“Paige, we all have our quirks about us. It’s nothing you should be ashamed of. It’s just you, and I happen to like you, regardless if you’re worried about a little dirt or if you freak out if your house isn’t organized.” He paused for a second and scratched his chin before asking, “Have you always been like this or is this all new?” He stared down at her, his mouth tilting slightly as he began to smile.
Paige looked away out towards the green field behind him, not sure what to say. She knew her problems existed deeper than getting a little dirty. She had always been this way a little, but her anxiety had started to become worse after Natasha had died, and seemed like it had escalated even more in the past month after Randy’s death. She knew all the grief she’d faced had made her feel out of control and these ‘quirks’ gave her some of that control back, but she wasn’t ready to throw all that out there to him just yet. She met his eyes as he waited for her answer and said, “A little, but in the past six months it’s gotten worse. You could say I’ve had a rough year.” She smiled, hoping he’d realize that she didn’t want him to push her anymore; she was relieved when he turned to walk back to the house.
“Do you want something to drink? Or, we could go grab a bite to eat like I’d promised you. This date hasn’t really gone as I planned,” he said as he turned back towards her, stopping for a second so she could catch up.
Paige looked down at her clothes and felt her hair sticking to the back of her neck. She was sure she didn’t look decent enough for a date. “Um, I think I’ll pass on going anywhere,” she said.
Tyler gave her a half smile as he noticed her looking down at her clothes and said, “You look fine, aren’t you hungry? I’m starving. We can go somewhere a little more casual and no one around here will even notice. Anyway, I happen to think that a little dirt on a woman is very attractive. Speaking of...” Tyler said as he leaned in to her and wiped a smudge of dirt off her cheek. He held his hand against her cheek for a moment longer, absently rubbing a small circle and letting his eyes venture over her face. He stopped when his eyes met hers and she thought for a second that he was going to kiss her, but he pulled away and continued walking.
Paige gathered her composure and thought about his original question before he had gotten her all hot and bothered. She was hungry and he didn’t seem too worried about taking her out, even though she was dirty and smelly. She decided what the hell, and said, “Okay, I’ll go.”
Tyler looked at her as if he’d just witnessed a miracle right before his eyes. “Really? Aren’t you terrified about going out in public dirty?” he asked giving her a boyish smile and Paige knew he was having a blast teasing her.
Paige narrowed her eyes at him, “Yes, but it’ll be good for me to let things slide a little. You know, live on the wild side a little,” she said giggling.
“Well, I’ll be nice and let you at least wash your hands at the house before we go,” Tyler said, nudging her with his elbow and then added, “Because you do stink a little.”
Paige shoved him, glad that the tension between them was beginning to fade. “Thanks, that’s so considerate of you.”
“Anything for you,” he said and as they reached the house Paige saw a dog up ahead running full force in their direction. She got a good look at the dog and her first thought was that he seemed really happy. His tongue was hanging out to the side and his mouth was wide open. Not thinking twice about the dog being happy to see her, she looked over at Tyler, wondering if he was going to hold his hands up to ward off the dogs enthusiasm but he was just standing there smiling.
Before she knew what had hit her, Paige was suddenly hit square in the stomach by wet, muddy paws, almost knocked to the ground, and the smell of something that had died hit her, making her want to vomit. She heard Tyler’s laughter beside her and wanted to knock him out.
Tyler came up, grabbed the dog and pulled him down, and then gave Paige a big grin. “This is Diesel. And I think he likes you.”
Paige looked down at her shirt that was now covered in mud and then at Tyler who was holding the crazy brown and white dog back. The dog was staring at her with so much joy that she couldn’t help but laugh as well. “Well, that was interesting,” she said as she reached down to pet the over joyous dog.
Tyler got the dog calmed down and turned to Paige, “Um, I think you definitely need to get cleaned up, now, before we go eat.
“Ya think? Being around you much longer and my anxiety will have no choice but to go away,” Paige said laughing.
Chapter 13
Paige closed her eyes in complete bliss as the hot, soapy water ran over her hands. She splashed water on her face and then patted it dry, feeling ten times better now that she was somewhat cleaned up. She looked in the mirror at herself and smiled. Her clothes were filthy, her hair was sticky and starting to frizz from the humidity, but she was having a blast. It was definitely an experience; that was for sure.
After cleaning up as best she could, she headed down the hall towards the kitchen where Tyler, who was lucky enough to have the opportunity to change clothes, was waiting for her, sipping a glass of tea. She giggled when she saw him and said, “Boy, you are the epitome of a country boy, aren’t you?”
Tyler raised one eyebrow at her curiously. “Really? Why’s that?”
Paige held her finger up to her mouth, counting the ways in her head. “Well, you live on a farm, you drive a truck, you have a redneck twang, you always wear cowboy boots and now I come in here to find you sipping on iced tea. I’m surprised you don’t wear flannel shirts and a cowboy hat every day.”
