Rider and Ainsley fell into an easy conversation. She asked him about school. He asked her about homeschooling, and by the time we’d finished our lunch, they were chatting like they’d known each other for years. I chimed in, but stayed quiet, which wasn’t a surprise. I relaxed, but was hyperaware of every movement Rider made and every time he looked in my direction.
“Are you guys doing something after lunch?” he asked, dropping his arm along the back of my seat. “Movies or something?”
“Actually, I can’t go to the movies. I have to... My parents have something for me to do this evening, so Mallory is completely free,” Ainsley said in a rush.
I stilled. What? She never mentioned having to change the plans.
Rider’s gaze flicked between us. “But I thought you two were hanging out all day?”
“Nope,” Ainsley replied quickly. “Just for a few hours. She’s all yours for the rest of the day, and word has it, her curfew is, like, eleven p.m.”
My eyes widened. Oh my God. What was happening? I looked at her and she smiled innocently at me. A heads-up would’ve been nice.
One side of his lips kicked up as he picked up his drink. “Sounds good to me.” He tapped his fingers off the back of my shoulder. “You want to head to the garage?”
The low rumble of his voice sent my heart racing into overdrive. Ainsley was staring at her empty plate. Before I could formulate a response, a cell phone rang at our table.
Rider shifted, pulling his phone out of his pocket. He glanced down at it and stood. “Be right back.”
The moment Rider was out of earshot, Ainsley turned to me. “Mal, he is hot.”
I flushed as I picked up my drink. Rider was hot with two extra Ts. There was no questioning that, but it went beyond the physical hotness. Underneath all of that good stuff was a really...really good guy. A shiny heart.
“You were not kidding when you described him.” Ainsley grinned as she sat back in the chair. “Are you going to go with him? I mean, you kind of have to because I totally just threw you out there—but I threw you because you want to be thrown. You need to be thrown.”
Blinking, I nearly dropped my glass as I looked at her. “But I’m...hanging out with you all day.”
“We had our hang. Even if I couldn’t convince you to try hummus. Now’s your chance to hang with someone else. A very hot someone else.”
My stomach twisted, the feeling not unpleasant and all too familiar. “But—”
“Rosa and Carl think you’re with me. So as long as you get home by whenever, they’ll never know. It’s not like they’re going to talk to my parents.” Her grin was sly. “Especially considering they’re do
ing their own thing tonight. Date night or something.” Her nose wrinkled. “So, it’s no problem.”
I glanced up to where Rider stood and the twisting motion increased. My mind wheeled. I couldn’t believe I was actually considering this. Yes, I’d left school without Rosa and Carl knowing and Rider had been over to the house without them knowing, but this...this would be different. It was like some kind of invisible line that I was stepping over. The Rivases thought I was with Ainsley, but I wouldn’t be.
I would be with Rider.
On a Saturday afternoon and maybe evening. The practice date felt like a real date.
This did seem like a major step.
If I got caught, they would say it was Rider and that he was a bad influence, but in reality, he didn’t know I wouldn’t be allowed. Hell, I didn’t even know if I wouldn’t be allowed, but I sure as heck wasn’t asking.
I wasn’t even sure if I was doing something wrong and I wasn’t going to ask, because that sounded like a really stupid question to ask.
Rider lowered his phone, slipping it into his pocket. Could I even do this? Go hang out with him? I hastily picked up my drink and took a huge gulp. Why was I freaking out about this? Rider and I grew up together. Sure, there were years when we didn’t see each other, but we were friends and he’d just gotten out of a relationship. This wasn’t a practice date.
And I could do this.
“You...you think I should go?”
Ainsley’s blue eyes were wide with excitement. “Yes! Oh my God, yes!” She smacked my arm. “This is the perfect time for alone time.”
I frowned. “But we...we have a lot of alone time.”
She stared at me a moment and then rolled her eyes. “This is a different kind of alone time, Mallory. This is Saturday alone time.”