The Promises We Keep (Made for Love Book 1) (31 page)

“
My feet are killing me. I definitely choose style over comfort tonight. How far away are we parked?
”

I open my mouth to respond and then I stop myself before I even begin. Across the street, there
’
s a horse and buggy with a couple stepping out and I get an idea.
“
Come on, let
’
s catch a ride to the car.
”
I give her hand a light tug as we approach the street. I check for oncoming traffic before I begin to jaywalk my way toward our ride. Old Town Fort Collins is probably one of the most charming places I
’
ve ever experienced
—
which is saying a lot, considering all the places I
’
ve lived
—
and it
’
s things like this that make it so unique. These horse drawn carriages will stick around for the duration of summer just because. I
’
ve never ridden in one before, but now seems as good a time as any.
“
Do you have time for one more ride?
”
I ask the coach.

“
Sure, hop in,
”
he says, nodding toward the back. I tell him we
’
re we
’
d like to go before I escort Avery around to the passenger entrance.

“
Sonny,
”
she coos.
“
You don
’
t have to do this. I can
—”
I cut her off with a kiss before picking her up around her waist and lifting her into the buggy. She squeals with delight as she plops down into the seat and I climb in to join her.
“
Thank you,
”
she murmurs.

I wrap my arm around her shoulders, now covered in her yellow sweater, and pull her into my side. She rests against me and I can
’
t help but feel a little victorious.
“
You
’
re welcome,
”
I mumble against her hair.

Our ride is a slow one. I know we probably could have made it to the car faster if we had just walked, but this is so much better. For a few minutes, we ride in silence. I watch the people on the sidewalk, coming and going, as I relish in the feeling of my girlfriend leaning up against me.

“
Sonny?
”
she speaks softly, breaking the silence between us.
“
Can I ask you something?
”

“
Anything.
”
She moves away from me so that she can look into my eyes; I appreciate the view, but I mourn the distance that she
’
s placed between us. Then I notice the expression on her face and a knot forms in my stomach.
“
What
’
s up?
”

“
I
’
ve had a really great time tonight. It
’
s safe to say that this is the best date I
’
ve ever been on.
”
I study her as she speaks. I want to be happy about what it is she
’
s just said, but she looks worried and that almost negates her compliment.
“
But
—”
Here it comes
…
“
do you think we
’
re moving too fast?
”

“
What?
”
I mutter lamely.

“
I mean
—
this is our first date. I know I joked about it the other day, but I feel like we
’
re doing things out of order.
”

I pull my eyebrows together to convey the depth of my confusion.
“
Where is this coming from? I don
’
t understand. I thought everything was going great and we were having a good time.
”

“
We are
—
I am
—
I
…
I
’
m sorry,
”
she lets out a flustered breath as she runs her fingers through her hair and looks away from me.
“
Never mind. I
’
m sorry.
”

“
No, no, no. Don
’
t do that,
”
I demand, placing a finger beneath her chin and turning her face back towards mine. I wait to continue speaking until she
’
s looking at me.
“
Talk to me. You can tell me whatever it is you
’
re thinking. I want you to.
”

“
I just
…
I
’
ve liked you for a really long time, Grayson. A
really
long time. I
’
m borderline stalker material.
”
I stifle a laugh but can
’
t contain my grin, even though she
’
s dead serious, with not a hint of humor shifting the features of her face.
“
I
’
m not kidding. I like you so much
—
which is why I agreed to be your girlfriend in, like, two seconds. These last couple days, they
’
ve been wonderful. I know we haven't done all that much, but I love just knowing I'm a girlfriend.
Your
girlfriend. I know we know each other pretty well, but only as friends. Not that our friendship isn
’
t a great foundation for a relationship but
…
I guess I
’
m just nervous.

“
I
’
m worried you
’
ll change your mind. I
’
m afraid that we
’
re moving too fast or something and that you
’
ll realize that maybe this isn
’
t what you wanted. And that
’
s fair
—
but then what about our friendship? I don
’
t want to screw that up. If that
’
s all I can have. I don
’
t know. Maybe I should have thought about this before
—
but I just got caught up in my feelings and the moment and
—”
she huffs out another sigh and shakes her head.
“
I
’
m babbling. I
’
m sorry.
”

“
First of all, stop apologizing,
”
I insist.
“
Second, come here.
”
I wrap my arm around her waist and pull her into my lap. I like having her close to me and the distance that separates us just won't do. She comes willingly, resting her arms around my shoulders.
“
Do you want to know when I first realized I had feelings for you?
”
She nods timidly.
“
Last year. The week before the first home game of the season. You came over and we talked football all night. When you left, you took my heart with you.
”

“
Really?
”
she whispers, her eyes wide and full of surprise.

“
Really. I might not be borderline stalker material, but I
’
ve liked you for a long time, too.
”

“
Why didn
’
t you tell me?
”

“
I don
’
t know
—
I had my reasons,
”
I mumble with a shrug.

“
No, no, no. Don
’
t do that,
”
she pleads, repeating my words.
“
Tell me.
”

I hesitate for only a moment; then I realize, the man that deserves her is an honest one. Besides, she just called me out on my crap answer and that actually makes me want to tell her.
“
I don
’
t think I
’
m good enough for you.
”

“
What?
”
Her eyes widen in surprise again.
“
You
don
’
t think
you
’
re
good enough for
me?
”

“
No. I don
’
t,
”
I repeat, reaching up to brush her hair behind her ear.

“
I disagree,
”
she states matter-of-factly.

“
I know. I know you do. I
’
m going to spend every day trying to be worthy of that opinion. So, you see? You don
’
t have to be worried that I
’
ll change my mind about us. I won
’
t. I
’
m in this. Okay?
”
I ask, propping my forehead against hers.

“
Okay.
”

Best. Date. Ever.

Three and a half hours ago, I was under the impression that Sonny was a great guy that I liked a lot. Now, as he walks me back to my apartment, I
’
m absolutely positive that Sonny is an
amazing
guy that I
’
m probably falling in love with. I mean, I
’
ve never actually been in love, so I can
’
t say for sure, but these feelings I have? They
’
re way too intense to be misinterpreted.

I peek up at him as we make our way across the parking lot, longing to be reminded of his wickedly-good looks.
Good Lord, how did I snag such a hottie?

He grins down at me as he squeezes my hand.
“
You know you just said that out loud, right?
”

“
Oh,
”
I moan, directing my focus toward my feet.
“
I
really
need to work on that.
”

“
Nah, I like it.
”

“
I
’
m sure you do,
”
I laugh.

“
Anyway, I
’
m the lucky one who snagged the hottie in this scenario.
”

I look up at him, lifting my eyebrows as I give him my
Really?
expression.
“
I
’
m the girlfriend of CSUs
star quarterback
. Once word gets out, hearts will be broken all over campus.
”

He laughs and I join in as he pulls me under his arm.
“
I
’
m the
starting
quarterback
—
not the
star
quarterback. There
’
s a difference.
”