Rebecca's Rose Read Online Free

conscience got the better of him.
    And yet, he knew this wasn’t entirely the reason either. Rebecca intrigued him. He might even say he was attracted to her, but not in the usual way. Most of the time, Levi didn’t even need to work up a sweat to persuade a girl to go out. He knew how good-looking he was, and girls practically lined up to be with him. In high school, they’d hung around outside the locker room after a game for the star football player.
    No, Rebecca possessed an attractive innocence and reckless naïveté that Levi found oddly adorable. He was curious—that was all. Just wanted to see what going out with a girl like Rebecca would be like before he got back together with Tara. But no matter how things worked out with Tara, he’d still take Rebecca skiing. He didn’t intend to go back on his promise.
    Rebecca pulled a sugar packet from the square dish at her table, ripped it open, and poured the sugar into her mouth. She must be getting bored. Levi stopped staring and dodged around the tables to his date.
    Sliding into the booth, he smiled at her. “Hungry?”
    Blushing, Rebecca hurriedly crumpled the empty sugar packet into a tiny ball and hid it in her fist. “You are late. I thought I would get started with the appetizers.”
    “You look nice,” Levi said. He sincerely meant it.
    Rebecca looked away and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “For a few dollars at the thrift store, it is easy to look like the average American teenager.”
    Levi reached over and laid his hand lightly on Rebecca’s wrist. “How’s the arm, kid?”
    She stared at his hand for a moment. “Sore and stiff. I should never have let you talk me into the shot. I could barely move my arm for three days.”
    “Better than being dead, I always say.” He squeezed her hand and tugged her forward. Smoothing his fingers along the crisp white bandage around her elbow, he said, “Is the cut better? Are you watching for infection?”
    She shifted in her seat but made no attempt to pull away from his touch. “It’s amazing how someone like you could have managed to do such a good job on the first aid.”
    “I’ll have you know, I’m a highly trained Boy Scout. I got my First Aid merit badge,” he said.
    A gum-chewing, ponytailed waitress came to the booth. She took one look at Levi and completely ignored Rebecca. Levi had seen it before. Girls were attracted to him, plain and simple. Rebecca was very lucky to be out with the best-looking guy in town, and she should appreciate it.
    “What do you guys want?” the girl asked, staring at Levi. “We’ve got new flavors of lemonade. Raspberry, peach, mango, and passion fruit.”
    “I will have a glass of water,” Rebecca said. “That is all.”
    Levi looked up from his menu. “Don’t you want a burger or something?”
    “I did not bring any money.”
    “This is a date, remember? You bought an attractive new outfit for the occasion. I’ll pay for the dinner.”
    “ Nae , you won’t want to go out with me again if you have to pay my way for everything.”
    “What kind of guy would I be? Only a flake lets the girl pay. How would it look, you sitting here with your glass of water while I’m pigging out?”
    “You get a free drink if you order cheese fries,” the waitress said, as if this would solve all their problems.
    Levi winked at her. “Thanks, but I think we’ll have two bacon cheeseburgers with onion rings and a couple of Cokes.”
    The waitress wrote it down. “Do you want special sauce or—?”
    Rebecca snatched Levi’s menu. “Did you just order for me?”
    “Since you’re not going to order for yourself.”
    She glared at him. “You cannot order for me. How do you know what I like? Maybe I am allergic to cheese or hate bacon. Why do you think you can take charge of my dinner?”
    “I’m paying.”
    Rebecca folded her arms and lifted her chin. “Then I’ll have water.”
    Levi threw up his hands. “Okay, okay, I didn’t mean to offend you