17. Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

Charlotte

"I can't believe we lost our shoes." I hide my face as we walk barefoot back to the car.

"No offense, but I'm a little more concerned that I lost Koa's keys. He's going to kill me or throw me back into the ocean to find them."

"I'm sorry. I started it all by throwing seaweed at you." My cheeks warm as we trudge the last few feet to a vehicle we can't move or even get into.

"We both got carried away. It's not your fault. I should have been more careful, but I'm not sure what we'll do now." He stares down the road then back in the opposite direction. "I'm not crazy about walking without shoes."

"I'm not crazy about walking at all. It's creepy out here at night." The breeze from the ocean is less relaxing now and borders on downright bone-chilling. We both left our phones, his wallet, and my purse in the car, which makes the situation even worse. We could knock on a random door and ask to use a phone, but I've seen too many true crime documentaries to contemplate that idea any further. Nobody needs to be murdered after such a romantic evening.

Andrew squeezes my hand. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you, Lottie." It's true. Definitively. Even his tone is final. He's going to protect me no matter what happens, and it eases a little of the anxiety building in my chest. I believe him, but there's little he can do if they murder him first.

The rumble of a motorcycle echoes in the distance, getting closer. Andrew perks a little and tilts his head as if it might help him hear better. "I think that's my bike."

"How do you know that? They all sound the same to me."

"Eh, I can't explain it. I just know how she sounds."

The bike turns down the small side road where we've parked and sure enough, it's Koa. He pulls up to us and cuts the bike before removing his helmet.

"What happened to you two?" Koa asks. "It's way too dark to be out here."

"How did you find us?" Andrew asks. "What are you doing here?"

"I waited at your place for a while and when you didn't show up, I got worried. I called a few times and after a while, I figured I'd come look for you. I have a GPS tracker on the car." Koa looks us over and his lip curls at the sight of two sopping wet heaps with no shoes. "What happened to you two?"

"Uh…" I don't know what else to say but Koa and Andrew make eye contact that says enough. He chuckles again.

"All right. There are towels in the trunk. You're lucky I don't care about this car as much as the others," Koa says.

"The others?" I can't hide my surprise as he brushes off the potential ruining of very expensive leather seats.

Koa doesn't say anything more than a little nod.

"His family is affluent," Andrew says with finger quotes seemingly just to taunt Koa.

Koa throws a towel and a pair of shoes at Andrew and hands him another set of keys. He hands a giant, fluffy towel to me. "First of all, you're lucky I always carry a spare key. Second, It's not my fault my parents were born into wealth and I've inherited it. Now, are you going to take this shoeless woman home so I can get some sleep?"

"Yes, Dad." Andrew pulls on Koa's extra shoes. At least he'll be able to drive, but my feet are going to be sad until we make it back to my place.

Once we have towels covering the seats, Koa disappears into the night again, leaving Andrew and me with a soggy, uncomfortable ride home. The salt air doesn't seem so pleasant anymore, and I'm a little itchy thanks to sand in places it should never be. Still, I can't stop rethinking those electrifying moments with Andrew. They're seared into my memory banks right alongside his delicious scent and oh so beautiful smile.

Once we reach my house, I'm partially dry but also sticky from the salt. Ginger will commence with bathing me the second I step foot inside, but first…the awkward goodbye. Andrew walks me to my door where there is no porch light on since I hadn't intended on being out so late. In the shadows cast by the moon, I try to hide my emotions which are plenty: fear, curiosity, embarrassment, and confusion among others.

"I had an amazing time with you, despite the hiccups." He stands one step lower than me, putting us at eye level.

"I did too. Thanks for walking with me."

"Even though we lost your shoes." His breathy laugh warms my cheeks.

"Yeah, even though we lost my shoes." My cheeks hurt from smiling and laughing so much with him.

Now is the part when I'd expect a goodnight kiss, but we haven't even had a first kiss yet. Yet? Whew, my mind is on a roller coaster with no signs of slowing down before hitting the bottom and bursting right off the tracks.

"Tomorrow then? We still on for the drum lesson?" The hope in his voice can't be faked.

"I'm not sure it's a good idea to give you another lesson with your shoulder healing," I say, which earns me the sourest frown I have ever seen. "Don't you frown at me. You need to rest your shoulder, and banging out on the drums will not help you get back in the game, hotshot."

"I know. Can't blame a guy for wanting to hang out with you though."

I grin. "I never said I wouldn't come over. Ginger has been driving me crazy, so maybe they can play in the yard and we can…I don't know…Oh, you can help me come up with ideas for a school carnival!" My voice rises so high I almost squeal, but it makes him smile so I count it as a win.

"A school carnival?"

"Yeah, we need to raise a ton of money for repairs and new items for the school, so I thought a carnival might draw people in for some fun while they part with their money. I need ideas though. The headmaster won't sign off on it until I give him a workable plan at our meeting. You up for a little brainstorming with me?"

"I'd love to. Want to come by early enough that we can grab breakfast?" he asks, then shakes his head. "Wait, I forgot I have practice in the morning. You can come by after if you want."

"When is practice?"

"Early, so I should be able to get brunch with you if you don't mind waiting. Does that work?"

