Page 21 of Rebel Heart
Still smiling, ever the optimist, he said, “Perhaps she just likes you.”
I smirked. “Oh, well, there’s no question that’s the case.”
If there was one thing I knew with absolute certainty, it was that Jules liked me. And she hadn’t deviated from being the woman she was since I walked up to get those cookies. It wasn’t as though she’d learned I was a professional skateboarder and suddenly turned into a completely different person. I wasn’t remotely concerned about her having some ulterior motive for wanting to spend time with me other than wanting to enjoy my company.
“When are you seeing her again?” Jamie asked.
“Tonight.”
The guys nodded as they dropped their gazes to theground and held back their laughter and thoughts. Evidently, despite all that I’d said, they still believed there was more going on than I had indicated.
Oh, well.
I’d let them think what they wanted. Time would tell, and they’d see that this was nothing more than me living the life I always lived.
“Are you guys done grilling me, so we can get back to skating? Or do I need to do something else to prove I’m the same guy with the same viewpoints I’ve always had?”
“We can keep skating,” Vic said.
“Yeah, of course, we can.” Jamie was quick to agree, but he couldn’t leave it at that. “We all thought you might be finished for the day so you could go get ready for your date.”
His tone was teasing, but that didn’t stop me from throwing some water at him. He hopped on his board and dropped in a few feet away, laughing as he did. Vic followed behind him.
And as I stood to join them, Talon came to a stop in front of me. “You know, it’s okay to change your mind about what you want. If you like this girl, and she feels the same in return, you’re allowed to choose something different than you’ve always chosen.”
I jerked my chin down in understanding. “I know. But I’m not interested in that.”
Something that looked a lot like disappointment washed over him. “Fair enough.”
He turned and hopped on his board.
Before I did the same, I looked at my phone and saw Jules had texted.
Jules
So, am I the only one celebrating today, or are you doing something fun, too?
I figured it was only fair for me to send her more than just a bunch of words. But instead of sending a photo, I sent a video clip I’d taken earlier this morning not long after we’d arrived at the skatepark.
BEAU
This was me about two hours ago. I only stopped a few minutes ago to take a quick break. But I’m going to ride for a few more hours.
There was a big part of me that wanted to wait to see how she would respond, but another part of me realized that if I did, it might send the wrong message to my friends.
So I set my phone down, grabbed my board, and joined my friends for a few more hours of skating. Only after we were done for the day and were ready to head out did I pick up my phone and see Jules had responded.
Jules
That’s so cool. I wish I could do that. Do you think you could teach me sometime?
What would it say if I did?
Certainly, I couldn’t bring her here to teach her andrisk my buddies seeing. They’d definitely get carried away with the thoughts of there being something serious happening.
But perhaps I could start small and show her the basics in the driveway at my place.
BEAU
