Chapter 5 Kelsey
Kelsey
He wasn’t coming.
Kelsey snapped on her phone to peek at the time, but she already had a sinking feeling about her date with Sev. He’d seemed so eager to meet up with her, verifying that they were still going to meet at that bench right outside of the Second Call like she’d suggested last year.
He really seemed excited to see her again.
And she knew she’d been excited to see him.
Sighing to herself and seeing it was already a couple of minutes past seven, she darkened her screen and pocketed her phone.
She had been surprised to see the Light Parade going on when she arrived, though she knew something was up when she struggled to find parking.
Still, she was here on time, and she didn’t have so much as a text from Sev saying that he was going to be late.
She never would have pegged him to be the kind of guy to ghost her, but she guessed she really didn’t know him at all. Sure, he was great to look at. Rugged. Handsome. Protective, especially around ex-fiancés who showed up unannounced.
She adored every text he sent her this past year. Relished every conversation. He was talkative. Appreciative. Fun.
But all told, she’d met Sev once. Last year. And even if they had the kind of chemistry that lit her up like a charged lightning rod, she wasn’t going to waste her time chasing after someone who didn’t want to be with her. She’d already learned that lesson.
If only that made it all hurt less.
Turning to a wall of people behind her, her eyes scanned for an open spot to slip through. She’d never seen Downtown so packed with people, and she already knew it was going to take some time to get back to her car.
If she could get there before the parade was done, maybe she’d stand a chance of getting back to The Point in a timely fashion?
“Kelsey!” she thought she’d heard someone shout.
Stopping herself, she searched the area, tilting her head in the direction that the voice had come from. It was hard to tell, given that the crowd was going wild as the parade ended.
When she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket, she pulled it out and checked her message alerts. There was a text waiting from Sev.
Look up
What? Kelsey looked up at the brick buildings of Downtown staring back at her. A quick scan of the area, and she didn’t see him.
“Kels!” she heard it again. Only, it didn’t seem to be coming from the crowd around her. Turning to the street, her eyes bugged out as she saw a seriously handsome guy sitting next to… Santa Claus?
“Sev?” she called out, as if he could hear her. There were dozens of folks all around her, all clamoring for Santa’s attention. “Sev!”
“Kelsey!” he called back, grinning from ear to ear as he stood, hand up in a wave.
In response, Santa stood up too, pumping his hands at the crowd and getting them to cheer on their reunion. As Sev began to climb out of the sled, Kelsey could feel hands at her back, gently pushing her to the front of the crowd, past the barricades, and onto Main Street.
Just as Sev jumped off the float and sprinted toward her.
The crowd roared to a level that rattled her from the inside out as he scooped her up in his arms, lifting her off her feet in the strongest embrace she’d ever felt.
She wrapped her arms around his shoulders tightly, feeling herself laugh in delight as she held him back.
She couldn’t tell how long they’d hugged for, but it was certainly long enough for the crowd to die down, the parade to end, and for people to start dispersing again.
As Sev lowered her down and she felt her toes touch back to earth once more, she stood in his arms, completely aghast in all the best ways.
“I thought you weren’t coming,” she blurted out, immediately regretting her choice of words. This is the first time they’d spoken to one another, face to face, in a year. How about a nice hello? How are you? I’m so glad to see you again?
To her surprise, or really not since Sev had always seemed to understand her, his expression softened as he reached up to run his fingertip along the edge of her beanie cap.
“Not a chance, sweetheart,” he said with a half-smile. “Not a chance in the world.”
Completely lost in his dark brown eyes, she had no desire to move from her spot, her hands pressed to his chest.
Gingerly, Sev moved them the few steps to the sidewalk, never letting her go.
“Gotta say, that was a pretty showstopping appearance,” she said. “How’d you get on Santa’s nice list?”
“I begged.” He laughed. “We got here and traffic wasn’t moving, so I took a chance. Mission accomplished.”
“Indeed it was,” she said, grinning at him.
As she studied his face, the stubble poking up from his jawline, his eyes fixed to hers, she wondered if this was the moment she’d been anticipating for months now.
Sure, she couldn’t wait to have their “date” again, but she remembered a few months back he’d promised to kiss her.
She hadn’t thought about much else since.
Taking a chance, she moved toward him, slowly. Inch by torturous inch.
But to her surprise, Sev quickly shook his head. “Not here.”
“Oh,” she said, feeling her face flush with embarrassment. Maybe he didn’t engage in public displays of affection. They certainly were in public, after all.
Or maybe he didn’t want anyone to see him with her.
Her stomach turned sour at that thought.
“Kels,” he said, resting his palm against her cheek and directing her to look up at him.
Keeping her face passive, she stared back at him. She’d been taught at a young age to look everything in the eye. The good, the bad, and… oh, who was she kidding? There wasn’t anything ugly about Sev.
“When I kiss you for the first time,” he said, dragging his thumb across her cheek and dang near short-circuiting her brain in the process. “It’ll be private, something just for us. I’m not willing to share it with the world.”
“Oh,” she said, this time in understanding. Well, that sounded pretty good. “Okay.”
Sev gave her a half-smile, stroking her cheek once more before releasing her and taking her hands. “So, where to?”
“Well,” she began, given they’d discussed this more than once in their text messages. “I do believe we have dinner plans.”
“I believe we do,” he said, fighting a smile. He pushed his bottom lip into his top one, forming a distinguished frown. “To the Second Call, m’lady?”
“Oh,” she said, gasping and placing a hand to her chest as if she were incredibly impressed by his highbrow manners. “That sounds utterly delightful. Do lead the way.”
