Chapter 18
EIGHTEEN
The next few days consist of press, two races, and a dozen stolen kisses, all of them leaving me unsatisfied and wanting more. Unfortunately, we haven’t had time to do anything but work, so I haven’t been able to convince Lana to spend more time with me.
Thankfully, she hasn’t been avoiding me outright, and there have been a fair number of heated moments in corners.
Still, I desperately want more than five minutes alone with her, my hand on her ass and my tongue in her mouth.
I’ve never found myself particularly eager to just talk to a woman, but then again, I’ve never encountered anyone like Lana.
When we have our first real day off in weeks, instead of spending it at the track as I’d originally planned, I find myself bribing the woman at the hotel’s front desk with some cash and a smile to tell me Lana’s room number.
As I knock on the door, standing there with convenience store flowers and a treat in hand, I feel like a complete tool.
It doesn’t get any better when the door opens to Demi.
She takes me in for a moment, her face unreadable, before a huge grin spreads across her face.
“Lanaaaaa,” she says, singing her friend’s name. “You have a visitor!”
“A visitor? Who the hell—” she starts, but her words die out quickly when she steps out of the bathroom, her hair still damp from a shower. A drop of water drips down her neck, and I desperately wish I could run my tongue along it. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here to take you out,” I say, giving her a smirk that has gotten me more women over the years than I can count.
Lana, as always, is unaffected. Slowly, she accepts the flowers, looking at them with awe on her face and making me forget any lingering hesitation about bringing them.
Next, I hand over the multicolored bag of Nerds Gummy Clusters.
“I tried one, so you no longer have to pity my sheltered life. It’s pure sugar, Lana.
” Finally, she gives me a small, confused smile.
“That’s the whole point. But what’s going on? What’s all this for?”
“It’s time for our first date, heartbreaker,” I say, trying to push back the uncharacteristic nervousness flooding through me.
“A date?” I nod.
“Yeah. Movie, mall, pretzel-adjacent treat.” Her confusion turns into something altogether different, as a grin that’s equal parts entertained and impressed takes over her gorgeous face. A moment later, though, something else passes her face, and she bites her lip, looking to Demi.
“I’d love to, but… Demi and I have plans—”
“Not anymore, we don’t,” Demi says, crossing her arms on her chest. Lana turns to her crew chief and friend.
“Demi—” Her friend cuts her off, shooing her with her hands.
“Go. Go on the date with the hot bad boy. My god, Lana, live a little.“ Lana looks hesitantly between her friend and me, and I stand there, watching them. There are a few subtle eye gestures and head tips, a silent conversation I’m not privy to between them, before Lana sighs.
“Fine.”
“Don’t sound too eager, now,” I say with a laugh. She glares at me, but there’s no fire in the look.
“Don’t worry, I’m not.”
“Don’t listen to her,” Demi says, a shit-eating grin on her face. “She’s totally into you; she’s just being a pain about it.”
“Demi! You’re supposed to be on my side!” Demi looks from Lana to me, giving me a very long once-over before nodding solemnly.
“Trust me, Lana, I am. I am on your side.” I let out a snort of laugh, and Lana turns her ire to me, but it bounces right off. I’ve become somewhat immune to her burning looks, finding them darling rather than alarming, much to her dismay.
“Come on, heartbreaker. Let’s go.” She rolls her eyes, but still turns to grab a bag, stuffing a few odds and ends in before looking down at her outfit and turning to me.
“Is this okay? Or should I get changed?”
“What you have on is perfect.” She could have on a parka, and it would be fine, but instead she’s in another oversized tee, this one for some old music festival that took place over fifteen years ago, and shorts so short I can’t see them beneath the hem, with a pair of sneakers.
Her socks have little bows on them, contrasting with the I don’t give a shit vibe the rest of her outfit has, but somehow, it makes even more sense.
It’s just… Lana.
We head out, and when the door clicks behind her, I brush my fingers along hers, needing to touch her in some small way.
I feel like a stupid fucking teenager when she doesn’t pull away, instead reaching to twine our fingers together.
She looks from my hand to me and bites her lip before speaking in a low voice.
“Is this okay?” My heart squeezes.
“Never been more okay,” I say, lifting her hand in mine and pressing my lips to her knuckles. All of this is so new: liking a woman, going after her. I hate to admit it, but over the years, I haven’t had to do much to get a woman interested in me.
