“Yes, I mean,” I wrung my hands in my lap, my heart pounding in my ears.
I could do this. Just tell him you’re not interested in him that way.
Except that I was!
Before I knew it, the next sentence was out of my mouth. “I think that’s best, at least until after the competition’s over. It’s only one more week. After that we can reevaluate things.”
I laughed nervously even though I wanted to crawl under the seat. Wyatt would have to be blind not to see how easily his sexiness flustered me. Why had I just humiliated myself? There was no way he’d want a girl like me.
His slow smirk slid back into place and he stretched his arm across the seatback like he hadn’t a care in the world. He rolled to a stop at the next stop sign and turned toward me, hitting me with the full power of his gorgeous green eyes.
My breath caught.
“You’re right. It’s only a week, Penny Layne. If you’re asking me to wait, I can wait.” And then he winked, driving again like he hadn’t just left my heart on the side of the road back there with his astonishing declaration.
I melted into my seat, warmth spreading through me from head to toe.
He could wait?
I didn’t even have words for how that made me feel.
Chapter Forty-Three
Wyatt
We pulled up to Silver Acres retirement home and Layne’s eyes widened.
“Wyatt!” she whisper-hissed. “You’re not planning on making me sing here, are you?”
I stifled a laugh. “I wasn’t planning on it, but now that you mentioned it . . .”
She thwapped her hand against my chest. “Not funny.”
“Speaking of singing . . . You’re not getting cold feet on me, are you?”
Layne twisted her hands in her lap. “No,” she said softly, but I could see the confidence she’d earned on stage last night already slipping away.
That’s why I’d brought her here with me today. Well, one of the reasons.
“I guess it’s a good thing I have a plan B,” I said, parking my car.
“Plan B?”
I winked. “I always have a plan B, Penny Layne.”
I dashed around to her side and opened the door. She got out reluctantly and I handed her the donut boxes.
“Wyatt, seriously,” she whispered. “What are we doing here?”
“You’ll see,” I said, ushering her to the door. I held it open and she walked in, waiting for me to lead the way. Which I did, happily.
“Good morning, Tabitha,” I said brightly to the woman at the reception desk.
“Good morning, Wyatt. What did you bring for us this week?”
“Something new, and I think you’re going to like it,” I said, depositing all but one box of donuts on the counter. “Have you ever heard of Sweet Pea’s?”
Tabitha shook her head. “Can’t say I have.”
I grinned. “Do yourself a favor and grab an angel cream before they’re gone. They’re the best, right, Penny Layne?”
Layne looked at me like I’d grown an extra head, but she nodded slowly. I knew bringing her here was a risk. It would mean showing her a side of me that she hadn’t yet seen. Heck it was a side I didn’t let anyone see. But if this was what it took to get Layne to understand why she had to stop being so scared and chase her dreams while she could, it would be worth it.
Tabitha opened the box on top and took a big whiff the of the sugary goodness. “Oh Lordy, if these taste half as good as they smell I’m gonna be in trouble.”
“You can thank Layne here for your new sugar addiction. By the way, could you get her a visitor pass for me?”
“Sure thing, sugar,” Tabitha grinned and handed Layne a clipboard from behind the counter. “Just sign here, sweetie.”
Layne handed me the remaining box of donuts and did as instructed. Then we headed down the hall toward a room that had become as familiar to me as my own home since moving to Northwood.
I waved to a few of the residents I was now acquainted with as we made our way through the rec room and media room, stopping a few times in the hall to introduce Layne to the people I knew.
She was engaging and polite to everyone we met, but I hadn’t been worried about that. Layne was kindhearted by nature. But I was a bit worried about what she’d think of me once we walked into the last room on the right. Would it be too much for her? Would she not want anything to do with me once she saw what my future might look like?
It was ridiculous I was even thinking that far ahead when Layne had expressly reminded me we were strictly partners again this morning. But I couldn’t help myself when it came to her. She made me foolishly hopeful. And she had hinted that our partnership arrangement was only for one more week. That meant there might be room for us to be more in the future.
That thought had my nerves gnawing at my stomach. I wasn’t used to all these new emotions. Normally, I didn’t let people close enough to have an affect on me. But all the time I’d been spending with Layne somehow flipped a switch in my heart that was now impossible to turn off.
I couldn’t remember the last time I’d thought past the current moment, but Layne made me want to. She made me look forward to things—mostly kissing her—but still, she also made me want to be the kind of guy she might want to see herself with.
As we reached the door I paused and pulled in a deep breath. This was a gamble, but as I looked into Layne’s big brown eyes, I knew the risk was worth it. I just hoped it paid off or I might just send her running for the hills.
“Are you ready?” I asked.
She blinked up at me with utter wonder, the gold flecks in her eyes flickering in the fluorescent light. “I still have no idea what we’re doing.”
I grinned and swept her dark curtain of hair back, tucking it gently behind her ear. “I want you to meet someone.”
“Okay,” she said, tentatively.
“Okay,” I replied, offering her my hand.
When she took it, relief followed by courage swelled through me.
This would work—it had to.
Chapter Forty-Four
Layne
Wyatt knocked on the door and pushed it open when a voice beckoned us in. I was surprised to see Mrs. Nash sitting in a chair by the window, a tablet on her lap. She seemed just as shocked to see us.
“Wyatt? What are you doing here?” she asked.
He nodded to the clock on the wall. “It’s ten o’clock.”
She looked up, even more shocked by the time, apparently. “So it is.” She stood up slowly. “I guess I wasn’t sure you were coming today.”
“I come every Sunday, Mum.”
“I know, but didn’t you say something about finishing your recordings for the competition today?”
“We still plan to, but that’s no reason to break tradition, is it?” he replied, grinning as he looked at the two frail figures in their therapeutic beds. Wyatt raised his voice. “I have a surprise for you, Gramps,” he said, holding up the box of donuts to the old man who was transfixed by the television.
I wasn’t sure if he could even hear Wyatt above the volume. Either way, he didn’t move.