pushed my money through the slot and grabbed my ticket. “Well, why would you pay for me?”
He slid his cash to the man and put the ticket into the front pocket of his worn jeans. “Well, it’s a traditional thing to do when you’re on a date,” he said, opening the door for me.
A date? Dylan’s face popped into my mind. “No, no, no, no, no. This isn’t a date.” I opened the left side door, curbing his act of chivalry, and walk into the theater.
He shrugged and followed me in. “Wow that’s a lot of no’s. Can I ask why?”
I moved to the snack bar to grab some popcorn; salty snacks were my weakness. I smiled after the employee handed me the tub. She was a lot nicer than the ticket guy. Of course seeing Jaron would put any woman in a good mood. I blushed at the thought.
He peered at me from the si de. “So… why isn’t this a date?”
Sheesh, he was insatiable. “Well first off, this isn’t a date because if it was one and I didn’t tell my aunt and uncle about it first, I would be in sooo much trouble.” I paused, gathering my bravery. “And second, if you wanted to take me out on a date, you’d have to ask me first.”
“Aunt and uncle?” he asked.
Shoot. I hated this conversation. “Yeah, they've taken care of me ever since I can remember,” I said, hoping he’d drop it.
He must have sensed my reluctance, because he didn’t prod me any further. We walked in silence down the dimly lit hallway and the quiet didn’t feel awkward, just nice. I crinkled my nose at the musky smell of age in the air. All of the décor in the place gave the impression that an acclaimed designer had put in a lot of money and man hours to make it appear vintage, when really it just was.
“So I have to ask you in advance, huh?” He handed his ticket to a young kid who tore it down the middle and gave him back the stub. “Do you make it this hard for all of the guys?”
I put my stub in my clutch and answered honestly. “I've never wanted to go out with any of the other guys.”
He stopped walking and turned to look at me. “So you’re saying that you want to go out with me?”
I looked at the floor, because his gaze was too intense. I should have censored that thought. He just had a strange way of making me forget that I needed to. “I don’t know yet. I guess when you ask me you’ll find out.” I lifted my head and grinned at him. Dylan always said my smile could get me out of anything. I hoped that included revealing too much of myself to a stranger. I had to force myself to think the word, because stranger and Jaron weren’t inclusive terms in my mind. But really, no matter how I felt around him, that’s what he was.
“I look forward to it,” he said, sounding out of breath.
My smile couldn’t have done that to him, could it?
“So how formal do I need to be? Does it need to be a written request two weeks in advanced? Will I need to take said letter to a notary?”
“Do whatever you think is necessary.” I laughed and nudged him with my hip.
As soon as our frames collided, a pulse reverberated through my body like a heartbeat, only I felt it everywhere waking up parts of me that I didn’t know existed. I froze in place, as did he. Jaron looked at me wide eyed and I knew he felt it too.
He took a shaky breath and his eyes clouded in confusion. “Let’s go find that friend of yours before she tries to find us. I get the feeling she would.”
“Yes.” The word rushed out with the breath I’d been holding. “She would.”
We stood gazing at each other, neither of us making a move to go. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, and not because of the way his eyes scorched me, but because I felt like we were being watched. I turned swiftly and caught the shadow of a tall man just before he ducked into one of the other showings. I looked back at Jaron a little bemused. Why would anyone find us interesting? He didn’t look amused. In a fraction of a second, he had changed.
He slid his cash to the man and put the ticket into the front pocket of his worn jeans. “Well, it’s a traditional thing to do when you’re on a date,” he said, opening the door for me.
A date? Dylan’s face popped into my mind. “No, no, no, no, no. This isn’t a date.” I opened the left side door, curbing his act of chivalry, and walk into the theater.
He shrugged and followed me in. “Wow that’s a lot of no’s. Can I ask why?”
I moved to the snack bar to grab some popcorn; salty snacks were my weakness. I smiled after the employee handed me the tub. She was a lot nicer than the ticket guy. Of course seeing Jaron would put any woman in a good mood. I blushed at the thought.
He peered at me from the si de. “So… why isn’t this a date?”
Sheesh, he was insatiable. “Well first off, this isn’t a date because if it was one and I didn’t tell my aunt and uncle about it first, I would be in sooo much trouble.” I paused, gathering my bravery. “And second, if you wanted to take me out on a date, you’d have to ask me first.”
“Aunt and uncle?” he asked.
Shoot. I hated this conversation. “Yeah, they've taken care of me ever since I can remember,” I said, hoping he’d drop it.
He must have sensed my reluctance, because he didn’t prod me any further. We walked in silence down the dimly lit hallway and the quiet didn’t feel awkward, just nice. I crinkled my nose at the musky smell of age in the air. All of the décor in the place gave the impression that an acclaimed designer had put in a lot of money and man hours to make it appear vintage, when really it just was.
“So I have to ask you in advance, huh?” He handed his ticket to a young kid who tore it down the middle and gave him back the stub. “Do you make it this hard for all of the guys?”
I put my stub in my clutch and answered honestly. “I've never wanted to go out with any of the other guys.”
He stopped walking and turned to look at me. “So you’re saying that you want to go out with me?”
I looked at the floor, because his gaze was too intense. I should have censored that thought. He just had a strange way of making me forget that I needed to. “I don’t know yet. I guess when you ask me you’ll find out.” I lifted my head and grinned at him. Dylan always said my smile could get me out of anything. I hoped that included revealing too much of myself to a stranger. I had to force myself to think the word, because stranger and Jaron weren’t inclusive terms in my mind. But really, no matter how I felt around him, that’s what he was.
“I look forward to it,” he said, sounding out of breath.
My smile couldn’t have done that to him, could it?
“So how formal do I need to be? Does it need to be a written request two weeks in advanced? Will I need to take said letter to a notary?”
“Do whatever you think is necessary.” I laughed and nudged him with my hip.
As soon as our frames collided, a pulse reverberated through my body like a heartbeat, only I felt it everywhere waking up parts of me that I didn’t know existed. I froze in place, as did he. Jaron looked at me wide eyed and I knew he felt it too.
He took a shaky breath and his eyes clouded in confusion. “Let’s go find that friend of yours before she tries to find us. I get the feeling she would.”
“Yes.” The word rushed out with the breath I’d been holding. “She would.”
We stood gazing at each other, neither of us making a move to go. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, and not because of the way his eyes scorched me, but because I felt like we were being watched. I turned swiftly and caught the shadow of a tall man just before he ducked into one of the other showings. I looked back at Jaron a little bemused. Why would anyone find us interesting? He didn’t look amused. In a fraction of a second, he had changed.
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