Page 17 of Burn With Me

“Where is this ice cream place?” he says.

“It’s called The Cow’s Shake,” I say and rattle off an address that he puts in his phone.

“I’ll see you there in less than fifteen minutes,” he says as he opens my car door.

After I hop in and get situated, he closes the door and leans in through the open window. I wonder if he’s going to kiss me, and my breath catches.

I think I want him to kiss me.

My eyes start to close as he gets closer, and I lean in, but instead of kissing my lips, he kisses my cheek.

He straightens and smirks before tapping the door twice. “Buckle up, and I’ll be right behind you.”

I watch him as he walks away, and I’m stunned. What. The. Actual. Fuck. Just. Happened.

I turn the Jeep on and pull out of the parking lot, and he’s right behind me in his truck, as promised. The closer we get to the ice cream place, the more I freak out.

This isn’t a date. I’m far too busy to date, so I don’t even know why I’m even kind of entertaining this idea. In theory, I talk a big game in therapy, knocking my walls down to let people in, but am I really ready for it?

My phone chimes with a text notification, and I have my car read it. When it announces that it’s from Pam, I laugh because I’m sure she’s checked my location.

Pam: Are you heading to get ice cream?

Make sure to get the dairy-free stuff this time

Don’t want any accidents

I pull in and park before texting back

Me: Stop being a stalker. I’ll do what I want

I know my limits with ice cream. It’ll be fine

I unplug my phone and turn my car off, seeing that Luke has parked next to me and is getting out. I take a moment to look up at the sky. While it might not rain, I should probably put the two front sections of my top back on the Jeep. So I reach into the back seat and grab them.

“Need help?”

“Actually, no, it’s pretty quick. These panels are way easier than the soft tops or the back panel. Thanks though,” I say as I snap them into place and hop out.

“What kind of ice cream do you get?” He asks as we walk up to the door.

“Depends on how I’m feeling, but tonight I’m going to get the raspberry ice cream. They have the best fresh ice cream here, so you can’t go wrong with anything you get,” I tell him like a walking advertisement.

“Perfect, I love ice cream.”

We order at the counter, and when they’re ready, I pay. We sit down and eat our ice cream in silence. I have roughly twenty minutes once I finish before I know if I’m going to shit myself or not. Because yes, I, Amelia Rose, am lactose intolerant. While I normally have no issue with the risk I’m taking, it dawns on me that I don’t really know Luke, and I realize I didn’t think this through very well.

“You good? You kind of spaced out for a second. I’m not boring you already, am I?” he says with a chuckle.

“Nope, I was just thinking about the time and how I’ll have to let Penny out soon,” I say, hoping I sound convincing because while it’s not really a lie, it isn’t the whole truth either.

“She’s such a great dog. You’ve done well with training her.”

My chest swells with pride. “She is such a good dog, but I can’t take all the credit. She mostly came to me that way. I just worked hard with a trainer to keep growing her confidence.” I smile as I think about how I instantly knew I was going to foster fail that dog.

That’s when I feel it. My stomach starts to cramp, and I use a napkin to pretend to wipe my face as I cover a grimace.

“Well, I won’t keep you longer so you don’t go home to any accidents,” he says and grabs our garbage.

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