Carefully, he pulls away from the curb, my address plugged into the GPS on his phone, and soft rock playing on the radio.
"What did you think of the club?" He asks, eyes still on the road.
I grin. "I really,reallyliked it."
"I'm glad," he nods, lips twitching. "So... will you come back?"
"Definitely."
He smiles broadly at my answer, and the silence that grows between us is comfortable. There is something I'm curious about, though.
"Can I ask you something, Callum?"
"Of course," he answers immediately, glancing at my face briefly before looking back to the road.
"When I said Paul's last name, you looked like you knew it. Do you know him?"
Callum's hands flex on the steering wheel, his expression going faintly guarded, making my stomach twist.
"We, uh... we went to school together," he says, his words are slow and seem deliberate. "He was a grade above me. Played football and ran with the popular crowd. You know, theclassic cliché high school hierarchy."
"Yeah," I realize my voice sounds a tinge bitter, because that's just like Paul.
Popular, charming, always gets what he wants.
Always puts himself first.
I look out the window and frown.
Huh, interesting how things can become a little clearer without the rose colored glasses.
"His mom wasalwaysnice. I never really knew his dad that much," Callum tries to steer the conversation in a more positive direction, and the thought of Donna O'Connor makes me smile.
"Yeah, Donna's great," I smile softly, before a thought hits me. "Did you guys play football together?"
Callum barks a laugh, "No, I didnotdo sports."
"Oh," I frown, a little taken aback. We pull up to a red light, and he slows the car to a stop, allowing him to look over and read my facial expression.
He raises an eyebrow, "That surprises you?"
"Kinda?" I shrug. "I mean, youlookmore like a football player than Paul does, so..."
"No, I felt more comfortable with books than balls."
I snort and immediately cover my mouth with both hands as I dissolve into laughter. Callum’s cheeks flush, and he shakes his head at himself, scrubbing a hand down his face.
"God, what is it with me and innuendos?"
"I think it’s chronic at this point," I try to get control of myself. My cheeks are sore from all this smiling tonight, and I close my eyes to really soak in this moment of pure joy.
When I open them again and turn toward Callum, ready to share in the humor still lingering in the air, but he's not laughing.
His face is slack, but his eyes are dark and intense, lips curved into a slight grin. My cheeks warm and I feel my stomach flip.
There's that charged feeling again...
A loud honk from behind us breaks the spell we're under. Callum blinks and waves a quick apology before pressing the accelerator, the moment slipping away.
