Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
Cassie
I’ve not seen Austin since our encounter on Monday morning—I only worked Tuesday evening, and he had the night off.
It’s almost one thirty, so I grab my water bottle, lock up my room and head downstairs to wait for Austin to arrive to go on our walk.
Despite what I said to Mei and the girls, I do want this to be a date—I’m simply not convinced that it is.
When I texted Liam, he said this little outing is the perfect opportunity for me to tell Austin I’m interested. We’ll see.
Call me a coward, but I’m inclined to let Austin set the tone for today and go from there, especially since he’s already rejected my advances before.
The last thing I want is to make him uncomfortable.
It’s best I approach this afternoon as if I’m hanging out with a friend.
If it feels like there’s potential for more than that, great.
If not, I’ll put whatever feelings I might be developing for Austin into an airtight box in the back of my mind until they’re snuffed out for good.
The door to the reception area of the B&B opens, and Austin steps inside looking every inch the outdoorsman in his brown walking boots, jeans, and navy waterproof.
He even has a small backpack with him. Beneath the brim of his grey ball cap, his eyebrows pinch together slightly when he takes in my sneakers.
“I didn’t come prepared for a walking holiday. These are the best I’ve got,” I say, rocking back on my heels.
“They’ll do. The route we’re doing is fairly flat with decent paths. Have you got a coat?”
I shake my head. “Nothing waterproof, so I figured this would do,” I reply, tugging at the hem of my forest-green sweatshirt. It’s cooler today than it’s been the past couple of days, and I wanted the extra layer over my t-shirt.
“Fair enough. It’s not forecast to rain until six, and we’ll be back well before then. Do you have water?”
“Yep.” Jauntily, I shake my water bottle at him.
The corners of his full lips twitch. “Alright, let’s go.”
Pine Grove and the surrounding area are beautiful, and I haven’t explored anywhere near enough of it yet.
The further we walk out of town, the more excited I am to change that—with a local no less.
A hot local. When Austin led the way out of the B&B, pausing to hold the door open for me, I couldn’t help noticing that he wears the hell out of a pair of jeans.
I worried I would have trouble keeping up with Austin, but he’s shortened his stride considerably without me even having to ask, meaning I don’t have to speed walk to keep up with him.
The sky isn’t the bright blue we’ve been graced with for the past few days, but there aren’t any dark clouds marring the light grey above, so it’s still acceptable weather for a hike.
Well, from what Austin’s told me, it sounds like the circular route is more of a long walk, really.
Just as well, since I don’t have the proper footwear for anything more arduous.
Cool, fresh air fills my lungs, and I already feel lighter as we make our way through town and out past the closest lake in comfortable silence.
After about an hour, I’m surrounded by rolling green hills on all sides, and it feels amazing.
I can’t remember the last time I saw this much green all in one place.
The only sounds are distant birdsong and the quiet rustle of leaves as tree branches dance in the gentle summer breeze.
We keep walking, enjoying the peace and quiet, pausing to take occasional sips of water.
A few couples and a lone hiker pass us, and we all exchange polite nods as we go.
The peaceful surroundings give my brain space to think about all the things I’ve been so determined to ignore. Miranda. My record label. Whether I want to record another album. If I should stay here or return to Nashville. I don’t want to think about any of that yet. I’m not ready.
Before I would have said there’s no way I want to record another album full of songs that I didn’t write, and that’s still the case, but performing at Bowman’s made me realise there might be another option.
Liam’s right. I don’t owe my label anything now that I’ve fulfilled my contract with them.
There’s nothing stopping me from recording an album of my original songs on my terms. Still, I’m not prepared to delve into what that would look like.
There are too many other decisions to be made before I can come up with a solid plan, and I’m not ready to face what choosing myself for the first time in years will mean.
Ending my relationship with my mother. Leaving behind my life—as unfulfilling as it is—in Nashville for good.
The jumble of thoughts becomes too much for me.
Usually, I would put my headphones in and drown out all the noise with music I love, but I can’t do that with Austin walking right beside me.
Unable to stand the racket of the thoughts clamouring for dominance inside my head for a moment longer, I resort to cracking a joke to end the silence between Austin and I.
