I wasn’t afraid to block him. Not the first time. I thought blocking Brody Conway’s number without sending a response would make my stance clear. That I wasn’t going to play games with him. Almost a week of silence, and after the Labor Day weekend, today he comes back on a new number, and with these words.
He hasn’t said that it’s him, but I know that it is. He’s been careful not to give anything away. There’s been no mention of when he might return from his honeymoon, or when he might next appear at Surly’s. None of that. But the idea makes me wanna vomit. His aim is to keep me on my toes. Every shift this week, I’ve been anxious that I’ll walk through the door to find Brody Conway returned from his honeymoon and waiting for me to writhe around in his lap.
I straighten up as Jake Walsh pulls into the parking lot in his black Chevy pickup. I haven’t seen him in a while. Behind the windshield, I can see that he’s wearing a cap and shades, and if I’d convinced myself not to be worried about anything, then I was wrong. He’s the guy everyone’s talking about right now, the guy who scored two touchdowns in the last pre-season game. And I know once I get inside that truck beside him, I’m in trouble, because he’s gonna be sweet, and charming, and probably handsome as hell. I check around me, hoist my bag onto my shoulder and head for the vehicle, reminding myself that no matter what, this is a one-shot deal. I’m wearing tight-fitting jeans, a sequinned top, tan leather jacket and cowgirl boots, because I don’t have the first clue what we are doing for our date.
‘Hey.’ He beams at me as I slam the door behind me.
‘Right on time,’ I reply coolly, pushing my bag down between my legs into the footwell.
He takes off his sunglasses. Handsome,check.
‘You look nice,’ he says, glancing down at my outfit. ‘Really nice.’
Charming?Check.
He’s wearing a short-sleeved chequered shirt and standard blue workman’s jeans. Wholesome, of course. The cotton material clings to his impressive biceps, but I can tell by the look in his eyes that he’s nervous, like he’s lost a degree of confidence since our last conversation.
Just one date. Don’t get the hots for this guy. One date is all you agreed to, and one date is all Jake Walsh is gonna get. Cheerleaders can’t date football players. End of story. You don’t need any more complications in your life right now, Ren.
‘Thanks,’ I say, and run my fingers over the dash. ‘Sweet ride.’
‘It’s, uh… well, it’s brand new. I mean… I bought it when I moved to Canyon.’
‘Looks expensive.’
‘Uh… I guess. I mean, I guess… yeah, it was pretty expensive.’
‘But that’s like lunch money for you though, right?’
Oh god. What did I just do? I’ve rendered him speechless.
I squeeze my eyes shut. ‘That was so rude. I’m sorry. I don’t even know why I just said that.’
He laughs. I’m waiting on him to move the car. ‘It’s cool. We can talk about money on a first date.’
‘We definitely cannot talk about money. So where are we going?’
He puts his sunglasses back on and turns his cap around. Checks the mirrors before moving off. ‘So, I did some research. I found this lake.’
I raise my brow. ‘Lake Thunder?’
He moves out into a busy lane. ‘That’s the one. You know it?’
‘I used to go there as a kid. Everybody around here did. ’Til this guy nearly died from swimming in the water there and they discovered it was badly polluted. Everybody stopped going after that. They say now the only people who go there are junkies and prowlers. That, and the odd gator.’
He’s silent for a moment. ‘You’re serious?’ he then says, looking my way with one hand resting on the wheel.
I bite my lip. ‘Did you have a back-up plan?’
I see his throat working as we take the road north out of Canyon. ‘Uh-uh. Not exactly. No back-up plan. You got any ideas where else we could go?’
‘We can go to the lake. It’s alright. I’d like to see it after all these years. What were you planning on us doing?’
We stop at some lights, and he rubs the back of his neck, something I’ve noticed him do before. ‘Well, I got us a picnic. Thought we could sit in the back and watch the sun go down. Get to know one another better.’
Sweet?Double check.
My heart sinks a little because there’s something I gotta tell him. ‘I, uh, is it okay to drop me back at the diner around eight?’
