Chapter 6 #2
When I’m met with silence, I sneak a glance and see Taevin’s eyebrows are raised skeptically. “I mean, I did my homework on you a little bit, Jackson. You’ve got quite the reputation as a ladies’ man. It’s actually why I made it what I thought was nearly impossible to take me out.”
With my focus back on the road, I admit, “Look, I’m no saint.
But I can say with complete honesty that a girl’s never knocked me on my ass the way you have.
I was captivated by you the moment I laid eyes on you in church.
My reputation precedes me, but if you give me a chance, I can prove it wrong. ”
She doesn’t respond, and instead smiles at the neon sign lighting up the building we’ve just pulled up to.
I put my truck in park and look over at her.
“If you tell me I don’t have a chance in changing your opinion of me, I can take you home right now.
But if you’re up for a night of fun together, I think you’ll get to know the real me. ”
I’m surprised when Taevin unbuckles and turns to face me. “I’ve got faith in you, and I agree, I think we can have some fun tonight.” When she reaches for her door handle, I reach across and she halts her movements when I place my hand on hers.
“Let me start the date off right by opening your door.”
“Okay. I’d like that very much,” she says, tucking her hair behind her ear.
Keep me on my toes was right. For our first date, I brought Taevin to the arcade that’s seen thousands of nickels between my siblings and me over the years.
We were both hungry when we got here, so we ordered a pizza and ate first. Then, for the first hour or so, we played arcade games and raced go-karts.
Now, though, I’m being bamboozled by Tae as she walks around the pool table to chalk the end of her cue stick again.
She’s beaten me twice in a row—about to be a third time—and all I can do is sit here completely dumbfounded.
How is it that when we first walked up to the pool table, she grabbed the cue stick and acted like she didn’t know what to do with it?
She had me bent over, showing her how to line it up and where to place her hand to get the best shot, and yet she’s an absolute pool shark.
And what’s worse? She’s calling her shots before making every last one of them. I’m not just getting beaten by the girl, I’m getting obliterated. So much so, that a small crowd has gathered around to watch her run the table.
“Thirteen ball in the far corner pocket,” Tae calls before pulling back and making hard contact with the cue ball, sending her last striped ball into, you guessed it, the far corner pocket. It doesn’t take much for her to sink the eight ball and then it’s game over for the third time in a row.
“Damn. You really had me with the whole I’ve never played before act you had going. Where’d you learn to play like that?”
“We may or may not have a pool table in our basement. My parents used to play together a lot when I was growing up, and my mom was a bit of a pool shark when she and my dad met. Her father owned a bar, and I guess I picked it up from her.”
“And the whole playing me for a fool?”
“My pathetic attempt at flirting?” she answers back in question.
I can’t help grinning like an idiot. “I think you just wanted to have an excuse to check me out.”
“Maybe . . . Could’ve gone better had I not kicked your butt.”
“Touché. You’ve got me there.”
Once we’ve racked up our sticks, I suggest we go next door where there’s a candy store for dessert.
Taevin chooses two white chocolate-covered Oreos, and I select half a pound of cookies and cream fudge.
And because that won’t quite induce a sufficient sugar coma, I convince her to try their ridiculously good old fashioned cream soda.
After I pay, we sit at one of the booths at the front of the store. Snow begins falling outside the window in thick, cottony flurries, and Taevin lets out a dreamy, contented sigh.
“What’s got you sighing like that?” I ask her.
She focuses her gaze back on me and gives me a soft smile. “The snow. It was a good sigh. I love living here and getting to experience all of the seasons. Do you like winter?”
I take my time answering her question, too preoccupied taking her in.
Her hair falls in waves from beneath her white knit hat that matches her sweater.
I can’t see them right now from where she’s sitting across from me, but her dark jeans looked like they were painted on her while she was bent over the pool table earlier.
After openly checking her out, I remember she asked me a question and I clear my throat. “It’s my favorite season, which is sometimes a scary thing to admit because to the wrong person, it probably makes me sound like a psychopath, but my favorite things happen in the winter.”
“Oh, duh. That was probably a silly question considering you’re a hockey player.”
“Nah, I think it’s a fair question. I could’ve said summer is my favorite because I love to golf or go wakeboarding.”
“Do you like to do those things?”
I nod, and then she asks, “What other things do you like to do?”
“In the fall and spring I love to go hunting, and in the summer if I’m not golfing or wakeboarding, you’ll probably find me fishing. Have you ever been?”
She shakes her head. “Nope, I’ve never been hunting or fishing before; my dad isn’t much of an outdoorsman. The only golfing I’ve done is during gym class and I am not athletic enough to stand up on a wakeboard.”
“I feel like that’s a challenge I’d be willing to take on.”
“What challenge is that?” she asks, quirking a brow.
“All the above. I think I could teach you to wakeboard. Golfing might take time. Hunting would require you to get a license, but you could tag along as my good luck charm. Fishing is pretty easy once you get the hang of it.”