“Now, let’s not get crazy. I don’t think I’m the type to be wearing flannel shirts. A cowboy hat? Maybe if I’m out on a long trail ride and the sun is out. And nothing beats iced tea, except maybe a cold beer. What do you drink, then?” he asked as he took another sip.
The vision of him on a horse, sweaty from the hot sun with a cowboy hat sitting low on his head, concealing his face just enough to make him look mysterious, suddenly shot through her mind, making her blush. “I mainly drink water. Occasionally some type of juice.” She said as she leaned back against the counter, trying to get that thought out of her mind.
Tyler laughed, “Well, then, that would make you the epitome of a city girl.”
“Touché, Tyler,” she said laughing.
Tyler hopped up and said, “Are you ready? If I don’t eat soon, I just might starve to death.”
“Yes, please, I’m starving, too. All this excitement has gotten me hungry.”
They climbed into Ol’ Betsy and Paige relaxed against the vinyl seat. The summer heat was sweltering, but with the sun now down, it was a little more bearable. With the air conditioner not working, they both rolled down their windows, hoping to escape the truck’s suffocating heat.
She looked around at the old interior of the truck and tried to think of what would make Tyler love this truck so much. It was definitely old, probably antique but there wasn’t much to it. It was pretty plain. She wondered if it was because it used to be his grandpa’s and he felt a sense of pride at restoring it. Maybe he just liked old things. Maybe he liked the simplicity of it. She guessed everyone had certain things that pulled their interest.
Paige wondered what thing pulled her interest. She didn’t have any hobbies, really. If she had to name something that she loved doing, something that gave her a sense of pride, besides being a mother of course, she would say it was being a nurse and being able to take care of someone who needed help. Being a nurse was her greatest joy and she couldn’t imagine working a different job, it just wouldn’t do.
“So, where are we going to eat?” she asked as she heard her stomach growl.
“A little diner not far from here. It’s a hole in the wall but they have really great burgers and steaks. The best around.” Tyler turned down a narrow country road and Paige realized that she was completely lost. She didn’t know this area at all. He quickly turned towards her, “You’re not one of those vegetarians
, are you?” he asked, sounding almost appalled by the thought.
Paige frowned and said, “No, why?”
He turned down another side road and then added, “Well, a lot of times city girls seem to be vegetarians, so just thought I’d ask before I took you out for a steak dinner.”
“Well, I eat meat, so, no worries,” she said laughing.
Before long they pulled into a small restaurant parking lot, and Paige was surprised to see that the place was really busy. She looked up at the sign which read Brenda’s Diner and smiled. She was definitely on the outskirts of the city.
They sat down at a small table outside and ordered their food. Paige couldn’t remember the last time she was so hungry. The sun had already set but the moon was bright, lighting up the sky. There were small lanterns all around the back patio and one on each table, giving just enough light to see the food.
“So, where do you work? I don’t think we’ve gone that far yet in any of our conversations, it seems like something keeps coming up to distract us,” Tyler said, he rested his elbows on the table with his chin resting on his hands as he stared down at her.
Paige took a sip of her water and said, “I’m a nurse at Anderson Hospital. I work on the psychiatric floor for the elderly patients.” She wasn’t sure what he’d think about that. People were always shocked when she told them where she worked and then always wanted to know what it was like and how someone as petite as she could handle a patient when they got out of control. The truth was she’d only had one instance where she wasn’t able to handle someone and needed more help.
“Interesting. Do you enjoy it?” he asked as he looked carefully at her.
“Of course, why else would I be a nurse?”
“Well, some people do it for a job, some for the money and some actually care about the patients and want to make a difference in someone’s life.” Tyler took a bite of his cheeseburger as he waited for her answer.
“I happen to be the person who loves their job. I don’t think I’d be happy working anywhere else. It just wouldn’t feel right. Some of these patients don’t have any family and what little I can do for them while they’re there, sometimes makes all the difference in their lives.” Paige looked out at the small lake that sat behind the diner. It was beautiful out here, too. Everywhere she looked, she was reminded of the beauty the country held. She wondered why she had never noticed before. Maybe it was because she never had someone show her how beautiful it all could be.
“Good. You seem like the caring type. It’s good that you’ve found your calling at such a young age. A lot of people don’t know what they want to do with their life,” Tyler said, his voice dropping a little as he turned his gaze down to his food. Paige felt like he was holding something back and wondered what he had wanted to do with his life that he never did.
“What about you? What’s your story?” she asked, hoping she wasn’t pushing him to talk about something that hit a chord with his emotions.
Tyler laughed, “What about me? Um, there’s not much to me, really. I’m divorced, see my son on weekends and run a fencing business that I took over from my dad.”
Paige knew he was going to be a tough one to get to open up, but she knew most men were, she just usually didn’t have the interest to try. “Well,” she started, “what is your goal in life? What do you want?” she questioned, hoping to spur some deeply rooted thoughts from him so she could get to know him more and find out what made him tick.
