Page 14 of Thinking It Over

Exercise and I weren’t exactly friends, but walking around a park, throwing the occasional stick to a cute dog, this I could get on board with.

“What are your plans for the rest of the night?” Austin asked.

“After ice cream— Shit, what time is it?” I’d promised to catch up with Ian tonight as soon as he got off from work. After my full-on week and my head still spinning from Austin’s declaration that he was attracted to me, which honestly, I hadn’t fully processed yet, the call had completely slipped my mind.

A flick of his wrist and Austin answered, “Twenty past five.” Furrowed brows appeared before he asked, “Everything okay?”

I heaved a sigh in relief. “Yes, all good. I just had a date to call Ian once he got off from work.”

Austin’s brows dipped even lower, and immediately, my eyes sprang wide. “Not that sort of date. Ian’s a close friend. He’s an ER nurse in the city, so between his schedule and my new position, we keep missing each other, and I promised we’d touch base tonight.” I still had a fair journey to get home, and unfortunately, no Bluetooth in my car to make that call safely en route.

His frown evened out, a smile tugging at his lips. “I get it. Schedules can be tricky things. It’s okay if we need to raincheck on ice cream. Maybe we can do that tomorrow?”

I gave him a grateful smile. “That would be great, thank you.”

“All good. Let’s wrangle Penny and get you back to your car so you can get yourself home.”

There was no drama, no complaining about the change in plans. His reaction jumped my liking of Austin up even higher. Those notches were going to be scarily at the highest they could be if he continued this way. The thought had my heart flipping.

“Thanks,” I said, as he called Penny over and we returned to Austin’s truck.

SIX

AUSTIN

I’d always known buyingmy truck was a wise decision, but seeing Jasper’s reaction as we headed out of town and to the national park just a short hour’s drive away made it quite possibly thebestdecision. His appreciation for my Ford’s line, her engine, got me hot under the collar. Rupert had hated my vehicle. Had even described my spending so much time and money on doing her up as ridiculous.

In truth, I did wonder why it took my discovery of him cheating on me to finally end our relationship. The asshole in him was strong. And really, I was an intelligent guy, usually levelheaded, so I had no one to blame but myself.

Our relationship had become a farce. Though, I’d easily ignored the arguments, the demands, the lack ofany affection simply for a quiet life. It wasn’t even love that had kept me staying put. I was grateful for that in the end, as while his betrayal had hurt, it hadn’t broken me.

But one thing Rupert had never been interested in was doing anything spontaneous, nor did he appreciate the restoration of my truck.

“Thank you so much for letting me drive her back.” Jasper didn’t seem like the kind of man who usually gushed, but that was exactly what he was doing. His eagerness was endearing, as were the wide eyes he threw my way as we pulled up outside my house.

“My pleasure.” I gave a small shrug. “And how could I not? Thought it may prevent the drool from escaping, so less of a cleanup.” I laughed, loving his quirked brow aimed at me.

“Wish I could call bullshit, but you’re absolutely right.” A grin stretched over his face. “But seriously, thank you. I’ve had a great afternoon, and driving your Ford was a treat I didn’t expect.” Sincerity laced his words.

Flicking my gaze at his eyes, then his mouth, want pooled in my stomach. I wanted nothing more than to kiss Jasper, press our lips together, get the chance to taste him. I shifted a little, angling more in his direction as I unclipped my seat belt.

When his eyes widened a fraction, I watched his reaction carefully, hoping I was reading him correctly. I edged a little closer, and when he remained still, his breaths noticeably picking up a little, resolve slammed into me.

I couldn’t not kiss the man.

I moved my arm, placing it on the backrest. Despite wanting to jump in headfirst, I needed to know he was on board. While yesterday we’d admitted our attraction, that didn’t mean he wanted to act on it. There was no escaping our working relationship, so it was important to be clear.

My voice dropped low, my words coming out at just above a whisper as I said, “Can I—” Penny’s loud bark startled the both of us, and I jerked back, my gaze turning to the rear window.

Jasper’s quiet laugh brought my attention back to him. “Someone’s impatient.” The “someone” he referenced to had me wondering if he was referring to me or Penny. “Maybe we should get her unstrapped before you finish that question,” he said.

I grinned. His words didn’t indicate he’d be shooting me down.

With a quick nod, I focused on doing just that, getting Penny sorted out, and a fresh bowl of water after her long walk at the park.

It didn’t take long before Penny was snoozing by my feet, and I’d made coffee for Jasper and me. While the intense moment in the car had passed, it didn’t mean I didn’t still want my mouth on his. For the time being, I was content laughing at an anecdote he was telling me about his time in teacher training.

“It was the absolute worst. Who thought it would be a good idea to allow a trainee to take the sex-ed lesson? But it was when one of the boys was asking about condoms and being prepared, and whether he should sheathe himself before going out for the night in case he got lucky that almost did me in.” He wiped away a tear as he continued to laugh hard. “It was epic.” He shook his head, trying to control his laughter while I simply chortled louder. “I can only imagine how many stories you have.”

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