He grabs a piece of hair that has fallen in my face, gently pushing it behind my ear. “I’m surprised your hair is down.” His hand is hovering by my cheek. He quickly moves it to his side. “I like it like this.”
I blush. There’s no doubt my cheeks are tinged pink against my pale skin. I also can’t help the small grin forming on my lips. I’m so used to being around everyone at the shop. They’ve treated me like one of the guys for as long as I can remember. It’s nice to be treated with fragility sometimes. It’s a great reminder that I can be more than just one thing.
I’m not sure how to react without completely ruining the moment. “Are you ready to go?” I blurt out, rocking on my heels. Any chances of appearing like I’m not nervous are now completely blown out of the water.
“Yep,” he says. “Are you?”
“Well, I did ask,” I reply. “Let me grab my bag and lock up.”
He waits patiently at the door, not even trying to come into my space without being invited. Maybe he’s actually a gentleman, and not the cocky athlete that walked into the tattoo shop. I’m not getting my hopes up, but we’ll see how tonight goes.
He steps back as I close the door, allowing me my space. Reaching his hand out, he looks me in the eye, silently asking for permission to take my hand. I place my hand in his, and we make our way down the stairs in silence. It’s not weird or awkward, either. There just isn’t a need to fill the void with words. I do wonder who is going to break the silence first.
Leaving my building, we stop short at a black truck in pristine condition. He presses a button on his key fob to unlock the doors, opens the door for me, and gives me a hand to get into his lifted truck. It’s a good thing he did, or I might have scrambled in ungracefully.
He walks around the front of the truck and slides into his seat with ease before starting the truck. “I have two questions for you.”
He takes a moment to check the road before pulling out into traffic. “You can ask, but I might not answer.”
I roll my eyes. The cockiness is still there. “First, how did you manage to find parking right in front of my building?” I take a breath. “Second, how in the hell did you fit this behemoth in that spot?”
Laughter fills the cab of the truck. “We’re going on our first date, and those are the hard pressing questions you have for me?”
“Um, yeah.” I fiddle with the strap of my bag. “Also, where are we going?”
“That’s three questions, Charleigh.”
“Humor me.”
He settles his arm on the console between us, palm up. An invitation, but not one I’m going to accept until he answers my questions. Childish, probably. But I never get that lucky, and Ilivethere.
“Question one, someone was pulling out as I was pulling in, so I was lucky. Question two, I’m a country boy. I can fit this truck anywhere I need it to be.” He pauses, looks over at me and winks. “And last question…it’s a surprise. You’ll just have to wait and find out.”
He turns the radio on, and country music plays quietly in the background. Not loud enough to deter conversation, but enough to fill the silence. He pulls onto the highway and starts to drive us out of Dallas.
“You won’t even give me a hint?” I plead.
“Nope, just sit back and enjoy the ride.”
“Where are you from? I’m going on a date with you, and I don’t even know where you live.”
Chuckling, he glances at me. “Don’t you have my address in your files at the shop? You know from when you made a copy of license?”
Why the hell didn’t I think to look at his paperwork? “I didn’t think to look. Are you hiding some deep dark secret?”
A shadow passes over his face, but it’s gone before I can say anything, making me wonder if I imagined it. “Nope. I live thirty minutes south of here in a little town called Asheville.”
I’ve never heard of it, but I don’t leave the city much. Why would I when everything I need is literally ten minutes away from me, or can be delivered?
I lean back in the seat, listening to the soft crooning coming from the speakers, and watch the lights of Dallas fade into the distance.
* * *
It doesn’t takelong to get to our destination, twenty maybe twenty-five minutes. But I squeal, when we pull up to a carnival. I’m so happy I decided not to wear my wedges because my feet would likely be aching at the end of the night. A ferris wheel and a multitude of rides light up the dark space where we’re parking.
“I can’t decide if you are brilliant or insane.” I whisper yell. “I haven’t been to a carnival since I was a kid.”
And it’s true, I haven’t. I used to go with Mom and Dad all the time when I was a kid. But, I traded that in for days spent at the shop watching Corey work his magic. I don’t notice that Jake has gotten out of the truck until I pull the handle and almost hit him with the door in my excitement.