I suck in a breath, and I’m momentarily speechless. We stare at each other for a couple seconds, me down at him, him up at me.
I’m waiting for him to crack a grin, take the moment from serious to playful, but he doesn’t. He looks back at me with such an earnest gaze I swear my heart stops.
“Please don’t make me wait much longer,” he whispers.
There’s a spark of fire in my chest that roars to a full-blown blaze at the crack in his voice and the openness of his expression. I don’t trust my own voice, so I roll my lips into my mouthand nod.
I shove the window closed, and when I glance back at my phone, my mom is beaming.
“Holland is here.” My words come out breathy and weird. I swallow a couple times. “I’m going to go out with him.”
“I gathered. You two are perfect for each other.”
“We’ll see about that.” I dart to the closet for my shoes, my stomach doing somersaults, rolling with both anticipation and nerves. “I have no idea what I’m doing, Mom. Whatwe’redoing.”
“You’re going out on a date. He was very clear about that. I give the guy credit. So much of dating these days isn’t well defined. It’s a shame. But Holland was direct. Definite green flag.”
“I know that. He’s made it no secret that he’s pursuing me. But I don’t know how to handle him like this. I’m totally out of my element here.”
“Don’t overthink it, Mal. You know him. He knows you. He likes the you he knows, so that takes the pressure off you. Now you both get to enjoy deepening your knowledge of each other, or learning about each other in a new way, I guess.”
My mom has a point. Holland and I have been working together for a couple years. We’re comfortable with each other. That comfort level has taken many forms. Coach and player, to be sure. But also partners on the golf course. And more recently, friends. I can read Holland like a book, and lately, I’ve liked every page of his that I’ve had the chance to flip through, seeing new scenes and sides of him pop up before my eyes.
For his part, he’s proven himself someone who respects me and wants to be on my team. We have fun together. Like I said on camera this morning, he’s thoughtful and attentive. Holland’s heart is bigger than I expected. I’m hoping to find a place for myself in it.
I blow out a wobbly breath. “You’re right.”
“Of course I am.” My mom slashes her hand across the screen in a way that saysthat much is obviousbefore lowering her voice. “Aren’t you excited to kiss him for real?”
I’m hopping up and down on one foot, attempting to get my shoe over my heel, but I glance at the phone to find her shimmying her shoulders.
“Maybe he’ll slip you a little tongue,” she says in a stage whisper.
My hand slips off the back of my shoe, and I stumble. “Oh my GOSH, Mom, that’s enough of that.” I’m immediately sweating. “Please do not talk about Holland or his tongue.”
She laughs. “Go. Have fun!”
“Alright. I’ll check in soon. Love you.”
“Love you too.”
I hang up and put my phone on the nightstand.
The bag that Willow gave me earlier stares back at me from my bedside table. I have no idea what Holland has planned for tonight, but I sling it over my shoulder and descend the hidden staircase.
At the bottom, I peek around the corner. I hear voices in the front room, but the kitchen is empty. I slip out the side door to the yard of the inn.
It takes my eyes a second to adjust to the dim light, and I feel Holland’s presence behind me before I see him.
I spin to face him, and he’s grinning down at me. “Hey, you.”
“Hey yourself.”
“Thanks for choosing me over your bed,” he says.
“I guess I’ll find out by the end of the night if I made the right call. My bed is one of my favorite things.”
“I’m up for the challenge.” Holland gives me a smile and takes my hand in his, tugging me across the backyard of Candace’s house.