Still, it’s not just that I have to work for it that makes me so into Lana Carson.
It’s the spark that’s been there since the first time I met her, the way she makes me laugh even when she’s driving me crazy, the way she pushes me, and the way she doesn’t understand just how amazing she is.
It’s the way I desperately want to make her see it, too.
When we step into the elevator, I lose the will to be gentlemanly, tugging her toward me and pressing her back against the cold metal before lowering my head to hers.
I hesitate for the briefest moment before our lips touch, giving her room to object, but when her chin tips closer to mine, I find myself smiling into the kiss.
It’s just as fantastic as every other one, and I wonder for a moment if this will ever feel ordinary with her.
I hope to god not.
When I pull away, we’re both breathing heavily; Lana’s eyes are closed, a soft look on her face. Lifting a hand, I brush a loose piece of hair back before stepping away as the elevator opens at the parking garage, and I lead her to the car I rented.
An hour later, we’re wandering the mall, our movie not for another hour, and sharing a giant pretzel coated in cinnamon sugar.
I’ve never felt more normal.
In high school, I was either working a part-time job to pay for car parts and upgrades, doing the bare minimum to graduate, or spending every free moment at the track.
I didn’t have or make time for normal relationships, much less normal teenage dates.
I had goals, hopes, and dreams that greatly outweighed the appeal of a mall date.
Though here with Lana, I can’t fathom why.
Doing nothing with her is some of the most fun I’ve had in years.
“Oh my god,” Lana says, dropping my hand and running over to a display filled with pink and cream as if it’s the most sought-after new bag. Instead, it’s a display of tiny animal toys dressed in clothes. “Oh, my god. Calico Critters!!”
“What’s a Calico Critter?” I ask, moving toward her. She rolls her eyes as if I’m some kind of uncultured swine before delicately touching one of the boxes.
“They’re toys, obviously. Little animals that have names and outfits, and they’re absolutely precious.” She turns to me, eyes bright and her smile wide, and she wiggles just a bit deeper into my heart.
“Grab some,” I say, taking in her utter excitement. There are big racks of mystery bags, and her fingers touch them reverently, though she shakes her head.
“No, I don’t need any,” she says with a self-deprecating laugh before stepping away. “We’re here for a movie and pretzels.”
“And now we’re here for Calico Critters. Come on.” She steps away further, but when I reach to grab a few of the bags, she grabs my wrist to stop me.
“Rome, this is silly, you—,” she starts, but I shift, pinning her back to the shelving, and her words die on her lips.
“Don’t stop me from spoiling you, Lana.” She looks from my eyes to my lips and back again.
“Anything that puts that happy little look on your face isn’t silly.
It’s worth every penny.” She stares at me for a long moment before her body slackens, and she shifts onto her tiptoes, pressing her lips to mine softly.
“Okay, Rome,” she whispers when she pulls back, a small tilt to her lips, and right then, I know there isn’t much I wouldn’t do to put that look on her face.
Despite her momentary objection, she’s smiling the entire time we walk to the register and check out. I’m handed a large bag with our bounty, and as we make our way to the exit, I slide a hand to her hip, pulling her into my side. She leans into me, then presses a kiss to my cheek.
“Thank you, Rome.”
“For what?” I ask as I approach a table in the food court.
We sit, and she gestures with her chin toward the bag as I dump the small packages out.
“Oh, this? These are for me. I’ve never had a Calico Critter.
” She rolls her eyes, takes one, throws it at my head, and I laugh before handing her one.
“Go on. Open one.” Without a moment’s hesitation, she rips open the packaging.
“A koala!!” she yells excitedly. “Look at her!” The tiny creature is wearing a pink dress, and Lana adjusts it so it sits perfectly on the toy before setting her down with utter reverence.
I watch, enraptured by her as she reads the little card that came with it, telling me its name and some stats before moving on to another one with the same level of excitement.
“Did you collect them as a kid?” I ask.
“I had four, and they were my most prized possessions. I got them at a birthday party, and they were so cool. I still have two of them, but I’m 99% sure Archer stole one for an experiment or something.”
I watch with rapt attention as she opens another one, oohing and smiling at it. I think she’s dropped the topic, but then she expands, giving me more of the glimpses into her life I’m desperate to collect, the same way she’s collecting the toys.