Stirred Up (22 page)

“Hey there,” she answered, and he couldn’t
help smiling at how obviously pleased she was to hear from him.

“Hey, yourself. Sounds like you kicked some
ass. Tell me about it.”

“I never could have done it without
your–”

“It wasn’t me in that interview,” he cut in.
“You’re welcome for the help, but today was all you.”

“Okay, okay,” she laughed. “It was all me.
Anyway, it seemed like a decent enough place, and I liked what
Sommers had to say. It would be pretty intense if I got it, since
I’d be starting in two weeks, and I’d have to create a lesson plan
between now and then.”

“You mean the teacher’s not leaving you
anything?” he asked.

“She’s got lessons ready for the first couple
of weeks, but she wasn’t planning on starting her maternity leave
until the first week of February.”

“Got it. Well, you’re right that it would be
a lot of work, but it’s doable. I’m sure the principal and other
teachers would be willing to help, and obviously I will.”

“Thanks, I’m counting on all of that.”

“What happens when the semester’s over?” he
asked. “Will they have anything else for you?”

“One of the other English teachers is
retiring after this year, so I’d fill that position next year.”

“Wow, it sounds ideal.”

“Yeah, I know,” she said, and he could
picture how she must look, the little frown line between her eyes
that she got when she was anxious or unsure.

“Well, a recommendation from Laurie goes a
long way. And it’s not easy finding people in the middle of the
year. You have a great shot at this.”

“Don’t say that! I don’t want to jinx
it.”

“In that case, no way are you getting this
job.”

She sighed. “That’s better.”

“So what are you up to the rest of the week?”
he asked, oh so casually.

“I have some Christmas shopping left to do,
but mostly I plan to veg. I’m working Friday and Saturday night as
usual, and Beth’s coming to visit Sunday.”

Damn. He’d forgotten about Beth. That meant
that unless they spent the night together today or tomorrow, it
would be a week before he’d sleep with her again. But he wasn’t
going to push it. They were so hot and heavy when they saw each
other, it was probably best to take a breather. Things could get
intense fast, and he didn’t want Cheryl getting skittish.

“You up for some climbing Saturday?” he asked
instead. “We can keep it simple and go to the gym.”

“That would be great,” she said, sounding
genuinely pleased.

He relaxed, glad they could still have their
usual fun.

“Do you have anything planned for break?” she
asked.

“There’s the usual Christmas hoo ha at my
parents’, but I also have that climbing trip.”

“Oh yeah. The one in Zion?”

“Yeah. Evan managed to get away from the
hospital for four days, starting the twenty-eighth. It’s gonna be
fantastic.”

“I’m sure it will be,” she said, but she
sounded slightly less enthusiastic, and he couldn’t help hoping she
was disappointed that he wouldn’t be around.

He glanced at his watch. “I’d better get
going,” he said. “But I’ll see you Saturday.”

“See you then.”

He pocketed his phone and headed back inside,
wishing Saturday didn’t feel so far away. But he wasn’t going to
call or text her before then. Playing games had never been his
style, but this was serious business, and all signs were telling
him to step carefully. The last thing he ever wanted was to crowd a
woman, and that had never been truer than with Cheryl.

***

He got to her place at the usual time on
Saturday. Cheryl opened the door with a smile, then stepped back
for him to enter. She looked pleased to see him but hesitant, like
she didn’t know how to act.

Finally she gave him a hug and a kiss on the
cheek, flushing as she stepped back. “It’s good to see you.”

“You, too.”

She darted off to grab a few last things and
he waited and tried not to think about having sex with her. Which
made it pretty much like every other Saturday. But they had a good
time at the gym, their uncertainty falling away as they got caught
up in climbing, and by the end they were loose and laughing. Still,
he could feel her holding back just a bit, like when he caught her
watching him and she looked away, embarrassed to be caught.

What was that about, and where did it leave
them? He wasn’t sure of the rules yet, but he was willing to be
patient and see where things led.

