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Nic stood next to her, watching Mark pull away. There was no reason for them to stand here, except maybe he didn’t want to leave her side.
That explained his reason. But why hadn’t she hopped in her car and left yet?
“Maybe I won’t go home right away,” he blurted.
It had been a feeling he’d fought for the past half hour as he worked alongside her. He was supposed to take the four-hour drive back to his office in Lexington in the morning. He never blew off work. But he suddenly had the urge to blow off work.
And it was all because of her.
“You told your mom you wouldn’t be there for leftovers,” Charity said.
That statement threw him off a little. Then he realized by “home,” she thought he meant his parents’ house.
So he went with the misunderstanding. “I could go for some Cloudtop pizza right about now.”
He turned to face her, trying to let her know from his expression that this was an invitation. Cloudtop Pizzeria had been the place to hang out growing up. Not only did they have great pizza, but it was locally owned and just steps from the square where they’d had the tree lighting.
On a Sunday night, the pizzeria wouldn’t be all that busy, and the sun was starting to go down. They were heading into the dinner hour.
“Do you go to the pizzeria every time you visit?” she asked.
“Haven’t been since high school.”
It was then, as the two of them stared at each other in that parking lot filled with floats, that he remembered the pizzeria was the location of their first date. He hadn’t had much money—or imagination—back in those days. And he’d been so nervous to go on an actual date with his longtime friend, he was afraid to suggest leaving town.
If she remembered, she didn’t say anything, though. Instead, she nodded and said, “It hasn’t changed much. You’ll like it. I probably should get home.”
“Does that mean you don’t want to have dinner with me?”
Pushy? Yes. But she’d actually started to take a step away, and in his panic, the words just spilled out.
Charity opened her mouth to respond, but nothing came out. Then she closed it again. But she twisted her body back toward him and crossed her arms over her chest. He held his breath, waiting for what she’d finally say in response.
“I want to,” she said. “I love spending time around you again. I miss our friendship, but you’re leaving town when? Tomorrow?”
“Maybe,” he said.
“Eventually.” She sighed. “Spending time together will make it harder when you do leave in a couple of days.”
“I might just decide to stick around Misty Mountain for the week,” he said.
This was ridiculous. He’d never for a second considered staying here beyond the weekend. His plan was to hit the road as early as possible Monday morning. He’d only be staying to spend time with her.
“Don’t you have to get back to Ohio?” she asked.
Ohio. It felt like a sore subject. Their last happy weekend together had been there. She and her sister Faith had driven up to visit him a few weeks after classes started, staying in a nearby hotel. But something had been off. That had been clear during the visit. And by the time she headed back home, he knew he had to end things. He’d broken up with her by phone, which had been a total jerk move.
“I don’t live in Ohio anymore,” he said. “That’s where I went to college. I live in Lexington.”
“Kentucky.”
The word wasn’t a question, and he wasn’t sure what to make of it. What he did know was that the chill in the air was cutting into his uncovered face. He’d love to be somewhere with heat. Somewhere with the most delicious pizza anywhere.
“Yup,” he said. “You know what? I’m going to grab dinner. I’ll save you a seat.”
That put it entirely in her hands. But still, he waited at the church parking lot exit to make sure she got in her car safely. Then he pulled onto the main road and stressed all the way to the pizza place. He was surprised how much it meant to him that she take him up on his dinner offer.
7
