“Best day ever!” Jacob yelled.
“Yup,” Tanner said and winked at me.
It wasn’t the first time that I’d suddenly felt like I’d walked into a date with Tanner without realizing it.
“Are you sure you don’t need a jacket?” Tanner asked me.
“Yeah, I’m good.” The leaves had started to change and the night air was crisp. But there wasn’t a cloud in the sky.
“You sure? Maybe an old Empire High one or something? There were a lot of things in those old boxes.”
I laughed. “I’m sure.” I was a little relieved that this didn’t feel like a date anymore. Wouldn’t he want me to be cold so he could put his arm around me or something if it were?
“I thought I saw an Empire High jacket though?”
Oh.He’d just stumbled upon it in the boxes. “Yeah, that isn’t even mine.”
“No? Whose is it?”
I felt Jacob staring up at me too. “Just an old friend’s,” I said.
“An old friend’s? Interesting.”
“Yeah.” I looked down at my Keds as words from Miller’s letter starting swirling around in my head. “I know there was someone before me. I know you still think about him sometimes.”I shook the thought away. “I had all my old stuff in storage. I never went through it. I really need to get rid of some things.”
“I don’t know,” Tanner said. “Sometimes holding on to sentimental items makes you feel closer to the ones you’ve lost.”
I nodded. He probably thought it was Miller’s jacket. But it wasn’t. And I wasn’t sure why we were even talking about a stupid old jacket. The fact that I’d kept it didn’t mean anything. I really had just never gone through the old boxes.
“Come on, we don’t want to be late.” He put his hand out. But it wasn’t for me. It was for my son. Jacob jumped along beside Tanner as they walked over to a futuristic looking car.
The car doors rose up instead of out when he hit a button.
“Cool!” Jacob yelled as he climbed into the back seat.
“Only the best for my best friend’s friend,” Tanner said.
I laughed. “Do you drive Kennedy around in this thing too?”
“Who?” Tanner asked.
“Kennedy. Your best friend.”
“Right. No. No I do not.”
I just stared at him.
“Sorry,” he quickly added. “Kennedy and I are feuding at the moment, so it’s difficult for me to think of her as my best friend.”
“Yeah? Why?”
“She’s been making terrible decisions recently. I have her best interests in mind, but she’s being stubborn.”
I laughed. “That sounds like Kennedy.”
“I’ll be honest,” he said. “I’m used to getting my way. It’s not very often that I’m told no.”
I was getting that vibe from him. Hell, he was practically a stranger to me and I’d gone on a road trip with him. And I’d let him give me a home to live in. I’d tried to tell him no to all of it…but he’d gotten his way.Huh.I’d thought I was a little stubborn too, but Tanner was very convincing. And kind. I’d never met anyone more generous.