Turning, he slipped her hand into the crook of his elbow, gallantly. She couldn’t help the giggle that bubbled up inside of her. How he managed to bring this out in her within minutes of being around, she had no idea.
But it was something she was going to enjoy tonight.
The Second Call was starting to fill up as they passed the threshold, but they managed to get one of the last high-top bar tables on the far side of the room.
“So, how was your deployment?” Kelsey asked, placing her jacket on the back of her chair.
“It was… good,” he said noncommittally. “Kinda… warm.”
“Sev,” Kelsey said, watching him shift uncomfortably in his chair. The poor guy reminded her of an ant under a magnifying glass, watching a beam of light head in his direction. “You don’t have to tell me any details. I know about deployments.”
“Most of the time, I’m okay telling people I can’t talk about it and shutting them down. But…” He paused. “The last thing I want to do is shut you down.”
Could this guy be any sweeter? Grinning at him, she reached across the table and squeezed his hand. “Did you like the unit you were serving with?”
“Yes,” he said without hesitation. “Everyone was excellent, no complaints. They all had no problem carrying their own weight.”
“And did you get to show off how good you are at your job?” She still wasn’t sure what the particulars were. She knew if she was meant to know, he’d have probably told her by now.
“I did,” he confirmed, smiling as if he was delighted to have some vague questions he could answer. “I think all the right people noticed, too.”
“I have no doubt,” she said, meaning it. Sev was the kind of guy who struck her as solid. Reliable. He said what he meant, and he meant what he said. So if he did his job, he did it with excellence. “And in the end, do you feel like you accomplished your mission? The whole reason you were sent?”
A beautiful half-smile rolled up on his lips as he peered at her. “We did.”
“Then that sounds like a successful almost-twelve months,” she said, grinning at him.
A waitress with fiery red hair and a black Second Call T-shirt appeared before them, causing a pause to their conversation as she passed out menus and took their drink orders.
“Oh, my gosh, Sev. Last year, we never paid for our dinners!” Kelsey’s eyes popped wide as the young woman stepped away. “I never gave that a thought until now! They’ve probably got our pictures up behind the bar as a couple of dine and dashers.”
Sev started to laugh so hard that his shoulders were shaking. “Don’t worry. I made sure it went on my tab.”
“Thank goodness.” Kelsey thought back to the night they first met, Sev putting her drink on his tab. “That means tonight’s on me, then.”
Sev leaned forward on the tabletop, leaning on his forearms. “Not a chance.”
“Sev.”
“You heard me,” he said, shaking his head, just as the waitress reappeared with their sodas. She knew arguing with him would get her nowhere. And at the same time? It thrilled her to the idea that he’d want to pay, further confirming this was a date.
After putting in their orders, Sev settled back into his chair, fixing his gaze on her.
It was something she’d nearly forgotten, and yet recognized the moment she felt it again.
His warm, brown eyes took her in, a serene look on his face that said he liked what he saw.
It was simple, but still so elemental. Having his attention made her heart pound, probably because she was pretty sure she looked at him the same way.
“So tell me about your year.”
“Oh, gosh,” she said, bringing herself back to the present. “Where to begin?”
“Start from where you are?” he teased, which surprised her just a little bit. He’d remembered her father’s saying just from that one conversation. It made her wonder what else he remembered about her. “How’d the new course of study go?”
“Well, it was definitely a challenge,” she began, giving him a sly smile.
“There were a lot of projects. I missed the days when all I had to do was read and write papers. But I’ve always wanted to be an art therapist,” she said cautiously, exacting her words and hyper-studying his reaction. She needed to know what Sev thought.
No surprise, the only thing that radiated on his face was pride for her. “I’ve no doubt you’ll be great at it.”
“Thanks,” she said, his words making her feel like she could fly. It had meant putting off graduating, but she managed to get her requirements in with some classes over the summer. She’d gotten her diploma in the mail last week.
And Sev had been with her through it all.
“So when do you start your master’s program?”
“Mid-January,” she said. “But at least I won’t have to move, just grab a different subway line.
I’m hoping I might be able to get everything squared away in a year and a half’s time, doing my clinical internship over the summer.
Then if all goes well, I can complete my certification after graduation, and then move into a job just before that following summer. ”
“Sounds like you’ve got the whole thing planned out,” he said, nodding his head.
“I like to have a plan,” she said, grinning. “I don’t do well flying by the seat of my pants.”
“That I get,” he said, laughing. It was such a sweet sound, and Kelsey loved hearing it. Despite the dozens of male classmates and acquaintances she had, nobody’s laugh warmed her the way Sev’s did.
Their conversation continued through their meal, and as they ate and laughed, the bar began to fill. Kelsey did her best to chew slowly, but she knew that when they were done, the waitstaff was going to come quickly with their bill.
She didn’t want the night to end; she’d only just gotten Sev back!
“Wow, this place filled up fast,” Sev said, having a look around as he dragged the last french fry he had across his plate. It would appear he didn’t want their night to end any more than she did.
“It did.” She smiled as she dipped her straw into her soda, covering the end with her finger and lifting it slightly before releasing the liquid back into the glass. “
“I was hoping we could get a few songs on the jukebox.” He leaned forward on the table, and she took in the beautiful shape of his forearms, sprinkled with a dusting of dark hair.
“If you want a song, you’re going to have to wait for it,” she said, judging by the line forming.
“What do you say to taking a walk around Downtown then, where they’ve got so much stuff going on?” he offered. “We can just wander a little, see if something catches our eye?”
It had been ages since she’d actually taken the time to walk through Downtown during the holiday season. The idea of exploring the beating heart of this little town with Sev thrilled her.
“I’m all yours,” she said with her full heart.