They stopped at their usual place for lunch
and then he took her home. Since every indication had been that
this was going to be a platonic sort of day, he made no move to get
out of the car. Instead he turned around and fished in the back
seat until he found what he was looking for.

“Merry Christmas,” he said, handing her the
brightly wrapped box.

She smiled at him, her eyes lighting up, and
reached into her bag. “Merry Christmas to you, too,” she said,
handing him an envelope and a weirdly mushy bag wrapped in green
paper with a bunch of candy canes dancing across it.

“You first,” he said, then watched anxiously
as she unwrapped the paper and opened the box.

“It’s beautiful,” she breathed, pulling the
leather briefcase out of the box. She looked at him, her eyes wide
and gleaming with what he feared were tears. “This is too much,
Jason.”

“Do you like it?”

“Of course I do! It’s gorgeous.”

“Then it’s not too much.”

“I really better get that teaching job now,”
she said, smiling wryly at him.

“This is for whenever you start your career.
The leather will keep.”

“Thank you. I love it.”

“Good.”

“Now open yours,” she ordered, watching him
with anticipation.

“Which one should I open first?”

“The envelope, I guess.”

Inside was a pass that let him into all the
state parks in Nevada for free, good for the calendar year starting
January first.

“This is amazing,” he said, wondering how
many of those parks he could take her to.

“Open the other one,” she urged.

“Okay, okay,” he laughed, tearing the paper
off the other gift to reveal a bag of marshmallows.

“For our future camping trips,” she said,
smiling and blushing at the same time.

Christ, she was adorable. Too adorable not to
kiss. Leaning over, he finally let himself taste her. He didn’t
push, didn’t try to go deeper, just brushed his lips over hers.

He sat back and smiled slowly, pleased with
how flustered and aroused she looked. Like maybe she wanted more
but wasn’t going to ask. Well, they’d leave it at that. It wasn’t
necessarily a bad thing to leave her wanting more.

“These are perfect,” he said. “Thank
you.”

They sat without moving, the tension coiling
tighter, until finally she breathed deeply and opened the door.

“Have a good time with your family,” she
said. “Tell them I say hi.”

“You bet. Have fun with Beth,” he
replied.

She nodded her head. “Maybe we can get
together next week before you head off on your trip.”

“It’s a date. I’ll call you.”

She smiled, gathered her things, and slid out
of the car. She ducked back in for a sweet little wave and then she
was gone.

He pulled out of the parking lot and drove
toward home, aroused, bemused, and touched. He was going to miss
her, but the heat between them wasn’t going anywhere. Not only
that, if her gift was any indication, there were more camping trips
in their future, and the thought of those would keep him going.

***

“Maybe I should have moved here with you,”
Beth, said out of nowhere.

It was the day after Christmas and they were
in the middle of their annual Gilmore Girls marathon. Since they
knew the show by heart – they’d watched it faithfully in high
school – they often chatted through the less dramatic parts.

“Why in the world would you have done that?
You went to college in Ohio.”

“Exactly,” Beth sighed. “I was born there,
and I didn’t even have the guts to leave for college. I’ll be
moving in with Jeff soon, and he’s not looking to go anywhere,
which means I’ll probably die in my hometown.”

Cheryl tossed a piece of popcorn at her. It
didn’t have far to go, since they were sitting side by side on the
couch, blankets piled on top of them.

“I’m not sure Vegas would suit you,” Cheryl
said. “And that’s not a bad thing.”

Beth plucked the popcorn off the blanket and
popped it into her mouth. “I’m sure there are plenty of boring,
cowardly people here.”

“That’s not what I meant and you know it,”
Cheryl said, throwing another piece of popcorn. “Anyway, at least
you found Jeff. And who knows, maybe he’ll get an offer at a
hospital somewhere fabulous and you’ll move after all.”

“Maybe,” Beth said gloomily, clearly
unconvinced. “But he’s already pretty set in his ways. We both are,
and we’re not even thirty. There’s a reason revolutionaries and
radicals are all in their twenties. The older people get, the more
cautious and risk-averse they are.”

“Spoken like an accountant.”

