I was so glad he asked. “I’ll try, but my description won’t do it justice.” I went on to explain the plane ride, the instructors and crash course, the way we walked to the edge of the plane, the absolutely insane view, how small the world looked, and the way I couldn’t breathe when we jumped. He listened to every word, munching on his appetizer salad.
“The best part was after.” I stabbed at the greens, even though I knew I wouldn’t take a bite for a few minutes. “The adrenaline rush lasted hours. It made me feel so alive and happy.”
“You were glowing when I saw you.”
“Was I?” He nodded. The fact he was in tune with my usual appearance made me self-conscious. I pushed my hair behind my ear.
“Have you always been an adrenaline junky?”
I hesitated, hoping this line of questioning wouldn’t go too far. “No. Not always. Just in the last few years.”
He took another bite of salad. I pounced on the opportunity to direct the conversation another way. “So, what about you? Have you always been in construction?”
“Nope. I’m the newbie.” He sat back and crossed his arms. “My prior work has been in mechanics. My dad and our neighbor taught me everything about cars.”
“Why are you working in construction, then?”
He shrugged. “Carl offered at the right time. I needed a change in my life.”
“How’d your dad feel about that?”
Pat looked down briefly before meeting my gaze again. “My parents both passed a long time ago.” His hazel eyes were heavy, like life had placed a burden on them. A world of hurt seemed to lie just beyond. Maybe it’s why I often averted my gaze so quickly. Felt like I was intruding and seeing too much. I dropped my eyes to my salad, gathering up another bite.
“I’m sorry. My mother passed away when I was a kid, but my dad is alive. I don’t talk to him very much though.” I shook my head.
“Have you always worked in marketing?”
“No, actually.” I swallowed, wondering how much to reveal about my past and trying to remember to keep it casual. “Kenzie hired me about three years ago.”
“Prior to that?”
“I was a special education teacher.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Quite the career jump.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“It takes a talented person to do that kind of work. Why’d you change direction?”
My chest constricted as the painful topic surfaced. When Cameron died, my heart for the work died too. “I guess it’s a little like you. Kenzie asked at the right time. I needed a change.”
As if on cue, our steaks came. The moment I’d been hyping up. I hoped Ben delivered tonight. A few bites of steak later, Pat was starting to like the decorations.
FIFTEEN
Patrick
The clock read 11:28 p.m. as I turned off the truck at her apartment. I dreaded the early morning ahead of me, but the evening was worth every second. Our unrushed dinner kept me from retreating to my quiet room. I enjoyed being with Jules. She was funny, and her laugh sounded like music.
I wondered if she was as happy as she let on. She seemed to be swimming against a current in her life, but I didn’t know what the current was. The suspicion didn’t bother me. I had plenty of my own problems. Jules made me feel like I was in good company.
Guilt nagged me though. I wished I could’ve been more forthcoming about my real work history, but laying it all out on the table was a risk I wasn’t ready to take. If I told her the truth, she wouldn’t believe it anyway.
But what if she wanted to get serious? I wasn’t looking for anything serious right now. I hoped I hadn’t already given her any misleading ideas. The sight of her apartment door twisted my stomach. Would she expect me to kiss her? Was kissing a first date thing? Was this even a first date?
I should’ve thought this through.
The eight second walk to her door felt like an eternity as I tortured myself over how to say goodnight. She strode beside me, completely unaware of my predicament. Shewasbeautiful; it's not that I wouldn’t enjoy kissing her.
