I laugh, leaning into him as we walk down the sidewalk. Sure enough, I can see the Jeep in the distance.
“That was smart,” I say. “The parking thing, not the falling asleep thing.”
“I can’t believe your dad’s letting you go to breakfast.” He opens the passenger door of the Jeep for me and I climb inside. It’s seriously a workout considering the height of this thing.
When Jasper slides in the driver’s side, I say, “Yeah, I’m surprised too if I’m honest, but he must’ve listened to what I said. Besides, it is only breakfast.”
“You good with Mel’s again?” he asks, starting the Jeep.
“Absolutely.”
I can’t help smiling to myself. I love that we seem to have these things that are entirely ours now.nbsp;
The drive is short, but even still my stomach is growling obnoxiously by the time we arrive.
I follow Jasper to the door and he pulls it open, letting me go in first.nbsp;
The same booth we sat in before is empty, so I choose it, my butt sliding along the black vinyl.
The same waitress as before appears a few moments later, and Jasper and I both place the same orders we got last time. Him, chocolate chip pancakes and a water and for me blueberry pancakes with a Sprite.nbsp;
The waitress taps her pen against the pad and smiles at me.
“You know, I have to say how nice it is to see this one here with a girl. He’s normally always by himself.”
“I have a hard time believing that.” I laugh.nbsp;
Jasper’s not only good looking, but kind and smart, he’s the kind of guy who cares deeply about his family and friends. I highly doubt there’s never been a girl in the picture before.
“Well, if there ever was one she wasn’t important enough to come here.” She shrugs and disappears.
I look across the table at Jasper and raise a brow. “Is this the time when we have a conversation about former lovers?”
He shakes his head. “I’d rather not.”
“For the record, I’ve never had a boyfriend,” I admit. “Just you—not that you’re my boyfriend or anything you’re … the closest thing I’ve had I guess.”
“I’d like to be,” he says quietly. “But I worry I’m not good enough for you.”
I snort. “You? You not good enough for me? Why?”
“After losing T.J. I’m … not broken, but I’m less than whole and you deserve everything.”
“Jasper,” I blurt, “you do realize I’m the girl who lost her kidneys. If anyone’s not technically whole then it’s me—but, honestly, no one’s perfect. We all have emotional scars. Anyone that says they don’t is a big fat liar.”
He smiles slowly. “You’re right—and I like you, a lot, and I think you like me, so I’d like to see where this thing goes. Do you want that?”
“I do.” I nod. “But I feel like I suck at this whole thing.”
“You don’t,” he promises. “Not by a long shot.”
“So …,” I prompt again. “You’ve never brought another girl here before?”nbsp;
He shakes his head. “Nope. I dated now and then in high school, but nothing serious. I didn’t have the time between school, swimming, and baseball. Besides, no one caught my eye. And last year, college was not what I expected and there was barely time to take a breath let alone go out. People partied and hooked up for sure, but those were the ones not going to class and flunking out. That’s not me.”
“I think it’s awesome you’ve put your future and passions first. Not enough people do that.”nbsp;
“No, they don’t,” he agrees. “But I think most people don’t know what they want from life. I’ve always had a good understanding of what I want. Now, with losing T.J. it makes me realize how important it is to be there for the people you care about. When I was gone at college it wasn’t like I could come home every weekend, but now I wish I had come back more than I did.” He shrugs sadly. “Hindsight sucks, and it is what it is. I know T.J.