Chapter Two
As they walked back up the steps from the beach, Savannah’s heart was pounding. And it wasn’t from the exertion of climbing the steps, no – she was nervous. Of course she was, this was it! She was actually going on a date with Jake.
When they reached the top, he turned to her with a smile. “I was going to ask what time you want me to pick you up, but what do you think – want to start right now?”
“I … What do you mean?”
He gestured toward the deck of The Boathouse restaurant. Several of the tables were occupied with people enjoying the late afternoon sun.
“I don’t mean instead of a date, but now that you’ve finally said yes, I don’t want to go home and get changed and then come back out again – not just yet.
I want to do all of that, make it a real date,” he added hurriedly.
“But I don’t want to say goodbye to you yet.
We could sit and make the most of the sun before we go.
Then I’ll come pick you up in a little while and we can go out – wherever you’d like.
We could have dinner at Giuseppe’s or go over to Four Mile and eat at the café or the sports bar.
” His eyebrows drew together. “Or maybe Giuseppe’s is best. I … ”
A rush of warmth filled her chest when it hit her that he was rambling – maybe nervous. She reached out to touch his arm, hoping to put him at ease. The air seemed to crackle between them. He froze at her touch, and she felt it too – something zinged between them.
For a moment, all she could do was stare into his eyes – his gorgeous, big brown eyes that stared back at her. His lips curved up into a smile.
“I don’t get nervous, Savannah. Not usually, but damn, girl! You …” He shrugged.
She chuckled. “It’s okay. I’m nervous, too.”
“You are?”
She nodded. “How could I not be?” She managed to stop herself before she told him how important this felt to her.
“What do you say, then? Want to sit on the deck at The Boathouse, have a drink, and calm our nerves?”
“I’d love to sit over there, but I’ll stick with a soda – and rely on deep breaths to calm the nerves.”
“You don’t drink?” he asked as they walked across the square toward the entrance to The Boathouse.
“Not much. I do sometimes, when I go out, but I’m in the car and I still have to drive home.”
He frowned. “You’re still in Austin’s apartment, aren’t you? On the old road out of town?”
“That’s right. I mean, we rent from Austin – Tiffany and I. But it sounds weird when you call it his apartment – it sounds like I live with him or something. I don’t think Amber would like that.”
He pursed his lips. “You’re right. I should have said it differently. I wouldn’t like it if you were living with Austin either.”
She laughed. “You should see the look on your face. Austin’s a good guy. We went to school together. He’s not some unsavory character.”
“I know; he’s a great guy. But I still wouldn’t be happy if you were living with him.”
Her breath caught as she looked up at him, and he gave her a rueful smile. “What can I say? I need to feel like I at least stand a chance.”
She stared at him for a long moment, not knowing how to respond.
He broke the tension when he nudged her with his elbow again. “Do me a favor, would you? If there’s no hope at all for us to start seeing each other, don’t tell me till the end of this evening?”
She wanted to say that she’d love to start seeing him, but she shouldn’t. She was relieved that they’d reached the door to the restaurant, and he held it open for her.
As soon as they stepped inside, Kenzie, the bartender, waved them over.
“Hey, guys! This makes me happy – seeing you two out together. I’ve been wondering how long it’d take you.”
Savannah rolled her eyes. She didn’t want Kenzie to embarrass Jake.
To her surprise, he stood a little closer to her and grinned. “I’ve been wondering myself,” he told Kenzie before looking down at Savannah and adding, “but we’ve made a start now.”
His eyes seemed to question her as to whether that was true, and Kenzie watched them closely.
After a moment, she nodded slightly, and sensed Jake relax. Kenzie’s raucous laugh rang out, making them both smile. “Love it!” she told them. “Are you going to sit outside? There are servers out there. But if you want to sit at the bar here with me so I can join in …”
Jake shook his head at her.
“We’re going to make the most of the sunshine,” Savannah told her.
“Good – I was just messing with you. Go enjoy yourselves.”
~ ~ ~
When they were seated at a table right over the water, and the server had brought them their drinks, Jake leaned back in his seat and finally relaxed.
