Page 24 of Driving Force

“Well, that sounds like the right move for both sides, to be honest,” he says.

“What do you think of distance in our situation Tinley?” he asks, a little concern in his voice.

“Honestly, Ryan, I don’t even think about it. Maybe because it’s new, or maybe because I still get to see you. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great when I come to races with you and be by your side, but I also like my time away from all the lights and cameras. When it’s just us. I know we haven’t been seeing each other long, but I like the place we are in right now.”

“Me too, he says. You make it easy to be myself and not put on a mask. I can just be ‘Ryan,’ not ‘Ryan, the race car driver.’” He smiles at me.

“Well, you make it easy to be around.” Laughing, I can’t help but think back to the first time I laid eyes on him at the track. I thought he was this larger-than-life figure, and honestly, that would be the only time I would ever be around him. But from that first kiss, it's been something I can't put my finger on. Maybe I am falling in love. He’s already said it once to me; granted, he thought I was asleep, so I know it really didn’t count. But the more time I’m with him, the more my heart grows more for him.

“Tinley, where did you go just then?” I hear him ask. Blushing, I close my eyes, and when I look up at my phone, I notice Ryan has a concerned expression.

“I’m sorry,” I say. “I was just thinking back to our first meeting and how far we have come in a short time. It’s been a bit of a whirlwind, don’t you think?”

“Well, if I’m being honest, yes, it has, but I wouldn’t change anything with you, Tinley. You have turned my world on its head, and I have to say I’m enjoying it.” He pauses for a second, and I think this might be the moment. He’s going to tell me those words I so want to hear again, that I didn’t even realize I longed to hear. But then he does something entirely different.

“What do you have going on the rest of the week?” he asks, really throwing me.

“Let’s see, I’ve only got two weeks of classes left, so I'm just finishing up a few last-minute things for graduation and then passing the freaking math class. Again, have I told you how much I hate math?” I say with a laugh.

He chuckles again. “Yeah, you may have mentioned that once or twice.” I swear his smile melts me every time I get to see it. “I better let you go, Tin. I just wanted to see your face. And Tinley….I love you,” he says with a wink, and he’s gone.

WTF, did the man just drop the ‘I love you’ bomb and hang up the phone? Sitting straight up in bed, my head is going a million miles a minute. Ryan McKenzie just said the three words every girl wants to hear, and then he hung up the phone. Letting that sit for a few seconds, I wonder if I should call him back and ask whether he actually said that. Was it a mistake, and that’s why he hung up right after? I can’t go to sleep after that kind of information, so I do what any normal person would do, hell I’m an adult or will be when I finish college, so they say and hit dial on his name and wait.

Yep, I’ve lost my mind. I just told Tinley I loved her and hung up the phone. Who does that? Well, I guess me, that’s who. This woman has me under a spell where I can’t see straight. I can’t control my emotions and evidently cannot control what comes from my mouth. Good glory, we were just talking like a normal catch-up type of conversation, then she was thinking back to our first meeting, and the words just came out.

Letting out a groan and smacking myself in the head, I lay back in the bed. Great job, you idiot. Just when you are getting into a great rhythm with her, and it’s going the direction you want, you throw out those words. Hell, if she runs for the hills now, I won’t be surprised at all. Honestly, I would welcome that.I threw out ‘I love you’ and this time she was actually awake, yet I hung up the phone.

Me:

Well, I’m a dumb ass.

Matt:

Mmm gonna need more information because that is true some days..

Me:

I may have said I love you to Tinley and then hung up the phone.

Matt:

Dude, did you mean to say it?

Me:

Yeah, but just not at that moment. It just came out as we finished talking. Now I’m waiting for her to say we need to take a break.

Pacing around the room, I check my phone a few times, but the only text I have is from Matt.

Matt:

She may not.

Me:

Have you met me? My life is crazy, and since dating Tin, it’s seemed to pick up speed.

Matt:

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