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“No, no, it’s true, I promise. I can prove it. Here.” Lifting up the side of my hair, I showed him the place I had stitches, and he winced.
“Okay, I might believe you. That’s pretty extreme just to reject me.”
“I promise, it’s not. A lot has happened since then and I have a tendency to only focus on the things right in front of me. Sorry, character flaw,” I cringed, scrunching my nose. “When you touched me, it all came flooding back.”
“I think it’s cute you have a flaw, you’re pretty perfect otherwise. And I guess, it’s a bit romantic, kind of like Sleeping Beauty I suppose.”
“Um, how so?”
Unfortunately, he didn’t get a chance to answer as a loud semi blared their horn at us. We’d been in the middle of the road, holding each other as we talked, forgetting where we were. Shrieking, I pulled him over to the side of the road, getting out of the way of the truck. The driver pulled his horn as he sped by, the loud sound reverberating around me, making my head hurt even more.
“Dagnabit! That hurts!”
Bending over, I tried to get the sound to stop ringing around in circles. Once it settled down, I looked up, remembering the cat I’d hit. The middle of the road was clear, so I chose to believe he ran off, the air only being knocked out of him. He was fine, I told myself.
“The cat…”
“Yeah, he’s fine. Got up and ran off before the big truck went by.”
“Oh, thank goodness. I doubt I could live with the guilt.”
“How about we take this conversation to a more suitable location than the side of the road?”
“I’d love to, but I gotta get back to work.” I bit my lip, uncertainty filling me now. I remembered liking Thane that night, but what if things with Simon were changing? What then? Was it fair to either of them to start something? Not to mention Slade. How did he fit into all of this? As much as I wished life was like my books, I didn’t think I’d get to have three boyfriends like Sawyer in the book I devoured last night. Though, that lucky girl had five, possibly six if the one ever got the stick out of his rear. He had some similarities to Slade. Maybe I’d needed to finish this series so I’d know how to handle him. It could be research!
“Oh, well, that’s too bad. I’d like to see you again if possible. Do you still have my number?”
“I uh, don’t know. Here, give me your phone.”
Thane pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to me. Entering my number, I sent myself a message, so I’d know it was him. Handing it back, I felt some butterflies as our fingers crossed paths, but it didn’t feel as exciting as before. Maybe it was more of the memory loss, and I was forgetting how it felt.
“I uh, gotta go, but I’ll text you.”
Turning, I walked back to my car quickly, peeking over my shoulder as I did. Thane looked a little sad, and I hated to think I was the one who made him feel that way, but I was just as confused. Waving over my shoulder, I hoped to bring back the fun-loving guy I think I remembered meeting. His smile lifted some, but his blue eyes still held a lot of doubt. Once I was in my car, I watched as he walked back to his.
I thought about him the whole way back, wondering if I’d just made a huge mistake not taking a chance with him. A huge pit formed in my belly, and I chewed on my lip, doubt creeping in.
* * *
I’d been homefor about thirty minutes after finishing my shift and was becoming antsier with every passing minute. I’d sent a text to Thane, but I hadn’t heard back from him yet. There was another message alert on the blog, but I still didn’t feel like dealing with B.E.R.
Twisting my hair up, I turned my head in the mirror, trying to determine if I liked it better one way or the other just to pass the time. When I heard keys in the lock turning, I dropped it, running to the couch, and flopping on it, smoothing my skirt down like I’d been there the whole time.
Never mind that I was now panting from the run and dive I’d done. When the door opened, I turned the expression of innocence at Simon.
“Oh, hey. You’re here. Do you need any help?”
“Hey,” he paused, smiling at me. He appeared hesitant, though, and apprehension filled me. Shaking his head, Simon dispelled himself from whatever spell he’d been under. “No, I’m good. Thanks, though.”
“Yeah, no problem.”
He busied himself in the kitchen, and I watched from the back of the couch, my head resting on my arms as he unloaded the bags he had. Simon was elegant in his movements, and I’d always admired his ability to make everything he did look flawless. He took out our sandwiches and placed them on plates, grabbing silverware and napkins in the process, before placing it all on the table. I sat stunned for a moment, not used to sitting there. When he put two drinks down as well, I finally pulled myself out of the stupor and got off the couch.
“Oh, wow. An actual dinner at the table. Thismustbe important.”
“Yeah, I think it is.”
“Okay,” I gulped, suddenly filled with dread. My history with romantic entanglements never ended well—my virginity, my first kiss, my first long-distance crush, my first job, my first serious boyfriend. Basically, I sucked at firsts. Realizing this couldn’t be a first in any category, I calmed and took my seat.
