Chapter 8
“Well, that was certainly exciting,” Diana said as they stepped outside, the warmth of the morning hitting her with an almost physical force.
She’d kept her tone measured in an attempt to cover up the odd feelings of suspicion that were coming over her. There had definitely been something strange going on ever since Calvin had entered her life in all his devastatingly handsome glory, and she was determined to get to the bottom of it.
First, though, she had to work out what it was.
I mean, there have been a couple of times when it’s felt like a room has become cooler after he’s entered it. What kind of conclusions could I draw from that, without sounding like I have a few screws loose?
If it weren’t for the fact that Calvin was acting a little weird, she would dismiss these feelings entirely.
But he’d been looking downright guilty after the lights in the kitchen went out, which was just bizarre.
As if he’d decided to provide first aid to Eula’s grandson, and then sabotage her diner. Which was nonsensical.
Luckily the damage to the lights had been limited – everything was intact, only a few bulbs were affected, and there was no smoke or other issues. And enough light came in through the windows that the diner would be able to continue to operate until it was fixed.
So it wasn’t like it was a huge deal… but Calvin had looked aghast, as if he had personally reached his hand inside the wall and yanked out the wires.
He’d offered to pay for repairs, but Tom had refused – of course – and said that it was just a coincidence, and insurance would probably cover it if it was a major issue.
Calvin had insisted on paying for both their meals, at least, leaving a large tip in the jar.
He really must be a nice guy, if he’d offer to pay for a random electrical fault at a diner, she thought. I just don’t understand why he’s acting so jittery, especially since he was so calm when he was dealing with Brandon’s situation.
Then again, she was feeling a little jittery herself.
Any chance she’d had of convincing herself that she wasn’t interested in Calvin had gone out the window once he’d started feeding her some of his breakfast. If he’d gone one step further and hand-fed her some berries, she would’ve combusted right there in the diner.
She became aware, suddenly, that the two of them were standing outside the front of the diner, both just kind of staring at the street and not really doing or saying anything. Calvin’s expression was kind of pained.
I guess it makes sense – after all that excitement with Brandon we left without any plans, and now it’s awkward.
Deciding to take the plunge, she cleared her throat.
“Would you like to come back to my place?” she asked, feeling her face heating up as she realized how that sounded. But she hadn’t meant it that way!
Well, I mean, not that I wouldn’t mean it that way, but perhaps not at this exact second!
Quickly, she added, “I could show you my garden.”
“Oh – yes, that sounds like a great idea,” Calvin said, before his face twitched a little, and he started to walk away from her car. “Let’s get going before it gets too warm.”
What the –?!
“Uh, Calvin?” she called out, and he stopped, though he didn’t turn around. “My car is this way.”
He did turn, now, though there was a definite shiftiness to his expression that she hadn’t even thought him capable of.
“I know, but it’s such a nice day, right? It’d be great to get some walking in before it gets too hot. And you could show me the sights on the way.”
On their own, they weren’t terrible arguments. But on top of all the other strange things that had been happening, this avoidant behavior when it came to getting into her car was the straw that broke the camel’s back. There was definitely something weird going on.
“This is the third time you’ve found an excuse not to get into my car,” she said, her eyes narrowing a little. “I’d love to know the reason why. The real reason.”
Calvin stared back at her from his spot on the sidewalk, his eyes almost… pleading? He seemed to be considering things for a moment, before his jaw tightened in resolve.
“I promise I’ll explain everything, Diana. But I just… I can’t get in your car right now. Can you trust me on that?”
She looked into his deep, dark eyes, and saw nothing but honesty there.
And for some reason, she knew that she could trust him. She didn’t know why. But it was like she’d known him all her life – like he was a part of her.
Not that she was going to let him get away with not telling her what was going on, of course. But she was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for a little while longer at least.
Maybe he gets carsick on winding mountain roads, she thought, with a little internal laugh. I can see why he might not want to make that kind of impression on a first date.
“I can trust you,” she said, noticing the way his shoulders visibly sagged in relief. “But I do want answers.”
