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“I bet you could get a loan for another one. You seem to have connections,” he said and laughed.
“I bet I have another five years in this one. And I do not do loans.” He could tell her attention had moved away from him because she wasn’t concentrating on what she was saying anymore.
“So, you have never had a loan?” he questioned since that was her business.
“Sorry, I was reading something. What did you say?”
He could tell her attention was back. He repeated his question, and she said in response, “No, I see too many people who rely on them. I never want to do that to myself. But I have to go. See you in an hour.”
She hung up on him without saying goodbye. How did she get to be her age and never have a loan? She had to be lying. But to what point?
Math hurried into the house since he only had an hour to get ready. Finally, he had his reason to spend time with her, all without him even stepping foot in the bank again. He had been sure that if he had walked in there, she would have shot him down in front of the entire town. So, her calling had been perfect, beyond perfect.
On top of that, his kids were with his ex tonight, so he didn’t have to worry about finding somewhere for them to go. There was nothing standing between him and this woman, and he was definitely going on this date. Math didn’t know if she had a date planned or if he was supposed to be planning that. Maybe she would just take him up to her apartment and have her way with him? That was exactly what he wanted, to see that tattoo again.
Less than an hour later, he had showered, shaved, and changed, all in record time before driving into town. As he hit the city limits, he wondered if he should pick her up at the bank or at her apartment. She hadn’t said. Thankfully, they were a block apart, so he would be able to find her in a short amount of time.
His worrying was for nothing because she was leaning against the wall in front of the drug store below her apartment, waiting. He was sure she had changed because she was now wearing form-fitting black jeans and a white blouse, an outfit far more casual than the ones he knew she wore to work. She had a jacket draped over her arm for later.
Before she could open the door, he slid the window down and said, “What’s the plan, Thorn?”
Her smile faltered as she leaned into the window. “I had not thought of that. What do people usually do?”
Leaning over, he opened the door latch for her, loving that her smell was already permeating his truck. “We have time to go to Grand Forks for something to eat.”
She looked over at him with a frown as she climbed in. “That is over an hour away.”
“Yes, it is.” He wanted to touch her as she closed the door and put on her seatbelt, but he held himself back. No need to scare her right away.
“I just mean it is a long way to just eat.” She finally looked up and smiled.
“We’re not in the big city, so there’s little else out here.” He put the truck in gear and headed out of town.
As town disappeared behind them, he realized this was the first date he had been on since his divorce. Well, the first one he had wanted to be on. Before, when he had thought about dating, it just seemed overwhelming and uncomfortable. But Tess beside him felt natural, right. Perfect.
“I am not from the big city,” she argued as she looked out the window at the still black fields. “New Paris is bigger than Landstad but far from a big city.”
Reaching over, he tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear. “So, your parents were poor farmers. How did you pay for private school?”
Whether it was the touch or the question, her demeanor changed instantly, and she turned to look out the passenger window. Math put his hand back on the steering wheel, regretting bringing it up. He hated that she was suddenly not happy, wanting her smile back.
CHAPTER15
His question made her cringe,even if she knew he would bring it up. She had just hoped they would make it further from town before he asked. Nothing she had said that day was a lie, but she had purposefully not told him about her past. After their first few encounters, she felt it was wise not to get too personal with him since she was sure he would use anything she told him against her.
But that was until she realized how connected they now were and would be until the end of time, which meant she had to prove to him that they weren’t as different as he wanted to believe. That they had more than one little thing in common.
So instead of glossing over the entire situation with her childhood, she told him the truth. “I saved my money, took extra jobs, and worked my tail off every summer. And I got a few scholarships. My parents did not have any extra money in those days, nor did they want me to go. I took it upon myself, and I secretly enrolled and told them later,” she said with a smile. It wasn’t something she was overly proud of, but it had gotten her what she’d wanted.
“You did not.” He chuckled and seemed to relax more into the conversation, his one hand finally leaving the steering wheel.
When she had called, she was sure he would say no. In fact, she was sure he would say hell no, which meant she hadn’t been even close to ready to go out today, right away. She had assumed it would be a weekend thing.
“What would you do if Cora enrolled herself in school?” She kicked off her heels and slid one foot under her leg. It was a long drive.
“I would be shocked because she barely wants to go to the school she is in. But I don’t think she would have the know-how to enroll herself into anything,” Math admitted about his oldest daughter, then smiled at her. “I love her, but I also know her.”
“Do not underestimate a teenager with a dream. I was her age.” She loved his smile and loved it even more when it was aimed at her.
