She’d just confessed to Andrew that she was single and searching. Maybe he would get the message and ask her out again. He’d said he wanted to see her again, but he’d not made a definite plan.
Who was she kidding? She wasn’t even his type.
“He doesn’t seem to believe that things didn’t work out,” Andrew observed.
She shrugged. “It’s not like I'm the kind of woman a man would lose sleep over.”
His hand tightened on hers and Bianca forced herself to peek at him. The light above them accentuated his strong jaw.
“I disagree.” His voice was low when he spoke this time. “You’re the kind of woman...He finds you irresistible, that’s why.”
She bit her lip and forced her feet to steady so she wouldn’t lose the composure she’d worked so hard to maintain all night. Her fingers shook. Could he feel them?
He squeezed her hand. “Any man in his right mind would have a hard time letting you go.”
Her whole body shuddered. What was he doing to her with all the praises? Did he not know what power his words held over her? This was Andrew, her fantasy. Any man? Was he one of the men who would have a hard time letting her go?
She took comfort in the warmth of his hand.She wanted to thank him for his kind words, but was too lost in her thoughts and her tongue was lost in the process.
They neared her van and she assumed he was walking her all the way. She was afraid to dig for her keys from her purse, afraid that if she let go of his hand, he would not hold hers again.
“I meant every word I said about you. Never doubt yourself for a second.”
Her feet were mush and couldn't move now that they were standing in front of her car.
“By the way,” he said, changing the subject, which was okay by her, since she had no clue how many compliments she could take from Andrew in one night. “Those burritos...”
“Glad you liked them.” Her voice squeaked.
“If I were to marry you, do you think I could have them for breakfast every day?”
He grinned, and Bianca slipped her hand out of his, then playfully punched him on the shoulder.
“Your mom's words, not mine,” he laughed. “But after she gave me more huevos and burritos today, I started entertaining the idea.”
Good thing he was teasing, although she was starting to expand her fantasies about him. The fact that she was comfortable with him even though he still gave her a ton of butterflies was a huge step in the right direction. She assumed that was normal if you swooned over somebody the way she did over him.
“Thanks so much for moving my mom’s dresser and fixing all the broken things around the house.” It had been great having a shower without the handle falling off, along with the new garbage disposal he’d fixed.
She’d given Mama the money to pay him, but Carmen said he’d refused to take any payment, and she wasn’t going to force him to take money.
“IT’S MY PLEASURE.” He stepped forward, confident, squaring his shoulders. “Thanks for supporting the firefighters.”
What did he mean by that? Oh, no! Bianca rubbed her palms together. It hadn’t crossed her mind that he'd seen her wall displays. She winced and defended her actions. “I buy the calendars every year.”
Not really. She started buying the calendars after Leila met Ezra, and she’d only bought Firehouse 12 this year because of Andrew...his picture.
“Looks like January is your favorite month, then?”
She was not about to admit to anything, even though Andrew was obviously hinting at something. Not knowing what else to say, she silently inhaled the masculine scent of his spicy cologne. She could get lost in that smell all day long. It was probably best that she get in her car, before her mind explored Andrew...
She dug her keys from her purse and pressed the key fob. “I’d better go,” she said.
Andrew stepped away from the car and swung open the door for her, stepping aside to let her climb into the driver seat.
All the while, her mind was plotting, and imagining what it would be like if he gave her a goodnight kiss. She tried to imagine if she would collapse altogether and Andrew would end up calling 911.
She would never know. Just the same way she didn’t believe that Andrew was flirting with her and had held her hand as he walked her to her car. She had a wild imagination around Andrew, which made it easy for her to conclude that Andrew would never kiss her.
“I would still like us to do something together,” he said, igniting hope that she wasn’t imagining things. “I know that I didn’t give you a definite plan last time.”
He stood by the open car door and Bianca waited for him to finish laying out his plan.
“Would you like to take a hike with me sometime?”
A hike was not a date, but anything with Andrew seemed exciting. Just to be around him was enough for her, except... “I hate hiking.”
Leila and Renee loved such things, but not Bianca. “I could do a walk, maybe?”
“Hey, Buchanan!” a male voice bellowed in the almost empty parking lot. “Did you forget that you’re my ride back home?”
Andrew ignored the voice and continued talking to her. “This is a different kind of hike. You’ll like it. It’s a night hike, and this is perfect, with a full moon.”
“Never heard of a night hike before.”
“That’s exactly why you should give it a try. If you end up not liking it, we will turn around and do something different.”
“Buchanan, come on!” the voice interrupted, and Bianca could see the figure standing a few yards away. “I need to get home.”
Andrew turned to yell his response. “Take the bus.”
She could hear the teasing in Andrew’s voice, then he turned back to her. “When will be a good night for you?”
She didn’t work on Sundays, and she was off on Tuesday nights, but Andrew's schedule was different. She told him her days off.
“I’ll pick you up on Tuesday?”
It was a date! Not a typical date, but in her mind, it felt like it. “Sounds good!”
With that, he bid her goodnight and carefully closed her door.
It was only after she started driving that she saw Andrew jogging toward his colleague in the lot.
