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“Both,” she admitted and I could tell it took a lot for her to say that.
“Me too. I never thought I would be running Dad’s company, ever and certainly not this soon. It’s a lot for me to take in and figure out. At least we can do it together. And we are in this together. Whether you like it or not.”
“I don’t hate you as much as you think I do,” she muttered.
“So, you haven’t wished me dead or slowly cut into a thousand pieces?”
“Not today,” she said with a smile.
“Definitely making progress.” I stole a look at her. She wasn’t looking at me but on the road. I could see the tension in her shoulders but she had a soft smile on her face. “It’s going to be okay. We’re going to be okay, if we do this together. You’re the one who loves to live life and have fun, so have some fun with this. Try not to think about tomorrow or what’s going to happen.”
“Can you do the same?” she asked, clearly shocked that I would even suggest it.
“I can have fun. I can be spontaneous. When the need calls for it.”
“Does this situation call for it?”
She had gone from being silent, to annoyed, to angry, to almost flirtatious with me all within a span of twenty minutes. It was hard sometimes to keep up with her mood swings but I loved it. She kept me on my toes and things interesting, all things that I wanted in my life, just like I wanted her. My statement was meant to compliment her and to be a little flirtatious too. I know she had seen how I had looked at her when she had come out of her room. I hadn’t been able to hide how much I wanted her in that moment. At first, I had been embarrassed that I had been so obvious but later I was glad she had seen it. I wanted her to start seeing me not as her stepbrother, or her producer, but as something much much more.
“I’m on a scavenger hunt with an intelligent, witty, sexy, and exasperating woman. I would think it definitely calls for some spontaneity. Are you ready to see a different side of me than you’ve ever seen?”
“Oh, I can’t wait,” she said.
Chapter 9
Natalie
Was he flirting with me? Was that what Jason was doing? It seemed almost too unbelievable to actually think it happened. But after his comment and how he had looked at me while he was in my living room, it was all I could think about.
I had wanted to drive to Monterey, not Jason, as much because it gave me something to do with my hands, with my mind. I was looking for any excuse to not have to think about Jason and how his look had made me feel. But he hadn’t let me and why would I? We were driving his car. Without the distraction, I was testy, on edge, and surly to him. All things that I didn’t want to be.
He hadn’t let me stay annoyed with him for long. I was starting to see that he had a way about him that could put me at ease and take me out of a foul mood faster than anyone else. It would be annoying and make me even madder at him, if I didn’t actually find it endearing and a little cute.
I did like to have fun, I did like to be spontaneous, but I also liked things done in a certain way. I liked to know that I had some control over things that I could control as there were so many other things I couldn’t. Jason seemed to see and understand that and instead of getting mad or calling me out about it, he found a way to address it and make me feel better.
The whole point of the scavenger hunt was to have fun, to explore a place you had never before, or to find something new about a place you had. It was both for me with Monterey. I hadn’t been there in years and when I had it was for a quick three-day weekend with my mother and Kevin. They had just gotten married and Kevin had wanted to do their honeymoon with me. He said their marriage was about all of us and we should all celebrate it.
I thought it was sweet and he had done everything he could to make me feel welcomed and loved by him. It wasn’t until later that he told me he was worried that I wouldn't like him or that I would resent him. He had wanted me to go on the trip so that he could win me over and become a part of my family, not the other way around.
Driving up to Monterey brought up all those memories. Confounded with my new and unsure feelings towards Jason, I wasn’t sure what I was thinking of feeling. It was all too much to deal with. It was why I wanted to get this over and done with as quickly as possible.
But Jason had seen right through me, as he seemed to with most things that I did. He had been supportive and kind and then turned the tables on me and appeared to be flirting with me. Which confused me as much as anything else. I didn’t want to believe it but I couldn’t deny the feeling of excitement I got with what he said or how he had looked at me when he did.
There had been traffic when we got onto the 68 and headed towards the coast and Monterey and we were delayed getting to our hotel. I didn’t mind being stuck in traffic as it had caused Jason and me to talk some more and I felt as if a friendship was starting to form. No matter what happened we would be stuck with each other for the foreseeable future. The better we got along the better the trip and the show would be.
We both told stories about Kevin, at first, I thought Jason wouldn’t want to hear about my experiences with his father. I worried he would resent me for the time I got with him that he didn’t. But he didn’t seem to mind but wanted me to share my stories. I wasn’t sure if he was doing it to make me feel better and to try and deal with my grief or if he wanted to hear them. Either way, it was fun to hear about how Kevin was when Jason was younger and I felt closer to Jason by the time we got to our hotel room.
We were both too tired to do any filming when we got to the hotel. It was also too late to get any decent light. I could tell that Jason was disappointed but after the day and the previous ones, I was looking forward to getting into the hotel room and being alone.
Jason didn’t seem to feel the same way. He suggested we get something to eat but we had stopped for a late lunch when the traffic got bad and I wasn’t hungry. I also needed time to think about what was going on with Jason and some time away from him. He seemed to understand and didn’t push me when I told him I would see him in the morning, but not before I saw the disappointed look on his face.
He was waiting for me downstairs when I got to the lobby the next morning. He looked fresh and rested in his jeans and polo shirt. It was his usual attire as Kevin liked to keep things casual with his employees. I had gone for the same with a deep red floral maxi dress. It was comfortable and easy to wear all day but also would look good on camera. I had slept fairly well and was ready and excited about getting to the Aquarium.
I tried not to think too much about the appreciative look that Jason gave me when he saw me, or how my heart fluttered a little at his reaction. We had a job to do and that was all that mattered, but it was still hard to not think about how his hand lingered on the small of my back as I walked past him or how I wished he had kept it there longer than he did.
It was a short walk to the aquarium and neither of us talked. He took some footage and had me make comments into the camera. For the most part he was quiet and I could tell that Jason was lost in his own thoughts so I didn’t pry. He had told me about going to Monterey with Kevin when he was younger and how he hadn’t been back since. I wanted to find a way to bring him out of his funk like he had me the day before but I couldn’t think of anything. I took the time to use the camera as we walked the rest of the way to the aquarium.
We got our tickets and walked inside. I was taken aback by how big it was. I had thought so as a child but even seeing it as an adult I was taken back by the high ceilings, open floor plan and tanks with animals as far as the eye could see. I didn’t say anything to Jason but walked to my left and to the kelp forest exhibit.
