I opened the door to the camper with the keys Lance had handed me before driving off.
The interior was just as he’d showed in the video chat the day before. I was thankful he was letting me borrow the trailer while I was here.
I was already inside the camper and turned to glance down at Autumn as she stared up at me in confusion.
I waved her in as I stepped farther into the confined space. There was a dinette, a small kitchen and bathroom with a shower, and a queen-sized bed in the front. Lance had upgraded everything last summer. It looked more state of the art than run-down as the outside made it appear.
“Wow.”
Glancing at her from over my shoulder, I cocked my eyebrow, waiting for her to elaborate.
“You just. . .keep surprising me.”
“How so?”
“I don’t know. I mean, you’re like a mega sports star, here in Ashfield, living out of a trailer while you renovate a century-old farmhouse. You’re just not what I expected.”
Testing the waters, I took a step closer to her. I half expected Autumn to push me away as I invaded her space, soaked in her warmth, but she only casually ran her finger along the dinette tabletop. I practically covered her body like an umbrella. My frame cast a shadow over her form, but she didn’t move or falter.
“What did you expect me to be?”
She turned back to face me and it was the closest we’d been since that incident at the store a week ago. An incident that I’d been playing on repeat in my head.
“Cocky. Self-absorbed. A player. Take your pick.”
Her assessment didn’t surprise me. It’s what most thought of sports players and most of the time they weren’t far off. I’d been like that when my career started, but I’d learned that it was just as tiring as being myself. Being the man that Ms. Cathy, my first foster mom, wanted me to be.
“Well, I’m not those things.”
Pursing her lips, a sound rumbled out of her as she internally questioned my response.
“We’ll see,” she finally replied.Changing the subject, she sat her trusty binder on the table and said, “Dad mentioned you were interested in learning some of the historical things I’d found.”
The hair on the back of my neck felt like needles prickling my palm as I ran my hand across the skin. I wasn’t sure why, but I was nervous about asking for help. I’d always been that way. My therapist said that it stemmed from childhood trauma.
“Um. . .yeah. Maybe we could go somewhere and you could show me what you’ve found.”
“Why can’t we do it here?”
“I just figured it was dinnertime, and with Brett and Lily gone for the weekend, I kind of need to fend for myself. And cooking is not my expertise unless you want some mac and cheese from a box. And since you grew up here, I bet you know all the best places to eat.”
Her eyes narrowed and I wondered what was going through her mind. I wanted to know everything about her. Autumn intrigued the hell out of me.
“Like a date?”
Shrugging my shoulders, I added on, “It’s just dinner.”
I could tell by the way she straightened her shoulders Autumn was trying to come up with a way to decline the offer. It would be a first for me, that’s for sure. But suddenly a rumble sounded from her direction and I watched as the blush creeped up to her cheeks.
“Betrayed by your stomach,” I said with a chuckle as I moved out of her personal space and retreated back to the door.
“Fine. Yes, I’m hungry. I know a great spot.”
She waited for me as I closed up the camper and together we strolled over to my truck parked in front of the house. Something inside me wanted to reach out for her hand, but I suspected it would be crossing a line.
When I first met, or collided, with Autumn, she’d seemed interested in me. Her eyes had glazed over and she’d fisted my shirt, but once I mentioned the flowers were for dinner, her entire demeanor had changed.
“You know,” I said to her as I opened the door to the passenger side. She was a tiny thing and without thinking I placed my hands on her waist and lifted her into the truck. My fucking palms sizzled from where I’d touched her. I wondered what it would feel like to touch her bare skin.
