“I’ll take your word for it since I’ve never been to a car show.”
He turned to me once more, the corners of his lips slightly turned up. “Let’s change that, shall we?”
“What do you mean?” I asked and buckled up.
“I’ll organize you a pass.” He studied me. “If you want to. I don’t want to make you feel like you have to come along. But the day would be a lot more enjoyable if you were there.”
His words made me feel flushed. And happy.
“I’d love to go.”
His face lit up, and I couldn’t tear my eyes away from his. They appeared lighter and sparkled with humor.
“But that doesn’t help us now. What do you want to do tonight?” he asked.
I decided to keep riding my wave of spontaneity. After all, I could be anyone I wanted to be while I was in Vegas. Landon didn’t know the real me. The one who always followed rules, worked a boring job. The one who was still grieving after having just lost her grandma. He wouldn’t look at me with pity in his eyes.
So instead of asking him to take me back to my hotel room, I said, “Surprise me.”
He smirked and then pulled out of the parking spot. “I know just the place to take you.”
We only drove for about ten minutes before Landon pulled into another parking spot on the street. I looked around, curious where we were.
He turned the truck off, hesitating. “Since you haven’t been to Vegas, I thought you might like to check out the Neon Boneyard.”
“I don’t know what that is, but that sounds great,” I said, excited that he wasn’t trying to drag me to a bar—or worse, a club.
“It’s a place they put old signs. Some of them still light up. I thought you might like it.”
I smiled so big I didn’t think I’d ever stop. He’d chosen the perfect place.
It was getting dark as we made our way inside. Landon opted for a self-guided tour and insisted on buying my ticket. The place was like nothing I’d ever seen before. Enormous signs adorned the grounds, and others were stacked up along the path leading visitors through the outdoor museum.
“Have you been here before?” I asked, taking in the unusual display that was part art gallery, part history lesson.
“I haven’t, but I always wanted to come. This is our fourth year in a row coming to Vegas, but we’ve never done much but work and party.”
My confidence faltered. Was I cramping his style? Taking him away from other things—or people—he’d rather be doing?
“It’s okay if you want to go out with the guys. I’m fine getting a taxi back to the hotel after this,” I said.
The words burnt on my tongue. I enjoyed his company. He was smart, he was charming, and he was funny. And let’s not forget the fact that he was also a work of art that didn’t hurt one bit to look at.
Landon stopped in the middle of the path and leaned in closer. “If I didn’t want to be here, I wouldn’t.”
“Okay,” I said, suddenly feeling unsure of myself. It was good to hear him say it. I just couldn’t seem to shut up the little voice in my head that told me he was only doing this because he felt sorry for me.
Worst case, I could always go back to the hotel room and watch a movie.
He put his hand on my arm. “Hey, look at me.”
Our eyes met, and I was trapped. Everything else faded away; only this moment remained. I wondered if this insane attraction was reciprocated. He was so close that if I swayed forward, I’d bump into him. And I was tempted to do just that.
What is he doing to me?
“Stop thinking I have ulterior motives. Or that I’m only here out of pity. I want to spend time with you.”
“If you’re sure.”