He nodded. “Is there somewhere we could walk to from here where we could talk privately? Would you still like to go back to your house?”
As much as she would’ve liked to take him back to her home, she found that she was in the mood to do something a little different.
She’d been so busy recently that, she suddenly realized, she hadn’t been for a walk in what felt like ages.
And she suddenly found that there was nothing that she wanted to do more than go walking in the forest with Calvin.
“How about the forest? It’ll be a lot cooler under the shade of the trees,” she suggested. “And you could have at least a bit of your hiking holiday. As long as you don’t mind me tagging along and slowing you down, of course.”
He looked surprised for a moment, but then his face broke out into a big, gorgeous smile. “You wouldn’t be slowing me down.”
Diana smiled back, her heart fluttering.
Calvin gestured his arm broadly, seemingly indicating the vast expanses of greenery that surrounded the entire town. “Lead the way.”
They walked down the main drag a little, content to spend their time mostly in silence as they simply took in the delights of Girdwood Springs, from the sights of quaint shops and enormous shade trees to the smells of abundant flowers and freshly baked cakes.
For such a small town, there really were so many things to be grateful for, and Diana didn’t think she would ever move away again for the rest of her life.
Turning off the main road, they quickly found themselves on a winding dirt path in the forest, enormous oaks and firs and maples towering above them while smaller shrubs and flowers crowded in from the sides.
The range of plant and animal life in Girdwood Springs was breathtaking, and Diana never got bored.
“There’s a little clearing down this path,” Diana said, pointing. “I remember it from when I used to come down here all the time. It’ll be a nice place to sit and talk.”
It was uncanny how, even after all these years, the paths through the woods still seemed so familiar to her.
The clearing opened up before them, and Diana took a moment to enjoy the feeling of warm sunbeams touching her face after the shade of the forest, letting her eyes close for a moment.
Opening them again, she looked around.
The clearing was a place she had visited often enough during her mildly misspent youth, but she hadn’t been here since…
Since I left for college, she realized.
It hadn’t changed all that much, except that now instead of covertly bringing teen magazines with hunky guys on the cover with her, she was skipping the middleman and bringing a hunk outright.
She turned to look at Calvin, whose expression was kind of adorably befuddled. He was clearly trying to work out how to say whatever it was that he needed to tell her.
“Should we sit?” she asked, indicating a patch of soft-looking grass that was dappled in shade from a gloriously green sugar maple. If they were going to have an awkward conversation, they could at least be comfortable for it.
He nodded, and the two of them lowered themselves onto the grass, Diana sighing happily as its coolness touched her legs.
Well, Calvin, I’ve done my part. I’ve brought us somewhere nice and private. So – the rest is up to you. Start talking!
“Look!” Calvin said suddenly, almost making Diana jump.
She turned her head where Calvin was pointing, to find a raccoon that had been surely just minding its own business ambling through the clearing staring back at her – no, make that one mama raccoon and five tiny baby raccoons, all huddled in close.
“Oh, aren’t they precious,” she breathed, not daring to move. “Their tiny stripey faces!”
She knew that, realistically, they’d probably spent all night feasting on horrifying vegetable scraps they’d raided from the trash, but…
they were just so cute when they weren’t doing that!
Diana watched them as they scuttled adorably about, making little trilling sounds, until, apparently deciding that she’d had enough of being watched, the mother raccoon ushered her babies off to somewhere more private.
She turned to Calvin to see him smiling as well, and her heart soared to see his happiness.
“Seeing animals out here in nature – there really isn’t anything better in the world, is there?” she said. “Well – I mean, just as long as they’re not knocking over my trash cans at two o’clock in the morning.”
Calvin laughed. “You can say that again.”
As cute as the raccoons are, is he stalling? Diana thought, as she looked at Calvin’s troubled expression. Well. I guess I can give him a little time to think.
Adjusting herself so that she was facing Calvin, Diana waited expectantly.
Calvin cleared his throat and opened his mouth… then paused, closing it again and shaking his head. Finally, he squared his shoulders and opened his mouth again.
“How well do you know Kieran?”
Oh my God, not this again!!