expression stunned.

“Hell yes, so did you get into trouble?”

“I, well they didn’t fine me or anything, but there is a life-time bam on me ever attending another sand sculpture event. There’s a photo of me and everything,” she says, just as Blake’s hearty laughter rings out inside the packed restaurant.

“You are a treasure,” he says, his smile so charming that Samantha returns it immediately. If this man isn’t running away from her right now then she might just get a chance to win him after all!

Stay tuned for Episode 4 - The Tumble

If you’re enjoying these episodes of The Love Trap, look up books by Ebony Rose on @amazon and @barnesandnoble.

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