“You’re pretty sure of yourself, aren’t you, Jackson Wilson?”
“Not so sure of myself yet when it comes to you. But we’ll get there.”
“I have the utmost confidence,” she assures me.
We sit there and talk for so long, I don’t notice the time until the store is telling us they’re getting ready to close for the evening.
I help Taevin into her coat before taking a chance and grabbing her hand in mine.
My heart launches into my throat when she turns to give me one of the most radiant smiles I’ve ever seen.
Just as I’ve opened the passenger door of my truck, I spin her toward me, and end up having to catch her around the waist when she slips on some of the freshly fallen snow.
Holding her like this has thoughts I’ve never had suddenly filling my head.
In the short span of time we’ve spent together, I’ve come to the conclusion that Taevin Gray isn’t the type of girl you can easily let go of.
Where do we go from here? What would it be like if she were mine?
Am I boyfriend material? Am I capable of being more than just someone’s fun night? Should I ask her to be my girlfriend?
Do it. Ask her.
“Listen, I don’t really know how all of this works, so I’m going to just go with what feels right.” I pause and grab her hands in mine, rubbing slow circles on the backs of hers. “Will you be my girlfriend, Taevin?”
Her eyes widen, and I hope the shock on her face isn’t a bad kind of shock, like the kind where she’s trying to figure out how to let me down easy. I feel a slight sense of relief when a slow smile tugs at the corners of her mouth.
She surprises the hell out of me when she points out, “You haven’t even kissed me yet.
How can you expect me to agree to be in a relationship with you when I don’t know if you’re a good kisser or not?
For all I know, you could be terrible at it.
I would hate to tie myself down to someone who uses too much tongue, or worse, none at all. ”
My eyebrows are to my forehead and I’m sure it’s comical how wide my eyes are right now. It takes me a moment, but I manage to regain my composure.
“If you wanted me to kiss you, Tae, all you had to do was ask,” I tell her as I drop her hands and take a step closer so I can wrap an arm around her waist, using my other hand to brush a stray piece of hair behind her ear before angling her face up to look at me.
She looks into my eyes for a moment before hers flutter shut at the same time as she lifts onto her toes, drawing her lips that much closer to mine.
I hesitate for a moment, not only to make sure this is what she wants, but I also want to capture a mental snapshot of this moment in time.
As thick, cottony flakes fall down around us, I’m captivated by the sight of Taevin’s dark lashes coated with white snowflakes.
Her black hair flowing out of her hat is the perfect contrast to the winter wonderland surrounding her, giving her an almost ethereal look.
When I lean down and finally press my lips to hers, I realize in an instant that my life has irrevocably changed. From this moment on, my life will be measured in moments that I’ll designate as before Tae and after Tae.
A soft hum leaves her lips as I glide my tongue along them for entry.
I let out a low groan of approval when she opens for me.
Our kiss isn’t frenzied, it isn’t rushed.
It’s purposeful—an exploration that leaves me wanting to discover so much more.
I wish I could freeze this moment in time—wish I could spend the rest of the evening doing this and only this.
She breaks the kiss when her phone alarm goes off, signaling that it’s time to get her home before her curfew.
I’m not sure where she told her dad she was going tonight, but I know it wasn’t the truth.
She said she needed to give him more time to come around to the prospect of her dating before she told him about me.
I lick my lips, savoring the way I can still taste her there.
Tae tracks the move, causing her to bite down on her bottom lip with heavy-lidded eyes, and it takes everything in me not to pull her in for another kiss.
Instead, I plant a soft kiss on her forehead and tell her, “I should get you home.”
She wraps her arms around my waist and gazes up at me. “You should. But first things first, I’ve got to answer your question.”
“And what question is that?” I ask as my mind tries to play catch up.
“Yes, I’ll be your girlfriend.” She gives me a quick peck before hopping into the passenger seat.
I stand there with my hand holding the door open, stunned—fucking stupified—at the fact that she said yes. When I asked, I honestly thought there was no chance in hell a girl like her would give a fuckup like me the privilege of calling her mine.
The beautiful sound of her laughter fills the crisp night air, snapping me out of my daze.
Taevin said yes. She’s my girlfriend. I’m someone’s boyfriend—no, not someone, the one.
Shutting the door, I round the back of my truck and pump my fist in the air. “Let’s fucking go!” I shout into the void, to absolutely no one but myself.
I thought after I started my truck maybe I’d come down from cloud nine, but Taevin had other plans.
The smile on my face only grows as she slides across the bench seat to tuck herself beneath the arm I had slung over the seat as I reversed out of the parking spot.
Two contrasting things happen in that moment—my chest swells with pride at the same time my heart pinches in fear.
I barely know this girl, and she’s already turned my world upside down.
If there’s one thing I know for sure, it’s that I’m going to do everything in my power to not fuck this up.