She was suddenly looking forward to whatever a night hike entailed.
What is today? Friday...
Four more days felt like eternity, before hanging out with Andrew, somewhere as they watched the stars. The fact that he wanted to take her to something he considered special was a thing in itself; and it gave her assurance and hope that maybe Andrew was not so far out of her league, after all.
CHAPTER 14
Andrew called himself all sorts of names as he tossed two backpacks in the back seat of his truck. He lifted the thermos and hefted it onto the floor mat in the back.
A night hike? What a ridiculous suggestion. He tried to shove the creeping doubt to the back of his mind as he backed out of the driveway. Was that a good place for a first date? It had been a long time since he’d asked a girl on a date. He and Callie had dated for so long that their outings together weren’t even planned.
He should’ve asked for Ezra or Renee’s advice on where to take a woman on a first date, before he’d asked out Bianca. Since he’d given his siblings the impression that he had all the answers to all the worlds’ problems, that hadn’t seemed much of an option.
Well, it was too late to back out now.
When he’d told his parents about taking Bianca for a night hike, Mom had gotten all carried away and thrown extra ideas at Andrew to make it a special date night. He could handle it himself, which was why he was carrying the thermos with hot chocolate, and a bag full of granola bars, trail mix, chocolate bars, apples and several kinds of snacks.
Andrew had told his parents about his plans for the night hike mainly out of respect, since he was living with them. His parents knew his work schedule, and he didn’t want to give them any reason to wonder why, ou
t of all his outings, he’d chosen to keep this one a secret. He felt like he was back in high school on curfew.
For once he wasn’t worried about Rocky tearing up the couch. He’d left him enough food and had generously fed him dog treats. He hoped the dog was so stuffed and exhausted that he would be sleeping instead of ruining things in the house.
Earlier in the day, he had taken Rocky running at the same trail he planned to walk with Bianca that night, to get familiar with it before he took her there.
Despite his earlier exploration, Andrew still wanted to head to the trail before the sun hit the horizon. He wanted to show Bianca the view of the sunset, and let her get acquainted with the trail before it got dark.
He’d texted Bianca last night, reminding her to dress warmly. If she didn't have enough warm clothing, he’d packed extra gloves and hats, with two thermal blankets, just in case they needed them.
He slammed the back door of the truck and climbed into the driver’s seat, firing the engine. Twenty minutes later, Andrew pulled into Bianca’s bumpy driveway, parking behind her minivan.
As soon as he stepped out of the truck, the front door swung open and Daisy darted out, a paper waving in her hand as she ran through the tulips toward him. “Mr. Drew!”
Her wide smile warmed Andrew’s heart and he dropped to his knees to scoop her in a hug. “Hi, Sweetheart!”
“I drew a picture for you.” She backed out of his arms and held the paper up to him. Andrew took the colorful drawing from her, studying the two stick figures on a green background that looked kind of like hills.
“This is you and Mom taking a hike.” She pointed at the green colored hills. “This is the mountains where you’re going.”
His heart melted at her childish thoughtfulness. “I love it!” he said sincerely.
He then remembered the toys he’d bought for her at Target when he’d stopped to get some undershirts. He put her drawing on the dashboard, and picked up two boxes, handing one to her. “This is for you!”
Her face lit up. “Shopkins?” She wrapped her arms around Andrew again. “Thank you!”
He handed her the other box. “These chocolates are your Mom’s, but she’ll share with you and Uncle and Grandma,” he said, thinking it would be easier for Daisy to deliver the chocolates than doing it himself.
“Mom says she likes you,” Daisy said mischievously. “Are you taking her on a date?”
Did seven year olds know the word date these days? What did he know about kids, anyway?
He patted her hair. “Something like that.”
At the sound of the screen door closing, Andrew straightened and watched Bianca walk toward them. She smiled when their eyes met, and her hand flew to her hair that draped over her shoulder. The sight of her made his heart quicken.
“Have fun!” Daisy’s voice pulled his eyes from Bianca, and he turned to her. Dropping the boxes to the edge of the grass, she flung her arms around his legs and Andrew lowered to give her another hug.
“Thank you!”
“You need to get to bed at a decent hour,” Bianca instructed Daisy, pulling her brown coat close to her. “It's a school night.”
Daisy turned to her mom and embraced her. “Mr. Drew bought me Shopkins.” She picked the boxes up and Bianca glanced at the two boxes in Daisy’s hands, then up to Andrew and back to Daisy. “That’s nice.”
“The chocolates are for you,” Daisy announced. “But Mr. Drew says you have to share with Grandma and Uncle.”
“We can eat them tomorrow,” Bianca said, then glanced back to Andrew, her lips curving into a smile. “Thank you!”
“You’re welcome,” Andrew said.
“Grandma said that Uncle will take me on the bus when he goes to his friend’s place tonight,” Daisy spoke to her mom.
Bianca’s brows furrowed in disapproval. “Definitely not! Why would Grandma say something like that?”
“I’ve been wanting to ride a bus, and Grandma thought you would not let me. She said Uncle will take me some time when you're not around.”
Bianca shook her head slowly, her face serious as she turned as if going back to the house.
