Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

Liza

I wake up the next morning, still in a dreamland haze of my date with Eli. There was just something so different about him. He was real. Not some cocky guy who was trying to say all the right things or trying to be someone he wasn't.

He engaged in the conversation, but didn't try to take it over or be all boastful about himself. He listened to everything I said and seemed to really take it in before he commented. I felt like I was having a conversation with a true adult and not some kid not able to grow up yet.

I look at the clock and realize it's almost ten a.m. and laugh, not remembering the last time I slept this late.

Sliding the covers off of me, I hop out of bed, grab my robe, and slowly make my way out to the kitchen, thinking I'll have to remake some coffee since my aunt and uncle probably finished theirs hours ago.

Country music plays softly in the background as I enter the kitchen and see Aunt Heidi sitting at the barstool next to the kitchen counter, going over some paperwork.

"Well, there she is," Aunt Heidi says with a knowing tone to her voice. "Someone had a late night." The expression she gives me makes me giggle in glee.

I nod with the cheesiest grin. "I really did."

"Do I get to hear all about it?" she asks as she gets up to grab a mug from the cupboard and hands it to me, then points to the coffee. "I made sure to keep it on so it would be hot when you woke up."

I take it from her. "You're the best. Thank you for doing that." I pour the liquid gold in my cup and turn to face her, trying to hide my smile behind my mug.

"Well, if that grin says anything about your date …" She leaves the rest of the sentence hanging there for me to finish.

"It was amazing. We seriously did nothing but hang out and talk. We went to Wren's, then Twisted Sisters ice cream and ate as we walked around downtown. When he drove me home, neither of us wanted the date to stop, so we literally sat in his truck for hours, parked out front, just talking. We didn't even notice the time until his mom called to check in on him."

"Oh, so he still lives with his parents? How old is he?"

I shake my head. "I'm not exactly sure what age he is, but I know he's still in school."

"So, tell me more about him."

"He's an athlete. He plays football, basketball, and baseball. Oh, he knows Matthew and says he's hit at his facility a few times."

A huge smile grows on her face at the thought of her daughter's stepson. Justine lived in New York for a few years, and they never thought she'd come back, so I'm sure they're thankful that she and Tucker married, even though there's a pretty big age gap between them.

"That's nice. Matthew's really doing some neat things there. So, tell me, is he handsome?"

My head drops back with a sigh. "He's so handsome and tall and built."

"How tall?"

"Six-five. And not skinny, like most tall guys are. He's solid. Total athlete build."

Her eyes open wide. "That is tall, especially next to you."

I laugh at how I've never felt like I was short, being five-five, but next to him, I felt super tiny.

"So …" she singsongs. "Did he kiss you good night?"

I blush at her question, trying to hide it by taking a sip of my coffee, and nod, which makes her laugh.

She rubs my arm in that loving motherly way. "I'm happy for you." She walks to the other side of the counter to get back to whatever she was doing before I woke up. "I take it, there will be a second date then?"

I smile as I think of what he said last night. "He told me we'd have second, third, and forth dates and that my summer was pretty much booked from here on out."

"Well, sounds like he's smitten with you for sure. I'm glad you've found someone to make friends with. It will help you get settled in that much faster."

She's right. I was so focused on moving here for work that I never really thought about my social life and how it would be when I got here. Having him—or any friends rather—will definitely help me not get homesick or miss my friends from back home.

I take a few sips of my coffee, deep in thought, when I hear "History in the Making" by Darius Rucker playing on the radio. I inhale a very content breath when the lyrics talk about their first date and how it could be their last first kiss. Who knows? That could have been the last first date or last first kiss I'll ever have.

I close my eyes, shaking my head slightly. I'm getting way too ahead of myself, and I need to stop getting my hopes up. I just met the guy, for goodness' sake.

Eli

My mom opens the door to my room while I'm still going between being asleep and awake.

"Good morning," she says, rubbing her hand on my arm.

My schedule is pretty intense with training and games, and there's only certain days I get to sleep in. Thankfully, my mom helps me keep track of which days those are.

"I let you sleep as long as possible, but it's time to get up. You have practice for the national team today."

I inhale a deep breath, stretch out my legs, and nod. "Okay, I'm up."

"Glad to hear the date went so well last night," she says.

I curl on to my side and open my eyes to see her for the first time since she walked in. "It did. Sorry I lost track of time and didn't call."

"I know you're eighteen now, so I need to give you some leeway. I just worry. Especially since I knew you were on the highway, going to Mason Creek." She rubs my arm some more. "I just liked seeing you had a date. You train so hard; it's nice to see you with a somewhat-normal life too."

"What, hanging out at Ben's place with Dalton and Maya isn't a normal life?"

She sighs. "You know what I mean."

"I have dated, Mom."

"Yes, but no one you've ever really liked."

She gives me a sad expression. I know she's worried that I'm more on the quiet side when I'm in groups of people, even when I'm with my best friends, but it's just who I am. I talk when I want to talk. Last night showed me that I talk when I have someone I really want to talk to more than anything else.

"We do live in a small-ass town—you know that, right?"

She chuckles under her breath. "Yes, I know. Tell me about this girl you went out with last night."

"She just moved here from California."

"Oh, a girl from my old stomping grounds."

"Kind of. She said she's from Stockton."

"Okay, and why did she move here?"

I don't want to say because she wants to be a teacher because I know that will send up all kinds of red flags to my mom about her age, which really means nothing at this point. I'm over eighteen, I'm of legal age, and besides, I want a girl with her maturity level. The difference between her and the other girls from here was clear as day.

Instead, I answer, "She wanted to get away. I guess Stockton isn't the best of areas. Her aunt and uncle live in Mason Creek, and they offered for her to move here with them."

"That's great she has family here." She stands up and opens my blinds to get more light in my room. "You've got to get going. I'll put on some bacon to eat before you leave."

I roll on my back, wishing I could sleep just a little longer, but knowing the sleep I lost from last night was totally worth it.