Page 47 of Billionaire and the Barista

“Farmland, fields, Indianapolis, eventually Michigan.”

“We aren’t going that far, are we? I have to be back tomorrow night,” I said.

Nathan shrugged. His wavy hair moved with the wind, a smile on his face.

“Look at a map on your phone, see what there is.”

I pulled out my phone and opened the map feature. We were still in the extended suburbs of St. Louis. It would be a while before we encountered another large city, assuming we did nothing but drive. If Nathan drove the way he had liked to ride, off the beaten path and off main highways would be where we would eventually end up.

“It’s like every crossroads has a town,” I said.

“People like to name Places. It’s easier that way. I should have gotten a paper map and we could have thrown darts at it to find a place to go.”

We were finally well out of town when Nathan left the main highway. He pulled over at a truck stop.

“Why don’t you go in and get us some sandwiches and snacks, while I fill up?” he suggested.

Inside I ordered deli sandwiches and loaded my arms full of cookies and chips, fruit cups, and other little snack-able items that we could turn into a picnic lunch. I also grabbed a case of sparkling water. And some homemade brownies for dessert. I piled everything on the counter when I noticed a shelf, low and out of the way full of folded camping blankets. Those would be perfect for a picnic, we could find a wild field and spread out.

“And one of these,” I said as I ran and grabbed a striped blanket to add to my purchases.

“I thought I sent you in for some food? What did you buy?” Nathan asked as I carried my purchases back to the car and put the bags on the floor of the back seat.

“I got stuff for us to have a picnic lunch, including a blanket,” I said proudly.

“What, no basket?” he teased.

“They didn’t have any,” I said in all seriousness.

He laughed as he pulled away from the gas station and hit the road again.

Every so often he would turn off the road we were on, taking us further and further away from crowded roadways and other people. Eventually, he pulled the car over. There wasn’t another car or a building in sight. We were on a lonely country road next to a field of wildflowers.

I looked out at all the flowers and had a memory of a happier time, and time when we were carefree and in love. I had wanted Nathan to make love to me out in the middle of all of those flowers back then.

“Why did you stop?” Did he remember that day too?

“I seem to remember you and a field of flowers like this,” he said.

I laughed and sprang from the car. I was out dancing among the flowers before he joined me.

“Let’s have our picnic here,” I said as he wrapped his arms around me.

He kissed me, and I leaned into him. He was everything and he was back.

He broke off the kiss. “Be right back.”

He returned with the bags of food and the blanket. I took the blanket and unfolded it. Happy to discover it was even larger than I had originally thought it would be. Nathan placed our lunch down on the corner and then sat in the middle. I joined him and practically sat in his lap.

I sighed as I leaned into him. “This is almost perfect.”

“What do you mean almost? It’s you and me, and no one else in the world. No worries, no deadlines, no customers. Just you and me.”

“When you put it that way…” I lifted my face to his and kissed him.

When he rolled me to my back, I went willingly.

I skimmed my fingers over his chest and down his arms. I wrapped my legs around him as he pressed his body to mine. We kissed and touched and held each other. And at some point, neither of us was content with caresses through our clothes.

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