Page 12 of Between Imminent Fates
“I’ve gotten used to it.” She shrugged. “Happens more often when I’m nervous.”
He didn’t know whether to grimace or apologize or swoon. “I make you nervous?”
The pretty pink blush that colored her cheeks told him that her confession hadn’t been entirely planned. “Maybe.”
“Well, that certainly wasn’t my intent.”
Breadsticks were brought to the table, and Jax set out their plates before offering her the first one. As she took a bite, she hummed in happy appreciation.
“Good, right?”
“Amazing. Good choice, Jax.”
Sitting taller under the praise, he demolished two garlic sticks and drained a good portion of his Coke. If this was anything he could appreciate, it was sharing a good meal with a friend—if not something more than a friend. When he looked across the table, it was to find Key’s startlingly beautiful peanut-brown eyes locked on his. He couldn’t look away.
“Tell me about yourself, Jax.”
“There’s not much to me,” he said. “I just moved into the city, and I’ve got a Husky named Zeus. We hike a lot on the weekends, and I absolutely spoil him rotten.”
“A Husky, huh? Why wasn’t he with you a couple of days ago?”
He adored the excitement in her voice. “He’s kind of a baby about rain and being wet. The weather looked a bit soggy, so I decided against bringing him.”
“Tragic. I can’t wait to meet him.”
Though he longed to grab hold of the comment and schedule a meet and greet, he forced himself to simply nod. “He’s a lover, that’s for sure.”
Their food was delivered, and the expected lull in conversation followed as they ate. Halfway through appreciating his chicken Alfredo, he perked as Key spoke once more.
“Have things gotten any better at work, or are you still scouting out cabins in the North Cascades?”
He grimaced. “If I said I was actively price-comparing RVs, would that give it away?”
“Possibly.” Reaching across the table, she squeezed his wrist. “I’m sorry.”
The note of empathy in her voice made his walls come crashing down. It’d been too long since he’d connected with another human being, and the madness of the last week had thrown him off balance. Key didn’t retreat as he gently placed his hand on top of hers.
“It just feels like my entire world has tilted.”
“Anything I can do to help?”
A tentative smile banished his frown. “You already are.”
It was the truth, and she seemed to know it. As he finished his meal and she nibbled the last garlic bread stick, she cocked her head toward the door.
“What do you think about axe throwing?”
Jax almost spit out his drink. “Axethrowing?”
“Did you need to clean out your ears, or were you just shocked that I thought of it first?”
He snorted. “Maybe both.”
“I think it might do you some good to work off a bit of that steam,” she suggested. “Besides, it’s next level Hallmark romance fodder.”
“Can’t argue with that.”
While it took five minutes to find a nearby axe throwing location and another ten minutes to walk there, his blood was already pumping with anticipation. Key, in her uncomfortable looking heels, didn’t complain once—even though he offered to drive them several times throughout their short journey.
