Leaning inside the door, he kissed me quickly before he stepped back and closed it. I admired the view as he slowly walked to his side of the car.
“So where exactly am I going?” he asked as he buckled into the driver’s seat.
“It’s in Mansfield. It can’t be that hard to find.” None of the towns around him were all that large.
The satellite radio kicked on as he sped down his gravel drive. Boy liked a little bit of speed. Evan laughed at me as I sang along to the music. The twenty-minute ride went quickly as I serenaded him with my mad skills. He must have been sex drunk to refrain from commenting on my off key renditions.
When we got into Mansfield, we didn’t have to look far before we ran into something.
“I thought we were going to a farmers market?” he asked quietly, looking at me with wide eyes.
The entire downtown area was full of vendors, and hundreds of people were milling around. I’d missed the memo about this not being their normal farmer’s market.
“We are!” I insisted.
“Looks a little bigger than that.” Evan’s voice was tight, and I could see his posture stiffen the further we drove into the area of town that was crowded with people. “You owe me.”
“Live a little.” I blew a kiss at him and opened my door after he found a parking spot on a side street.
He crossed behind the car and slipped his hand into mine before taking a huge breath.
“Stop. Just wait a minute. Are you okay?”
He nodded quickly as he shot me a tight smile. “I don’t people well.”
“You don’t have to talk to anyone,” I insisted as I let go of his hand and pulled him toward me by the plackets of his denim jacket.
“I’m here,” I told him quietly, looking up into his wary eyes. “We can always leave if it’s too much.”
He slipped his arms around my back and rested his forehead against mine. “I’ll be fine. Or I’ll give it my best shot at trying to be okay. Thanks for understanding.”
He closed the distance between us and kissed me softly, humming against my lips. I knew he had some anxiety issues, so I didn’t want to overwhelm him. Pushing him out of his comfort zone would be touchy, but I meant what I told him. I was here for him.
“You ready?”
He nodded and broke the embrace, reaching out for my hand again. As we wandered through the crowd, Evan’s tight grip eventually relaxed. His eyes were tracking the crowd, watching everyone move about, but they were clear.
“This isn’t as scary as I built it up to be when we arrived,” he let out a little laugh I wasn’t expecting. “It’s easier when I don’t know any of these people.”
“Have I led you astray so far?” This could have gone one of two ways, him pulling away from me or Evan deciding to take a chance.
He grinned at me and wiggled his eyebrows. Pulling me closer and throwing his arm over my shoulders. “You haven’t led me anywhere I wasn’t desperate to go.”
My smile was radiant as I gazed up at him. In a little over a week, he was like a different person. Watching him come out of his shell was gratifying to see. I loved how playful and genuinely funny he was.
Who was I kidding? I loved him in general. People said you would know it right away when you found your person, and I didn’t doubt that any longer.
We gathered our groceries from the different food and farm stands, returning them to the car before exploring some more.
“I told you it’d be fun,” I giggled as I held onto Evan’s arm. There may have been a local brewery that was providing drinks for the festival. And I may have drunk one or two...or four of the local brews.
“You’re hammered.” He shook his head as he gave me an indulgent smile.
“Oh, shush. I am not. I’m happy. Aren’t I allowed to be happy? Especially since I’m on the arm of the elusive, mysterious novelist who rarely frequents town?”
He kissed the side of my head as we walked through the crowds and made our way closer to where there was a live band playing. The sun was beginning to set, and I thoroughly enjoyed being out with him.
We’d been so wrapped up in our little bubble that it was good to go out in public and do something to get away from writing. Or the naughty role-playing that had ramped up his manuscript another notch.