Page 73 of The Escape Plan

How on earth can I possibly argue with that?I think as I gaze into her hopeful eyes.

And honestly, I don’t really have a good reason to say no—save for potential embarrassment that the finished song will turn out rubbish and Keeley and Ezra will hate it.

But something in me, something deep and intangible, already knows that’s not the case.

“Sure,” I find myself saying and then feel an accompanying shiver of excitement. Although I’m not sure how much of that has to do with the idea of recording, and how much has to do with the fact that Keeley is now playing full-blown footsie with me under the table.

Almost experimentally, I press my foot back against hers. Not going to lie, I have never thought of feet as sexy. Not my thing. At all.

But I might be reconsidering that. Because I like everything about Keeley Roberts. Including her feet, apparently.

And for the rest of dinner, as wonderful as Ezra and Mae are, the only thing on my mind is being alone with her later.

I’ve planned a few things that aren’t maybe the most traditionally romantic or popular first date ideas, but they’re things I think she will like. That will show her I’m paying attention. Doing everything I can toseeher clearly.

After we’re done eating, I’m happy to be tasked with scrubbing pots. I like that they don’t make me sit down but instead let me help. Like they’ve accepted me as one of their own…

Not that that’s what’s happening here, of course.

My first date with Keeley does not officially start until later this evening, so I really shouldn’t be thinking about being accepted into the family when we haven’t even gone out together yet.

After everything’s cleaned up, Mae gives us both huge hugs goodnight before she whisks Everett upstairs for bath time. We’re about to say our goodbyes to Ezra when he holds up a finger.

“Let me grab you that box of Gramps’s things.” With that, he retrieves a box from the basement—one of those thick legal-looking cardboard boxes, a thin layer of dust on top.

“He gave me this box a while ago, before he moved to Silver Springs. It’s mostly records, but there’s a couple of old photo albums in there, too.” Ezra shrugs as he passes it to me. “Maybe your Gran is in some of the pics or something. Might be worth a look.”

Keeley smiles at her brother. “Cool. Thanks, Ez.”

“Yeah, thanks, man,” I say as well.

I’m grateful for Ezra’s thoughtfulness, and while it’s a long shot that we’ll find anything useful in a box of old records, it’s obviously worth looking through. But honestly, I’m in no rush to look at the moment…

Because right now, I get to take Keeley Roberts on a date.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Keeley

Becks has done his homework.

As we climb into his truck, he tells me that he doesn’t need my human GPS skills tonight. Instead, he puts on a country playlist and drives straight towards the outskirts of town.

There’s only one possible place we could be getting ice cream, and it happens to have my favorite ice cream in the world.

As he pulls off at an exit in the middle of nowhere, I gape at him. “How did you know about this?”

“Ezra might’ve given me a couple of tips.” Beckett parks the truck, then rubs the back of his neck. “I wanted to give you a good first date, and I only had dessert to work with.” He turns and gives me that lopsided, dimpled grin of his I love so much, and adds, “I wanted to make sure you were suitably impressed.”

I’m not sure what’s got me in my feels more—the fact that he took the time to learn my favorite dessert in preparation for tonight, or the fact that he saidfirstdate.

As in, there are going to be more dates following this one.

“Consider me impressed,” I tell him as we climb out of his truck. It’s still dark and gray and overcast, and I’m glad I grabbed my sweatshirt.

When people talk about the best ice cream in Serendipity Springs, most mention Calaway Creamery—an awesome spot downtown that offers hundreds of delicious flavors and comfy booths to sit in. It’s popular with tourists and locals alike, and it’s a favorite for people cozying up on dates, sharing a sundae. It’s actually where I went on my (admittedly awkward) first date with Andrew. We shared a double scoop sundae—I chose mint chip, he chose coffee, and it turned out those flavors totally clashed. Didn’t work or blend together at all.

It’s where I assumed we’d go tonight.

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