“But I’m serious. I think I already missed my
window for adventure.”

“Adventure can be overrated,” Cheryl said.
“And you love Jeff, right? You two will make your own fun, and you
can keep your eyes open for chances to break out of your routine.
It’s not over for you yet.”

“I guess,” Beth said, subsiding back into
silence.

Cheryl glanced over at her, hoping her
friend’s discontent was a momentary blip. It was easy to visit
somewhere on vacation and start to wonder if you had made the wrong
choices. But then you went back to your life and forgot about it.
Only Beth had never said anything quite like this on previous
visits.

Her mind was half on the show and half on her
friend when her phone rang.

“I have to take this,” she said, standing up
and heading into her bedroom. “I think it’s about that job.”

The principal was on the other end. “I
apologize for calling during the holidays, but as you can imagine,
we’re pressed for time with this position.”

“I understand.”

“Good, then I hope you’ll take the job. The
salary and benefits would be as we discussed last Wednesday.”

“That’s great,” she said. “I’d love to work
there.”

“Well, that’s a relief. I’ll get the offer
letter out tomorrow, and I’ll put you in touch with one of the
other English teachers. I know it’ll be a bit crazy coming into the
semester without much time to plan.”

“That won’t be a problem,” she said.

“Glad to hear it. We look forward to having
you on our team.”

As soon as they said goodbye she flew back
into the living room.

“I got it!” she squealed, jumping up and
down. “I’m going to be a real teacher.”

Beth shrieked and kicked her way out of the
blankets to hug her, and then the two of them were dancing around
the room, singing the theme to Rocky, one of their secret favorite
movies.

The first person she had to call was Jason,
but unfortunately he didn’t pick up. “It looks like I’ll be using
that new briefcase after all,” she told his voicemail, “because I
got the job. Hope you’re having fun with your family.”

She hung up to find Beth looking at her
speculatively.

“What?”

“Nothing. It’s just too bad I won’t get a
chance to meet this guy. You totally light up every time you say
his name.”

“Please. I do not,” she said, making a
face.

But did she? She felt lit up whenever she was
with him, even when she thought about him, but that didn’t mean she
wanted everyone else to know it.

Jason called the next morning as she was on
her way back from dropping Beth off at the airport, and dammit all,
she felt herself
lighting up
. Curse Beth for mentioning
it.

“Hey there,” she said, glad he couldn’t see
how big her smile was.

“Way to go, babe,” he said. “I knew they’d
want you. Sorry I didn’t call earlier. By the time I got back from
visiting my grandfather it was late and I was afraid to bother
you.”

She’d woken up to his congratulatory text,
and had read it several times that morning. He was the first guy
she’d been with who never left her waiting and wondering.

“No problem. Did you have a good
holiday?”

“Oh, yeah, it was fine. The usual. My
grandfather’s not doing great, but the place they have him in is
okay. I just wish it were closer.”

“It must be sad seeing him like that.”

They talked for a few minutes about his
grandparents, who he’d always been close with, but before long he
brought the conversation back to their plans.

“I’m leaving tomorrow morning, but if you
want to come by tonight I’ll pull out all my old lesson plans. I’ll
even make dinner.”

“That would be great. What’s your
address?”

“Haven’t you been here before?” he asked.

“This is my first invitation to the bat cave.
I was beginning to wonder if I’d ever see where you live.”

“Huh. That’s funny. Well, now’s your chance.
It’ll be kind of a mess, since I’m organizing all my gear, but it’s
clean enough.” There was a short pause. “Or it will be by the time
you get here.”

He gave her the address and quick directions
and they agreed she should come by around six.

She looked at her watch. Seven hours until
she saw him. Not that she was counting. But they hadn’t had sex in
a week, so even according to her own rules, tonight was a go.

She whiled away the day reading and grocery
shopping, her thoughts never far from Jason. When she finally got
to his place, she was giddy with anticipation. She’d even worn a
skirt, just like she’d promised the week before. She hadn’t brought
flowers, but she had his favorite beer and a nice bottle of red
wine.