Page 26 of Free to Dream
I quickly write my answer, fold the paper in half, and half again. Caleb has done the same, holding it between two fingers.
“Deal time,” he declares with a wink.
My heart flutters and my cheeks warm. “I’ll hear the terms first.”
Two glasses of water appear at our elbows while we were talking. I grab one and start sipping.
“One. Whatever’s in these is for us to know only. It doesn’t get shared with any family or friends.” The witty charmer seems to have disappeared. Caleb’s face is all solemn and pensive. It touches something in me.
“Deal.”
“Two. You agree to go to the party with me.” At my hesitance, which he can’t begin to understand, he cajoles softly, “You’ll have fun, Cassidy. I promise. And if you don’t, we can always leave.” His eyes bore into mine, willing the answer he wants.
Without giving my fears a voice, I say softly, “Yes.”
The smile that breaks out across his face pushes back the demons for a while longer.
“Now, hand it over, Lockwood. I want to know if your reading level extends to more thanCaptain Underpants,” I taunt.
“I’ve also readDog Manas well, Cassidy. Let’s not limit me to a particular series,” he replies mildly as he hands over his list.
I take his, but can’t seem to let go of mine. In fact, I’m crushing it tighter in my hand.
This list reveals so much about me. I feel exposed, and he hasn’t even touched it yet.
“Cassidy?” Caleb reaches over and gently brushes his fingers across the hand holding my list. Involuntarily, the paper falls from my hand and onto the table. He doesn’t reach for it. Instead, his eyes meet mine. “You have to hand it to me. I’m not going to take anything you’re not ready to give.”
That tells me so much about him.
Shakily, I reach down for my list and hand it to him.
I open his and immediately burst out laughing. Mystery, True Crime, Biographies.
“Predictable much, Caleb?” I laugh.
“Wait, let me add to that.” He snags the list out of my hand and scrawlsCaptain Underpantsat the bottom.
My reaction is fits of giggles that bubble out of me, unrestrained.
“That’s probably the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” he murmurs.
As Caleb is facing the back of The Coffee Shop, I swirl around in confusion. He just shakes his head and reads the list in his hands and his eyebrows skyrocket.
I fiddle with my coffee spoon. I know what’s written there. Romance, Self-Help, Humor.
He looks at me, down at the list, and at me again.
“Obsessed with work, are we?”
“Pardon me?”
“Research for work much?” Caleb asks, with a smile tugging at his lips. He lifts my list and turns it toward me. “I mean, I’m by no means an expert, but it’s like a survival guide on how to get through the stress of wedding planning 101.”
That was not the reaction I was expecting. Relaxing a bit, I smile, then I chuckle.
This feels good. Normal. I’m about to open my mouth to say something when I’m interrupted by Ava breezing by, asking me, “Cassidy, Phillip just called in the lunch order. Do you want to take it back with you, hon?”
Lunch?
