“I won’t,” I promise, wondering if I can guarantee such a thing.
“Whatever,” Beau says. “You’ll do what you want to do anyway.”
“Yep,” I say, “I always do.” Only it’s not exactly true. If I always did what I wanted, I’d have made a move on Maggie long before now.
14
Maggie
I pace my bedroom floor as I wait for Braxton to pick me up. It feels surreal—the fact that we’re about to go on our first date, which happens to be an overnight date if we decide to stay. Not that we’d do anything we shouldn’t. We’d just take the time to get to know each other better, like Braxton said. Time that I thought had expired when Braxton finished up his work on the caboose.
Anticipation bubbles warm and tingly in my chest. I’m glad my time with him isn’t through; there’s a lot I don’t know about Braxton, and I can’t wait to learn more.
When he comes to the door, he glances briefly inside myhouse before fixing his gaze on me. Heat stirs low in my tummy. His brown eyes are puppy dog sweet, save that ever-present spark of mischief.
“Hi,” he rasps, then clears his throat. His cheeks were warm. “You look great.”
The compliment gives me a reason to appraise him in return. I like Braxton’s everyday, rugged carpenter appeal, but the suit he’s sporting adds a whole new dimension. It somehow accentuates the broadness of his shoulders and chest. His dark hair, which normally hangs in loose, rather reckless waves, is combed back, revealing a neatly trimmed undercut. Did he get a haircut for the occasion, I wonder? He looks polished, powerful, perfect.
“You look great, too,” I tell him, knowing the truth of that statement is written on my face.
He walks me to the passenger seat of a gorgeous Cadillac before taking my overnight bag and resting it in the trunk.
“I borrowed this from Beau,” Braxton explains as he settles behind the wheel. “I figured it was better than the work truck. Plus, it’s kind of a test drive. I’m looking for a second car that I can have a little fun with. This baby has some power, let me tell you.”
“Nice,” I say, but I can’t escape the fact that he and I haven’t exchanged a lot of pleasant conversation just yet. Sure, we’re getting along a whole lot better now, but in the beginning, we clashed over Nobly’s job with the train car, and our first storytelling experience was teeming with angst.
But then I run into Viv and the baby and start getting in my head…and along comes Braxton, of all people, speaking my fears like he’d heard them all along. And we share this kiss that is straight out of the movies. Unexpected, tender, and sweet. A kiss that left me wanting—not only more of the same—but also more insight into who Braxton really is. He’s deeper than I assumed, and the fact that he was willing to show a vulnerable side of himself in the caboose says that he trusts me.
“You know,” I say, recalling the way he saved my hide during the storytelling event, which is how we won this date, to begin with. “Sharing Kirsten and Beau’s story was a stroke of genius.”
He tilts his head, glancing into the rearview as he merges onto the freeway. “You think so?”
“Youknowso, don’t you?” I tease. “I always thought it was the sort of story that should go in a book one day.”
“No doubt,” Braxton agrees. “They probably shouldn’t lead with that at parties. People will think they’re making it up.”
I laugh. “Seriously.”
Braxton puts the car on cruise control and shoots me a quick, sideways glance, causing new waves of heat to flare in my chest.
“We’ve got a ninety-plus minute drive ahead of us,” he says. “We may as well play a game.”
“What kind of game?” I ask.
“In the spirit of hard-to-believe stories, I think we should start with the one where you tell two truths, one lie, the other has to guess which is which.”
“Okay,” I say. “Who should start?”
Braxton glances over at me, causing another round of heat to flare in my tummy. “Who would you liketo go first?”
I shrug. “Me, I guess. Just let me think for a minute.” For the slightest second, I’m tempted to add something revealing—the fact that I’ve never told a man that I love him. But it’s too deep for now. Too personal. Besides, it’d be awkward if he assumed that was the lie. Like it’sthatcrazy that I’ve never fallen in love.
I shift gears. My parents have a whopper of a history that Braxton would never guess, so I’ll use that one. And then there was that time I tried to make one of my own eyes go blind since my friend was blind in one eye—talk about embarrassing. I think of a made-up story that’s easy enough to believe, and decide to start with that.
“Okay, when I was little, I had a toothless dog named Stubs.”
“Stubs?”
