“Would you have been happy if you quit racing?”
He stares down to his feet. “I don’t think so.”
“Maybe she knew it and wanted you to be happy and that’s why she never brought it up. She didn’t want to come between you and your career.”
Slowly he nods. “Yeah. I wouldn’t put it past her. She had a heart of gold. One of the reasons why I was crazy about her. But we ended up arguing all the damn time.”
“How long ago was this?”
“Seven, eight months ago.”
“Is that the real reason why you moved?” I ask.
He tightens his lips. “It made the choice easier. I no longer had anything tying me down, so I followed.” He looks to me. “I’m sorry if I led you on. I was hoping a turn of events would help.”
I grin. “Don’t apologize. You’ve been fun.” I bump him with my shoulder. “You showed me I can’t play golf and I suck at trampolines.”
He laughs under his breath. “It was fun watching you try.” He gets to his feet and pulls me up. “Thank you for not hating me.”
Reaching up, I give him a hug and for the first time since meeting him, it feels right. “I could never hate you.”
We get back into our shoes and walk to our vehicles. There isn’t much conversation, leaving my overactive brain to start thinking about Nathan and how powerful our attraction is.
“Can I ask you a question?” I break the silence and he nods. “Are you ever too busy to date?”
He studies the sidewalk in front of us as he thinks about the question. “For me? Kind of. I spend a lot of time away. It can ruin a relationship or even the chance of one. From the start there has to be trust and at the beginning stages, that’s what you’re building. There are some months I’m gone weeks at a time because it’s pointless to come home for a day and fly back out.”
“What if you never had to leave the city?”
“A man will make room for a woman he’s interested in,” he says straightforward.
I only nod. Maybe Nathan isn’t as interested in me as I am in him. The thought breaks my heart a little bit.
Declan opens my car door and kisses my cheek. “I had a really good time, Brooklyn. I’m sorry I’m not ready.”
“Don’t be. Take time for yourself. There’ll be a woman to sweep you off your feet. You’re too much of a gem not to.”
He chuckles. “Keep in touch?”
“Sure. Good luck with everything.”
The respect Declan gained from me tonight is unfathomable. For him to be outright truthful and not want to lead me on, that took guts.
EIGHT
My body hates me. Two days after the trampoline park and I’m still barely able to walk. I can’t laugh without tears prickling my eyes from the soreness. Coughs and sneezes are murderous. In high school, I could work out daily, run practices, and play matches without a hint of soreness. I knew I was out of shape, but to this extreme I had no clue.
Cody: Hey Spitfire. You available any day this week? I’d love to take you out.
He texted me an hour ago and I haven’t responded. After clocking out for lunch and making myself comfortable under the shade tree outside, I’m still staring at it and trying to figure out what I should do. I have a feeling he’s setting up Nathan again.
I need girl therapy so I text the group chat.
Brooklyn: Say you REALLY like a guy and this guy has a friend who enjoys motivating him by pushing his buttons and asking you out. What would you do?
Aimee: My head hurts. Is this cryptic? You know I don’t do well with word problems.
Shyla: She means Cody and Nathan. She likes Nathan and his friend Cody is trying to light a fire under his ass for some reason we don’t know to make Nathan jealous enough to make a move on our girl.
Aimee: How the hell did you decipher all that from her text?
Shyla: Because I’ve been following along. Unlike you. That’s why I’m the favorite friend.
Aimee: OMG. That’s not true. I’m her favorite. I’m just not good at word problems.
Shyla: LOL right.
Brooklyn: You’re BOTH my favorite! Now back to my issue. What do I do? Cody asked me out.
Aimee: Has Nathan contacted you since your last date?
Brooklyn: No.
Shyla: I’d ride Cody all the way into the sunset.
Aimee: S, your inner whore has escaped again. Rein that in. B, do you think Cody is truly interested in you?
Brooklyn: I think it’s more to rile Nathan. But who knows if Nathan is truly interested either.
Aimee: Maybe go out with Cody and see what’s with Nathan.
Shyla: If she has to probe for information about Nathan, she doesn’t need him. He should be making it clear he wants her. Girls aren’t supposed to chase. Men are.
Aimee: Can you come back to this decade? What if B makes N nervous? What if N is giving her space?
Shyla: You hear yourself? Space? That’s total bullshit and you know it.
Aimee: <Sigh> I know. I say call Cody and find out his motivation.
Shyla: I agree. Find out what’s the purpose behind all this.
Brooklyn: What if he wants to go on a date? Should I?
Shyla: That’s a gamble. Is Nathan interested in you?
Brooklyn: Feels like it, but I don’t know.
Aimee: If you go out with Cody, N may think you’re not interested in him. Could backfire.
Brooklyn: And now you know my dilemma.
Shyla: I say call Cody. Talk with him. There could be a legit reason why Nathan isn’t jumping on this. Cody can be your inside.
Brooklyn: You want me to use Cody?
Shyla: Yep. Call him and text us back.
I sigh, cramming a peanut butter cracker into my mouth. Why the hell is this so damn difficult?
I take a swallow of my water as I swipe my thumb to Cody’s name and hit the call button.
“Spitfire!” he calls out when he answers. “Is this where you call and agree?”
“Actually, not quite. First, I want to know why you’re doing this. Are you really interested in me or is this just a show to motivate Nathan?”
Silence falls on the line and then I hear a door shut before he responds. “Here’s the deal. You’ve caught the eye of my friend, but he seems to think he’s too damn busy for a relationship. I know this is untrue. He can make time if he chooses.”
“Maybe there’s a reason he’s choosing not to make time for me? He may not be interested, Cody, and you’re trying to push two people together who don’t belong.”
He barks a hefty laugh. “You don’t know him like I do. He’s too focused on other things. He has this mindset that his happiness should wait while he does these other things. That’s where my intervention begins. I know he’s interested in you, so there’s nothing wrong with lighting a fire under his ass to motivate him.”
“And exactly how do you know he’s interested in me?” I ask.
He hums. “Again, you don’t know him like I do. He’s interested.”
“All this seems a bit over the top. Don’t you think?”
“Not at all. That’s what good friends are for.”
“To make him seem like a loser who can’t date on his own?” I retort.