Daisy huffed, folding her arms. “All right, I’ll stay!” She muttered something about her Grandma being right about Bianca disapproving her trip on the bus. “Can I watch Shopkins instead?”
Bianca bent and kissed Daisy’s cheek. “Just one episode.” Her acceptance seemed like a compromise to keep Daisy from going on the bus. Andrew sensed her reluctance had nothing to do with the bus at all, but seemed to be more about her lack of confidence in Mateo watching Daisy.
“Why can’t I watch all four episodes?” Daisy’s lips curved in a pout, and Andrew watched as Bianca inhaled in exhaustion.
It wasn’t his place to step in, but he found himself doing so. “Because your mom knows what’s best for you.”
Daisy peered at Andrew, her pout slowly being replaced by a soft smile. “Okay. Have fun!” She waved, turned, and bounded back to the house.
Bianca smiled at Andrew. “Thanks for the intervention.”
He didn't feel like he’d done anything, other than set himself up for failure should Daisy have refused to listen to him. “I don’t know how you do it.”
“I’m always winging it.”
“You’re doing a great job.” He opened the passenger door of his truck for her, then closed it gently when she’d settled into her seat.
“You’re ready?” he asked after he was seated, and fired the engine.
“As I will ever be,” she said, fastening her seatbelt.
Andrew backed out of the driveway, then glanced up to see Carmen standing at the living room window, peeking through the curtains.
He chuckled and lifted his hand to wave. She waved back. When he glanced down at Bianca, she had her face buried in her hands.
“Sorry about my mother.”
Andrew outstretched his hand and touched her shoulder, keeping his eyes on the road. “Your mom didn’t do anything wrong.” He hoped that he wouldn’t have to apologize to her when it came to his dad. “In that case, I apologize in advance, because my dad is quite opinionated.”
“I don’t think Robert is that bad, not even close to my mother,” she said, then switched the direction of their conversation. “Tell me more about this night hike.”
“I just blurted it out because it was the first thing that came to my mind when I asked you out,” he admitted. Thought it would be romantic at first. “I guess nature is my thing...hiking creates a deep connection with the outdoors, and I figured it's a good thing to hit the trail when it's dark.” He was rambling. “I’ve never done it in May before. Hiked it in the summertime instead.”
“How long ago was that?”
“Twenty years ago.” He felt the need to explain why his family had hiked at night. “I was ten, and Ezra, eight. We were in scouts, and we went with our troop.” He remembered that time to be the most enjoyable, simple trip outdoors, and he’d loved it. He told her how long he’d been a scout. “Of course, I quit after I reached the Arrow of Light rank, but Ezra made it to Eagle Scout.”
She was silent, and Andrew wondered if she was regretting the outing. “If you want, we could do something else...”
“No way. I’ve been looking forward to this hike since Friday.” She dug in her purse and pulled out a pair of brown gloves, lifting them up. “I even bought these for the occasion.”
He kept his eyes on the road, but he could hear a smile in her tone.
He asked her about her day, and her eyes lit up when she described some of her favorite animals their clients had brought into the clinic.
Andrew exited the busy street, turning left onto an unpaved road before asking the question burning in the back of his mind. Namely, why she was edgy with Mateo. “Why didn’t you want Daisy to take the bus with Mateo tonight?”
“It’s not that....I just don’t trust his friends. People who don’t have normal jobs, and hang out at the house all day.
I don't even know them.” She exhaled in frustration. “He has a family back home, and it just bothers me that he’s not with them.”
She vented about Mateo’s reluctance to look for work. “I’m glad you helped him find a job that actually pays where he can still play his music.”
“My pleasure.”
As if feeling guilty about sharing her frustrations with Mateo, she continued, “I’m sorry that you’ve noticed my resistance to Mateo. See, I was raised by a single mom, and Mateo doesn’t know who his dad is,” she said. “My dad... I don’t keep in touch as much. When he and mom got divorced, he remarried and now he has three other kids. They live in Arizona, not close enough for me to develop a close relationship.”
Burning with regret that he’d asked about her brother, Andrew reached for her hand over the console. “It’s okay, I totally understand why you have to do what you do to protect your daughter in any way possible.”
He didn't blame her for not wanting Daisy to hang out with a bunch of guys. Heck, he would never let that happen with his sister, either. Not until recently, when Renee started dating Jake, did Andrew warm up to the idea of Renee being with any guy.
Regardless of the circumstances, family was very important, especially to Daisy, and no doubt Mateo loved his niece. “Maybe Daisy longs to connect with her uncle. Maybe letting him watch her at home once in a while, or walk her to the park or something, might ease your doubts about your brother.”
“I know,” she said. Her gaze drifted and fixated on the windshield, then out at the thick green branches that slapped at the glass as they drove past. “I need to get over my own issues.”
After three miles of bumpy road, Andrew drove up a hill and pulled into a parking lot.
A Volkswagen was pulling out of a parking space as Andrew cut his engine. Another couple climbed into an SUV in the parking lot and drove away, leaving Andrew's truck as the only car on the lot.
Once they stepped out of the truck, he hoisted the backpack onto his back and watched Bianca zip up her coat.
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