She doesn’t answer. I sit in the car debating. If he is there, I should go. I can’t let him get close to Jess again. Maybe it’s something else. Maybe it’s someone else. The excitement and anticipation that made me crazy all week deflate. The unanswered questions are killing me.
One more comes through:
I’ll explain l8tr.
Later? Maybe I should call her now, demand an explanation. I can’t. She’s texting for a reason. Maybe he’s there with her now. I'm being paranoid. It's probably something else—a big test or extra shifts at the hospital. I grip the phone in my hand. I’ll wait. I have to trust her.
I shove the car door open and stand up, wondering what I’m going to do this weekend if I’m not with Jess. How am I going to keep myself sane?
My phone buzzes again. Another text. Maybe this will answer some of my questions.
Turn around.
“What?” I say out loud. “I didn’t even get the chance to leave.”
A voice says, “Turn around.”
She’s standing behind me, leaning on her car. She might have been there the whole time. I was in such a hurry to get on the road that I didn’t notice her.
I cross the parking lot in three quick steps and wrap my arms around her. I kiss her hard then pick her up, set her on the hood of her car, and kiss her again. She wraps her legs around me and pulls me close.
When I finally pull myself away, I cup her face in my hands. “You scared me.”
She grins. “I scared you?”
“All thiscomplicated,and you didn’t want me to come. I thought you'd changed your mind.”
“Sorry.” She traces my lips. “I wanted to surprise you.”
“You definitely did that.”
“Is it a good surprise?”
I look into those incredibly sexy brown-gold eyes. “Any surprise that ends with me kissing you is a good surprise.” I kiss her again to prove my point.
“I did some rearranging and got the weekend off. I left right after my 12:00 class, so you wouldn’t have to drive all the way to Spokane.”
“I’d rather I drove it than you. But I love that I don’t have to wait five hours to see you.”
“I’m pretty happy about that myself.” She leans in and kisses me again. “So what do you want to do this weekend?”
“I kind of like what we’re doing now.”
“Me too.” She stops me as I’m leaning in for more. “But I told Mom we’d be home for supper.”
“Supper with your parents?” I say in mock horror. “Isn’t it a little early in our relationship for me to meet your parents?”
She hits me. “You’ve been there lots of times.”
“Not in this capacity.”
She puts her lips next to my ear. “You mean as my boyfriend?”
I love to hear her say that. I love having her breath against my ear. I love having my arms around her. “Do you think your dad will be cleaning his gun when we get there?”
“Probably. He’s always cleaning or restoring some gun.”
“Let me guess, he took it up when you became a teenager. Once you’re happily married, maybe he'll find a less violent hobby, like golf.”