He hadn’t planned this – any of it. But Savannah was probably right about Harvey getting into his head.
Not that he was complaining – far from it.
He was grateful for the old guy’s reminder that life was too short.
Jake had lost friends during his time in the Marine Corps. That was one of the reasons he’d decided not to re-up.
He was happy to be here in Summer Lake. Happy that he got to live in the same small town where his dad now lived – and his uncle Dom. Perhaps even more than that, he was happy to have a shot at building a life for himself on his own terms.
He’d loved his time in the Corps, but after the first few years, he’d known it wasn’t what he wanted to dedicate his whole life to.
The garage and towing business didn’t amount to much yet, but it would.
He’d build it up over time. And it wasn’t as though he wanted to build a mega-business or anything.
He just wanted to make a living for himself, and a couple others if he could.
He enjoyed working on cars, he always had.
He loved knowing that he was helping people in his own way.
All right, so he wasn’t a doctor or anything like that, but he helped people stay on the road by fixing their cars.
It might not seem like much, but he liked to think that he was helping people get on with their lives – and that counted for a lot.
He watched Savannah sip her drink and look out at the lake, and it was only then that he realized they weren’t talking.
He should probably be making conversation, but strangely, he didn’t feel the need.
He felt comfortable enough with her that they could take in the moment without filling every second with talk.
That made him frown. How could he be so relaxed now when just a few minutes ago he’d been so nervous he couldn’t stop running his mouth?
She turned to him with a smile and let out a big, happy sigh. “Thanks for suggesting this. I’ve never sat out here like this, and it’s the perfect day to do it.”
He relaxed, grateful that she was the kind of girl who was happy to enjoy the view and the moment.
He couldn’t see any of the girls he’d dated in San Diego thinking much of this as a first date – or any date.
They were more about appearances, he guessed.
They wanted to be seen at the right places.
They cared about what they wore – not just what clothes but what names and labels.
They liked to be the center of attention – and he’d figured out quickly that if he didn’t pay them enough attention, they’d soon find someone who would.
“Thanks for coming. We picked the right day for it.” He jerked his chin toward the sky above the lake that was starting to change color.
The few scattered clouds were already touched with pink and yellow.
He hoped that very soon they’d be treated to one of Summer Lake’s classic crimson and gold sunsets.
“I know,” she agreed. “Isn’t it beautiful? And I’d guess it’s going to be spectacular. I’m surprised at you, though.”
“Why?”
“Don’t look so worried – I mean it in a good way. I’m surprised that you appreciate the colors in the sky – the sunset.”
He chuckled. “See, we really do need to spend more time together. If you don’t already know that I love a good sunset – and a good sunrise maybe even more so – then you can’t claim to know me at all.”
She laughed with him. “I wouldn’t say that I don’t know you at all, but …”
He loved the way her eyes shone. She had that carefree look again, and he wanted to see that look on her face more often.
He sat up straighter and gave her a mock stern look. “But you don’t know me well enough – not yet. I think we should fix that, don’t you?”
He shifted in his seat when her nostrils flared. She thought he was talking about getting to know each other in the physical sense – he could tell. And of course, he wanted that, but … He winked at her.
“I don’t know what thoughts just crossed your mind, although I could maybe guess. But for now, I won’t embarrass either of us. I’ll just say that when I said we should fix it, I meant that we should talk about it – tell each other more about ourselves. What do you think?”
She nodded slowly, looking far less enthusiastic than he’d hoped. She met his gaze.
“There’s not much to say about me. You know my story – I grew up here, lived here my whole life.”
He pursed his lips. He knew a whole lot more about her than she realized, but he didn’t think he should tell her that.
He could see how she might not like him knowing her history better than most people, but he hadn’t intentionally gone digging for information about her.
It was just that Josh was his housemate – Josh who happened to have grown up with Savannah.
They’d been neighbors, friends. Gone to school together.
And to Jake it sounded like they were pretty much family.
Even Josh’s grandpa, Harvey, thought of Savannah as family.
“But I’ll tell you, if you want.”
When she said that, he realized that he’d been quiet for too long. He hated that she was prepared to share with him because he hadn’t spoken. Did she think he was mad at her?