Discovering Truths by B. Benfield (chrysanthemum read aloud .TXT) 📕

a single word I read. His night was probably just getting started.

I pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant and circled around to find a spot. It was a busy place, which for us, was a good thing…less noticeable. Gage said he drove a blue Chevrolet truck and I spotted it, backed into a parking space in the corner of the lot. He was there and waiting for me inside. My heart dropped, but I shook off the feeling of nervousness and climbed out of the car before I could talk myself out of it.

I stepped inside and the hostess greeted me immediately. “Hello! How many in your party today?”

“I’m actually meeting someone,” I said, looking around. And then I spotted him. He was towards the back in a booth, sitting there in a black t-shirt and black hat that he wore backwards. He smiled softly and raised his hand slightly. “There he is, thank you.” I said to the girl.

The walk to the table seemed like it took forever and I clung to my purse on my shoulder. It was my safety net. The thought of turning around and running should have crossed my mind, but it never did. What was I getting myself into? Here we go.

When I reached the table, he stood to greet me, pulling me in for a hug immediately. Oh. My. Gosh. He was even more gorgeous in real life. He was tall, well over six feet. He was working, so he wasn’t dressed up, but he pulled off the work look so well. The backwards hat and t-shirt that clung to his chest was so sexy I thought I might faint right there in the middle of the crowded room. There was a little scruff on his face and his skin was tanned. Somebody just slap me. I couldn’t believe this man’s strong arms were around me. Although he’d been working, he smelled so good, like woodsy cologne with a hint of spice. He could keep his arms around me and we could just stay like this. I’d take it.

“I’m Gage,” he said, finally pulling away. His voice. Even it was sexy. Good gosh, I’m a goner.

“Abby,” I said, smiling. Would the smile ever fade? “Nice to officially meet you.”

“You as well. You look…amazing.”

“Well, thank you,” I said, slightly embarrassed. I was never good at taking compliments. “You are very handsome yourself.”

He smiled. “I wasn’t sure what you wanted to drink, so I got us both waters to start out with.”

“Oh, this is good. Water is good. I could actually use some right now,” I said, pulling the glass closer to me. I wrapped my lips around the straw. This drink could have been drugged, but that was a chance I was willing to take. I was hoping the water would calm the nerves. I didn’t get the creeper vibe from Gage, anyway. I felt an automatic connection to him, just like I’d been feeling through our e-mails. We’d be just fine.

Gage laughed. “Don’t be so nervous.”

“I’m sorry, Sir, I can’t help it. It’s not every day that I meet someone online and then actually meet them in person.”

He laughed again. “You make it sound so bad.”

“You’re not nervous?”

“I was…a little…but now that you’re here, I’m fine.”

“Okay,” I said, letting out a dramatic breath. “I’m good.”

He smiled. “You’re cute. And funny.”

“Well, I try,” I said with a wink. “How’s your day going?”

“A lot better now.”

“Oh, please,” I said smiling as I rolled my eyes.

“I’m serious,” he laughed. “But aside from this moment that I’ve been anticipating, the rest of my day is going pretty good.”

The waitress came and took our orders and I opted for a salad. I usually didn’t even eat lunch and I definitely didn’t want to look gross, so I figured a salad was safe. Gage didn’t hold back at all, ordering a burger and fries, but he was a guy, and guys usually didn’t care how they appeared.

“That’s good to hear. I applied for some jobs the other day. Hopefully one of them calls. I need to do something. Being in the house all the time with nothing to do is driving me crazy.”

“What if you get a job and regret losing all your free time?”

“I don’t see that happening.”

“Well, hopefully something works out. I’d say you could come do the bookkeeping at the shop, but I’m not sure we’d actually get any work done,” he said, a cocky smirk on his face.

“Oh yeah? What makes you think that?” I flirted.

“I just have a feeling…”

I changed the subject before it entered a territory I wasn’t ready for. “So, is your son in school? Does he play sports?”

“He starts Kindergarten in a few weeks actually. He’s going to play football and I’ve been recruited to coach.”

“They have football for kindergarteners?” Without kids of my own, I didn’t know anything about school these days. That thought was depressing.

“It’s like flag football. Nothing too serious.”

“How’d you get suckered into coaching already?”

“My buddy is a teacher at the school and he’s been coaching by himself for a while, so he asked for some help.”

“Well, that should be fun,” I said. “Is he excited to start school?”’

“Oh yeah. He can’t wait.” He smiled proudly and it melted my heart a little. I could tell he was a good dad, and that just scored him more points on my sexy scale.

“Awesome. That’s exciting. A new chapter. He’ll be grown before you know it.”

“Don’t remind me,” he said. “How was the drive over here?”

“It wasn’t bad,” I replied. “About thirty minutes with the traffic.”

“Not bad at all. I could come closer to you next time.”

“You think there will be a next time?” I asked.

“I’m pretty positive about it. What are your thoughts?”