I grin and squeeze his hand. “Okay, I can manage that. Do you want to keep walking for a bit?”
Andrew glances at the time on his phone and stands. “Yeah, we still have a little bit of time before the next part.”
I give him a quizzical look, but he brushes it off, determined to keep the mystery alive.
We continue walking further from the direction of the pizza place for a few minutes longer as he points out different landmarks from his childhood.
“Do you hear that?” I ask him, eagerness flourishing in my eyes.
He pauses to listen, his forehead creasing in concentration. “Hear what?”
“Listen closely! I think I hear music playing.”
“One of the restaurants probably has speakers outside. A lot of them do at this time of year,” he suggests.
I shake my head. “No, it sounds like a live band.”
I pull him toward the sound, the smile on my face growing with the volume of the music. Finally, we reach an open concrete area between two restaurants. There are lights strung overhead, and a band plays music at the front as people sit around, eating takeout while others dance freely.
I turn to Andrew with delight filling my face, just as he pulls me toward the band. “Will you dance with me? I’m not the best at it, but I’m better than the averageguy.” He winks.
I swoon a little and just beam in response as I let him pull me onto the makeshift dance floor. The song that is playing is a little more upbeat, so we wind up doing a quick two-step. As the song winds down, he twirls me around and dips me on the last note.
He pulls me back up, and I find our faces inches apart. His hot breath brushes my lips. God, I want to kiss him so badly. I’ve wanted to for years, and now that I finally know how he feels, it’s nearly impossible to resist, but I know this isn’t our moment.
Another song begins, and this one is slower. Andrew moves both of his hands down to my waist and pulls me in closer. We make eye contact, and I can see he’s feeling the tension build between us too. He turns his head toward my shoulder, and I feel his soft lips graze my neck. Chills grow on my arms, despite the fact that it’s still easily seventy-five degrees outside right now.
“I planned this date so perfectly, but this right here was a happy little accident,” he admits.
“I’m glad it happened, and I’m glad we are finally going on a date. It was worth the wait.” I add, “Youwere worth the wait.”
I feel his breath hitch for a moment next to my ear. “You were too, Em. If I had the opportunity to do things over again, I wouldn’t change a single thing. I’d take the jab of being called ‘buddy’ again—” He nudges me playfully “—and deal with the screaming ache to kiss you every time I saw you for nearly two years all over again because it led me to this moment with you. I’d say this moment right now is pretty incredible.”
I nuzzle in closer to him as the song ends.
Andrew spins me around again just for the heck of it. Glancing up at the sky, he notes, “We better get going for part two.”
“I don’t suppose you’ll tell me what part two is?”
Humor fills his face. “Sure, I’ll tell you where we are going next, but that’s it, okay?”
I assess his face hesitantly, wondering what he’s up to. “Okay.”
He whisks me back toward the direction of the restaurant, where his truck is still sitting. “We are headed to the grocery store.”
I jerk my head back in surprise. “The grocery store? Is that code for something?”
He laughs. “Nope, I mean the grocery store. You’ll see.”
I glance at my phone while I wait in the truck. Andrew ran into the store and insisted I had to wait here. He said if I came in with him, it’d spoil the surprise.
I can’t help but think about how things would be different if Rebecca was still here. She probably would’ve already sent me five texts during dinner asking for an update, and I’d have two more since then about how best friends shouldn’t keep things from each other, even though the only reason she wouldn’t have heard anything yet is because I’m having a good time and want to be polite on my date.
To my surprise, I have a text from Dani.
Dani
Hey sis! Thinking of you and hoping you’re having a good time on your date. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do ;)
