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I hummed thoughtfully. “I think the embarrassing part of that would be the newspaper part, not the sexy, mysterious stranger you married, right?”
He tilted his head a little to the side, his dark hair falling across his forehead. I reached over and pushed it out of the way, Oliver smiling at me warmly. “The stranger was definitely not the most embarrassing part of that story, no. Your turn.”
I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Ooh, boy. I think it was when I ate too much bean salad during Vacation Bible School.”
“Uh-oh.”
“Yeah. An hour later we were in the fellowship hall, all lined up and listening to a sermon from the preacher when I felt a tickle in my throat and a little rumble in my stomach. I coughed and as I did, I farted—loud. And the smell was terrible. Everyone looked at me and the Bible school teacher told me to go to the restroom and get some water. I think she hoped I’d walk it off or something. I didn’t.”
Oliver covered his face with his hands. “Oh no.”
“Yep. I farted all afternoon. Eventually they called my mom to pick me up early. I was only seven. That’s when I learned about the power of the digestive system.”
We both laughed and he shook his head. “That sounds terrible.”
“It was. Lucky for me, I was able to convince my mom not to make me go back to Vacation Bible School the rest of the week. She took pity on me and let me stay home with my older cousins instead.”
We reached the end of the course and Oliver tallied our points. “Hmm.”
I raised my eyebrows. “What’s up?”
When he looked at me, he was smiling in that soft, affectionate way again. “We scored the same.” He showed me the scorecard.
“Clearly we’re meant to be.” I elbowed him and grinned.
“So it seems.” A moment passed and he pulled out his phone, breaking the moment. His brow creased as he typed out what seemed like a novel’s worth of texts before he looked back up at me. “Sorry. Work things.”
I nodded in understanding, but as he went to slide his phone back in his pocket, I grabbed his hand. “Let’s take a selfie.” Oliver shook his head fondly and turned the camera on before attempting a few shots of us. “I think we have to get a little closer together,” I murmured in his ear.
“Don’t have to tell me twice.” He wrapped an arm around my waist and we snuggled in close as he took the photo.
“Now you’ll always remember our first date.” A date I didn’t want to see end.
A few minutes later we’d returned to the car and Oliver was driving us toward my hotel. His phone pinged a few times on the drive, but he carefully ignored it in favor of paying attention to the road, for which I was grateful. When we neared the hotel, the anxiety and tension I’d been feeling bubbled up and spilled over.
“What are we going to do?”
Oliver kept his eyes trained forward. “I think it’ll work out for the best no matter what happens.”
I felt sick to my stomach at the thought of “no matter what” happening, but I nodded. “Okay.”
A few minutes later we were pulling into the parking garage. Oliver turned to face me. “Listen,” he started. “I have to do a little work this afternoon, but I was thinking I might come hang out with you tonight. Get to know your friends, if you want me to. Or we could stay in. I hate to waste our last night together.”
A lump formed in my throat and I swallowed hard. “Yeah, that sounds great. I’d love that.”
“Good.” He kissed me softly. “In that case, text me the details, now that you have my number, and I’ll see you tonight.”
“Tonight,” I repeated with a sad smile before getting out of his car and heading upstairs.
Chapter Fifteen
Oliver
TheminuteCam’staxipulled away from the curb, I jumped into action, hurrying inside to pack for my sleepover. While I rounded up clothes to throw into my small duffel, I dialed Dana’s number.
“This is Dana.”
“Hey, Dana, it’s Oliver. Listen, I need a favor.”
