Both options sounded amazing. Of course, neither sounded quite as amazing as the other thing I wanted do – not that I would, not tonight, anyway.
I never slept with anyone on the first date, and I would be a fool to make an exception for a guy I'd sworn to hate forever. Besides, I reminded myself, it's not like he'd suggested that other thing. No, like a true gentleman, he'd suggested two options that were perfectly respectable.
That, too, surprised me.
Somehow, I'd always imagined that if Cole Hensterdidgo on a date, he'd be a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am kind of guy, not the kind of guy who would suggest sledding or dinner, much less both.
This posed a dangerous question.Who was this guy, anyway?
During dinner, I had my first real chance to find out. Over capellini primavera, I learned that Cole had a sister who was in her final year at Michigan State and a mom who spent her winters in Florida. About his dad, Cole said very little – only that he lived upstate and didn't get out much, whateverthatmeant.
Cole didn't elaborate, and I didn't press him for more details, mostly because something in his demeanor suggested that the topic was a sore one. Yes, I was dying to know more, but I hated the thought of making him frown when I'd grown addicted to his smiles.
In return, I toldhimthat my parents were still married and living only a few minutes away. I also mentioned that I shared a house with my sister and that I planned to live in my hometown forever, assuming this was possible.
What Ididn'ttell Cole was that my sister and I weren't living in the house at the moment.
Why, I wasn't even sure. Maybe all of this felt too new and fragile to risk such an odd confession, that I was living onhisstreet –andwith the same redhead who'd given him such a hard time the other night.
Who knows? Maybe someday we'd laugh about it. But for now, I figured it was best to enjoy the night for what it was,whateverit was.
All this to say, I decided to put off any confessions until at least our second date, assuming therewassuch a thing.
If I hadmyway, there surely would be. And how crazy wasthat?
Chapter 15
Lexie
My sister was waiting for me when I walked in through the side door – the one that connected the garage to the side entryway. With no hello, she asked, "What happened to your car?"
"My car?" At the moment, it was parked safely in the garage. I knew because I'd literally just parked it. "Nothing. Why?"
With a worried frown, she said, "That's not whatIhear."
"From who?"
"From Mom. She said she had to give you a ride."
I hesitated. "Oh. That."
"Yeah,that." Harper was still frowning. "So, were you stranded or something?"
"Me?" I gave a nervous chuckle. "No. I drove back on my own. Everything's fine."
As I watched, my sister walked past me and opened the nearby door. She peered into the garage for only an instant before turning back and shutting the door behind her. "So why'd you need a ride?"
Isodidn't want to say.
The truth was, Cole had driven both of us to dinner in his SUV. And then, at the restaurant, we'd lingered for longer than I'd anticipated, not that I was complaining.
The time had flown by obscenely fast – so fast that two hours had felt more like twenty minutes as we'd lingered over wine and dessert.
Afterward, I'd asked him to drop me off not at my own vehicle, but at my parents' place – explaining that there was something I needed to pick up, meaning my car in a roundabout way.
Cole had been a terrific sport – driving me there without complaintorawkward questions. He'd even offered to walk me to my parents' front door – or if I preferred, to wait in his vehicle while I retrieved whatever it was that I'd needed.
I'd declined both offers, telling him that I'd simply visit with my parents for a while and ask one of them to return me to my car – a car that remained incognito as far as Cole was concerned.
