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“What?” I ask, wiping my lips wondering if I have ice cream on my face.
“Nothing. You’re adorable, you know that?”
I blush. “I like that both of our happiest memories are with your families,” I say as I line up my ball and hit it. This time I get a hole in one and he misses and needs the second shot.
“What’s your worst memory?” I ask as we walk up to hole three. The words are out of my mouth before I can retract them. My hand flies to cover my lips. “Oh my God! I’m so sorry,” I murmur from behind my fingers.
He reaches out and pulls my hand away, bringing it to his lips and kissing the backside. “You don’t have to be sorry,” he says as his eyes search mine. “Yeah, that day was definitely the worst, but honestly, I don’t remember much of it. Finding Stephanie in bed with Jace…that was probably worse because I remember every single image and sound from that moment,” he says.
I tilt my head to the side, my curiosity getting the better of me. “So, Jace is bi?” I bite my lip. “Sorry, is that an inappropriate question?”
He shakes his head. “It’s fine. And yes, he is, thus being with both Bastian and Stephanie.”
“I’m sorry that happened to you, and to Bastian,” I say. It’s still weird to think of Jace as a bad guy when he’s always been so nice to me.
“What about you?” he asks.
“Mine’s silly. It doesn’t matter,” I mumble as I step up and place my ball on the green mat.
He steps behind me and wraps an arm around my waist, brushing a kiss to the back of my head. “Nothing that caused you pain is silly, Isa.”
I take a deep breath and turn around. “My dog died.” I pause and he looks confused. “I had a dog before Felipe. Barkley. Anyhow, he was a Great Dane also and he got something called bloat and we didn’t catch it in time, and he died,” I say quickly to keep myself from tearing up, the words coming out rushed and fused together.
“I’m sorry.”
I shrug. “I had just graduated from college. He was my first dog. I had always wanted one but we didn’t have a lot of money when I was little and then my parents didn’t have the time and I was going to go off to college, so I waited and rescued Barkley from a Great Dane rescue. He was such a good dog.”
Adam steps away and I hit my ball. This time we both get holes in one.
“Favorite song,” Adam says as we step up to the fourth hole.
“Wow, way to try to lighten the mood. What if I say some really sad ballad?” I ask with a smile.
He laughs. “I was hoping for some goth heavy metal.”
I giggle and he leans forward and kisses me. I suddenly wish we were back at his place…alone.
“Ewww. Grownups are so disgusting,” some kid whispers as he walks behind me.
I laugh against Adam’s lips and pull back. He’s laughing too as we both just stare at each other. I don’t know what it is about this moment with this man, but I feel a connection so strong it almost knocks the wind out of me.
His jaw clenches and I wonder if he feels it too. “Come on, let’s finish this game so I can win,” he teases. A small part of me wants to lose so I can spend the next two days at his place.
* * *
“I can’t believe you won,” Adam grumbles as we walk back to the four-wheelers.
“Oh, come on, don’t be a spoilsport. That last shot was fair and square, and besides, I won us a free round of golf by hitting that impossible shot,” I state as I reach for the helmet that I left on my four-wheeler.
“Fine, but next time don’t expect me to go so easy on you,” he murmurs. I giggle and then start back to his house. I watch Adam enjoy the ride and I hope it’s building confidence in him to one day soon try getting in a car. But I decide to take it slow with him and not try to press him too much.
When we pull into his driveway and park the four-wheelers, he walks over and embraces me. “I know I lost the game but stay anyhow. Stay with me for another night…please?” he asks as he takes my cold face in his warm hands and presses his lips to mine. He’s so warm and smells of pine and mint and something that’s uniquely him.
“OK,” I manage as he pulls back. “But I do have to go to the library tomorrow,” I say.
“I’ll get Bastian to take you.”
I look down at my clothes. “Uh, I don’t have a change of clothes,” I state.
