“You’re welcome. Be sure to tell them it’s from me, not your father.”
“I will.”
Two hours later, someone knocked on the door of the hotel. I held the stun gun in one hand as I approached it with soft steps. I pressed my face to the door, staring out the peephole.
The familiar face waiting for me took a moment to register.
“Matt?” I swung the door open, heat already warming my cheeks. I ran a hand over my hair, smoothing it down. “What on earth are you doing here?”
Upon seeing me, he did a double take. “Hey, I— Whoa, you look…your hair…it’s…different.” His gaze narrowed, scrutinizing me, then he overcorrected quickly. “Good different. I mean, not that you didn’t look good before, you did…” He took a deep breath, then shook his head. “Sorry. Let me start over.” He held out the plastic bags in his hands. “Your mom didn’t tell you I was coming?”
“Uh, no, she…she said she was having something delivered, but…”
“Well, apparently I’m the delivery boy.” He laughed, running a hand through the curly brown hair atop his head. “You, uh, hurt or sick or something?” He eyed the room over my shoulder. “I thought you lived around here. Why are you staying in a hotel?”
I stepped farther over so he couldn’t see inside the room. Though it wasn’t as disastrous as it would’ve been if the kids were still there, it certainly wasn’t ready for company.
“Oh, I’m just hiding out for a few days. Escaping life. You know, the usual.” The honesty in my words didn’t register on his face.
He grinned, as if I’d made a joke. “Awesome. Cool. Um, how’s that tire holding up?”
“Great. Thank you so much again. I really appreciate it.”
“Oh, anytime. I was glad to help.”
I smiled, then looked down, peering into the bag. As I’d suspected, my mother had gotten everything wrong. A romance book for Maisy that she’d have no interest in. Coloring books for…who knew, honestly.
“Well, yeah, there you go.” He broke my concentration, gesturing toward the bags.
“Thanks. You really didn’t have to do this.”
“Oh, no. It was…it was…” When he looked at me again, there was that same sense of heightened curiosity I’d only ever seen coming from him. His eyes lit up as he stared at me. “It was really nice to see you again.”
“You too.” I grinned with one corner of my mouth.
He nodded slowly, opening his mouth as if he were going to say something before closing it again. He waved a fist in the air, then turned to walk away, but stopped. When he spoke, his words came out rushed. “Hey, listen, I’m not very good at this sort of thing, but…how long are you going to be hiding out?”
Something fluttered in my chest. “Oh, I don’t know exactly. A few more days, I think.”
“Would I be totally off base if I asked if you wanted some company? I mean, dinner or something. Drinks, too. Drinks would be cool. Like…like a date?” He appeared swollen with hope—his chest puffed, upper lip sweating. I hesitated, and he jumped in with a chuckle. “Feel free to let me down easy if that was weird.”
“It wasn’t weird,” I assured him, my insides doing cartwheels. I’d never felt so stupidly light-headed. I clamped my hands together, determined to shut this down quickly. “I’m just kind of in a not-so-good place right now. I don’t think it’s a good idea. I’m sorry. Trust me, it’s not you.”
“No, I get it.” He bobbed his head slowly. “I didn’t think I stood a chance anyway, but you know, I’d kick myself if I didn’t try.” He gripped the back of his neck with a boyish grin.
“Can I ask how old you are?” I asked him, curiosity getting the best of me.
He looked down with a hint of scarlet on his tanned cheeks. “I’m twenty-five.” Jesus Christ. When he looked back up, his sage-green eyes drilled into mine. “Is that a bad thing?”
I broke eye contact in an attempt to clear my head. What the hell was wrong with me? I was being absurd. “You’re…very young.”
“Age is just a number.” He shrugged. “Does that scare you?”
“A little,” I admitted. “I’m…I’m nearly double your age. Doesn’t that scare you? Shouldn’t you be more interested in someone your own age?”