I bite my lip. It's time to see him in his element. If I want to know what he's really like when he's not just with me, then this is a good time. I can also decide if I can trust these feelings before I let them take me away to places that will only break my heart more if things go wrong. "Can I go to practice with you?"

I don't blame him for the level of shock evident in his expression. I'm pretty surprised by my request as well.

"You want to go to practice? I won't be doing anything but observing. I can't." His eyes narrow on me as if trying to read my mind. What are you thinking, Charlotte Clarke? Yeah, I'd like to know that myself.

I raise one shoulder. "Maybe you can help me gain a better understanding of the game. I only know the basics. It would make sense for me to have some understanding of your profession, right?"

Deeper confusion settles into lines on his forehead but rather than question my sudden interest in his sport of choice he says, "Sure, if you feel like showing up at my place around seven. Will Ginger be okay at my house while we're gone?"

"Would it be too much trouble to swing by and get her after practice? I'm afraid they might get into neighborhood shenanigans alone for that long."

"Nothing's too much trouble for a friend." He gives me a wink and opens his arms for a hug. I fall into his embrace but he doesn't linger. He hugs me and releases me, no muss and no fuss, before jogging down the stairs. "Night, Lottie." He calls over his shoulder while I step inside.

"Night Andrew." He waves and falls into Koa's car as I shut and lock my door.

I fall against the back of it and sigh. Ginger jogs across the room and rubs against me for a head scratch, then realizes I'm salty and commences with licking me. Andrew Rossi has me tangled up, but in a good way. Each day he's showing me he's got my best interests at heart and it lures me in despite my initial hesitations.

"Well, girl, I guess we're going to give this thing a shot after all. What do you think? Do you like Goblin enough?"

She doesn't even look up at me. Her tongue is too busy slurping up all the salt, so I wiggle free from her giant tongue and head to the shower. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day, but I can't wait to see Andrew in his element.

"What's this?" Andew asks and accepts a bag of bagels from the local bakery.

"Breakfast. I hope you like carbs this early in the morning." Goblin stretches then comes to me for some ear scratches. I'm grateful for the distraction since I'm blushing again. I hardly got any sleep because I couldn't stop thinking about our interactions last night. All morning, all I've thought about is what a fool I am for not kissing the man. It was such a romantic and fun night, a kiss would have been perfect. Of course, I let my mind get in the way, building walls and speed bumps to keep me safe. I'm beginning to think all of this nonsense about dating athletes is just that—complete foolishness.

"I already ate but they smell good enough to go for it again. Thank you." Andrew pulls a cinnamon raisin bagel from the bag and takes a bite. "Oh, man. That's good."

"Mumbling with your mouth full is rude, Andrew."

"What are you going to do about it, Miss Clarke?" He leans against the doorframe leading to his kitchen with one hand in his pocket and the other holding the bagel close to his lips. I think if I give him any indication that I want him to kiss me, he'll toss the bagel to the dog and dive-bomb me. I can't know for sure, of course, but I make an educated guess based on the feral wildness of his eyes, how his body leans toward mine in a taunt, and the way the temperature in this room skyrockets.

Okay, the last one is all me, but I can't help it. I got a glimpse into what it might be like to be his girlfriend, and now I'm finding it difficult to keep control of my thoughts.

"Well?" He arches an eyebrow.

I haven't answered him. I've been staring at his muscled chest with my mouth hanging open. "Well what?"

He takes another bite. "What are you going to do about me being rude?"

"Probably ignore you like I do the kids in my class. Giving you any sort of attention will only exacerbate the problem, naturally."

Andrew gives me one nod and a smirk. "And what if I continue my rude behavior despite your best efforts to ignore me?"

I cross my arms and try not to laugh. "I'll have to send you to the headmaster and you'll probably get suspended."

"Nope. Won't work. I'm already suspended. Sort of. Sitting on the bench this long feels like a suspension." He takes another bite and shrugs while Goblin stares up at him and drools. It's puddling on the floor but Andrew doesn't seem to notice.

"Hmm, I'd hate to have you kicked out of school just for talking with food in your mouth so that doesn't really leave me with a lot of other options, does it?"

"Afraid not."

"So where does that leave us then?" I ask.

"With me finishing this bagel and us heading to practice with a deeper understanding of one another. I'm annoying and have horrible manners in my own home, and you're too sweet to do anything about it."

My mouth falls open again.

Andrew laughs and pushes off of the doorframe. "I'm kidding. Not about the sweet part. You are, but I promise I won't talk with my mouth full in front of you because I respect your disgust."

"It's not disgust really, just an observation that you did something rude and…Okay, yeah. It's disgusting." I cover my face which makes him laugh harder.

"I figured as much from the way your lip curled when I did it. All joking aside, we better head out." He grabs a ball cap from the coat rack in the hall and pulls it over his head. It's got the Sharks logo on it but that's the last thing I notice. I'm usually a backwards hats are hot kind of girl, but Andrew put his on front facing. And it's got me weak in the knees, swooning like a fool, ready to say forgive me but we're not going to practice. We're going to stay here and flirt until I can't help but kiss you.

"You okay?" Narrowed eyes full of concern meet my gaze.

"Yeah! Of course. I'm ready."