“Be honest, did you lure me out here so you could murder me where there’d be no witnesses? ”
A bark of surprised laughter flies from between Austin’s lips. “I can’t say my intentions are entirely honourable, but my motives are more amorous than murderous.”
I stop dead in my tracks. Did he just make a joke and hit on me using a word that must be worth at least nine points in a game of Scrabble? “I— What?”
“Come on, we’re about to reach the side of the loop that takes us back home.” He keeps walking, leaving me blinking at his back with my jaw hanging open. If my brain were a computer screen, there’d be a little swirling circle of doom on display as I try to work out what the hell just happened.
My body comes back online before my brain does, and I inelegantly stumble over my feet to catch up to Austin.
I can’t believe he said that then strolled off like it was nothing.
Surely that was flirting, right? Then again, if it was, why would he saunter off instead of waiting for me to form a proper reply.
Oh. What if he took my surprise the wrong way?
Of course he’d immediately change the subject if he thought he’d made me uncomfortable.
Glancing over at him, I sigh when I note the tension in his jaw and shoulders. Damn it. If I want us to keep talking, I’m going to have to initiate the next round of conversation. Best to keep it light. “Thanks for walking slower so my stupidly short legs can keep up with yours.”
“Your legs are perfect,” he replies automatically, as if that’s obvious.
Well, my legs are great, even if I do sometimes wish they were a little longer, but that’s not the point.
The point is Austin thinks my legs are great.
Which means he’s been looking at them, at me.
Maybe Phoebe and Mei weren’t wrong about his interest in pursuing me after all.
Red creeps over Austin’s fair, freckled skin right to the tips of his ears, and he clears his throat.
My lips twitch with my amusement. For someone with such an intimidating build, he’s surprisingly cute when he’s flustered.
“I mean—never mind.” He shakes his head and starts walking again, but I keep pace with him easily, a spark of warmth igniting in my chest that he’s catering to me even in the midst of his discomfort.
Austin clears his throat. “How are you liking Pine Grove? You’ve been in town for a few weeks now, long enough to get a feel for the place.”
Fine, I’ll let him return to the safe territory of small talk for now.
I’d rather that than him shut down completely, which is what I get the sense he’ll do if I push him too far too fast. We can keep things light and sunny even if the actual sun has disappeared behind a dark grey cloud.
“It’s great. I can’t imagine growing up somewhere like this. What was it like?”
“It was good. Plenty of places to play outside, a lot of community events, and free kids’ clubs during the school holidays. There’s enough here that I wasn’t itching to get away the moment I got my driver’s license either.”
“No wild teenage years for you?” I tease.
He chuckles. “No. I was too busy taking care of Aria and working part-time at the bar—I didn’t have enough free time to get into trouble.”
Knowing that’s a tender spot for him, I shift the conversation away from his family and back to him. “Something tells me that even if you had time on your hands, you wouldn’t have got up to any mischief—you don’t strike me as much of a rule-breaker.”
“I wasn’t until I met you,” he mutters.
“What?” I ask, convinced I’ve misheard him.
“Nothing. What about you?”
“Me?”
“Yeah. I can see you being the rebellious sort. Am I right?”
“Nope. I did everything Mir—my mother told me to.”
“Really?”
I laugh at his disbelieving expression. “Don’t look so surprised.”
“Sorry.” He raises his hands. “It’s just not what I thought you’d say. I should know by now that you’ll always defy expectations.”
“I’m choosing to take that as a compliment.”
His expression softens. “You should.”
Unsure what to make of the growing tension, I attempt to recapture the playful mood of our conversation. “You’re half right, I guess—I saved my rebellion for my twenties.”
Austin snorts. “I hate to break it to you, but if coming to Pine Grove is your idea of rebellion, you’re doing it wrong.”
“I don’t know about that. I did crash my car the moment I got to town.”
He rolls his eyes. “You’re going to make me say it, aren’t you?”
“Say what?” I ask, confused.
With a sigh, Austin switches to walking backwards, arms outstretched in surrender as he replies, “It was an accident. It wasn’t your fault. Happy?”
“Ecstatic.” I grin.
He drops his arms, falling back into step beside me. “Seriously though, why Pine Grove?”