Tyler put his fork down as he seemed to contemplate his answer. Finally, he said in a quiet voice, almost as if he was telling her a secret that he didn’t want anyone else to hear, “To be honest, it’s not my dream job of owning a fencing company. But it was my dad’s and when he died, I felt like I needed to continue with his dream and keep it going, for him.”
Paige was a little shocked that he had opened up so easily, even if it was just a little bit. “So, what is your dream job then?” she asked.
Tyler hesitated for a moment, let out a breath and said, “Don’t laugh, because it’s definitely out there by your standards, and will make me look even more like the epitome of a country boy,” he paused raising his eyebrows at her sarcastically before he continued, “but I’d like to train and break horses one day and make my living from that.”
Paige narrowed her eyes as she looked at him, wondering why he pegged her as some stuck up, prissy, city girl. She knew she was prissy and a city girl, but she wasn’t, by any means, stuck up. “Tyler, I don’t have standards. I’m not some uppity city girl or anything. It’s just that your lifestyle is all new to me,” Paige said. “I didn’t know you could make a living from that but if that’s what you want to do in life, I say go for it. A lot of people sit and think about what they’d like to be doing but never get up and actually try and make it happen. I wouldn’t want to see you regret not giving it a chance.”
He gave her a cocky grin and said, “I know, Paige, calm down. I just like giving you a hard time. But yeah, I’ve been giving it a lot more thought lately, but it’ll take some time to get going, so we’ll see what happens. I’ve been training a few horses in the last couple of months, but not enough to make any money from it just yet,” he said as he wiped his mouth off and pushed his plate away. He looked at her for a moment, his eyes lingering on hers for a long time, seeming to try to understand what she was about, and Paige wondered what his thoughts about her were. Did he think she was too much of a city girl to blend into his rugged life? Did he think they were too opposite to have anything in common? She didn’t know, but she knew she was thinking how much more she wanted to learn about him. For some reason, she felt pulled toward him, toward his life and toward the area of town she always thought she hated.
They sat there talking for a while longer, and after several hours they got up to leave. The night was getting cooler and as they walked across the parking lot, Tyler reached out and grabbed her hand. It felt so natural that Paige almost gave it no thought, but when she felt him squeeze it gently, she found his eyes and saw him smiling down at her. His hand was warm, just like the soft brown eyes that met hers, and Paige felt her insides melting at the sight of his crooked, endearing smile. She bit her lip and looked away, out into the never ending landscape and the bright moon that seemed to hover directly above the hills, hoping she wasn’t setting herself up for disappointment later. She was nervous, but she knew she wanted to give this a try with him.
Thirty minutes later they pulled up to her apartment and she wondered how Kyra had behaved for Kyleigh. She hoped she didn’t give her any trouble. Paige looked down at her watch and knew Kyra would already be in bed, it being after ten. “I’ll walk you up to your door,” Tyler stated as he got out of the truck. Paige followed him up the steps, trying to keep her heels from making too much noise in the stairwell; she didn’t want to wake everyone up.
She stopped at her door and turned to face him as she whispered, “Thank you for a very interesting first date, Tyler. It was definitely unique.”
Tyler grinned and said, “I’m glad it sticks out, maybe you won’t be able to forget it.”
“Oh, I’ll definitely remember, don’t worry,” she said as she pulled out her keys.
She felt him step closer and paused, bringing her eyes up to meet his. He had an eagerness shinning in them that made her feel crazy. It made her feel like pushing all her insecurities down, all her anxiety away and just letting herself go in his arms. She didn’t know where all this was coming from, she had never felt any inclination that she could let all that go, especially for a guy she hadn’t known very long. But here she was, willing to let loose of her demons, just to be a better, more carefree woman for him. But he made her feel safe, like nothing could hurt her, like everything she thought she needed to worry about didn’t matter anymore because he could mend all her broken pieces.
Tyler reached out and placed his hand against her cheek, gently rubbing small circles with his thumb. Paige swallowed down the lump that was forming i
n her throat from the intense look he was giving her. Every want and need was showing on his face and she felt all the desires that she had kept bottled up for months finally show themselves. She felt his warm breath drift across her face, felt his breathing quicken as he inched even closer to her. He placed his other hand on her hip as he dipped his face closer to hers. He paused for just a brief second, to make sure it was okay, and when she didn’t stop him, he let his lips gently brush against her cheek as he gradually made his way down to her lips. When their lips finally met, she felt all the fear of feeling slowly fade away. Something clicked inside her, telling her this moment was real, that this time it was different.
His tongue found hers in a slow effortless way, making her body flush with a slow burn and her heart begin to race. Their tongues mingled, their hands slowly found each other’s bodies, searching and exploring unknown territory, and their breathing began to speed up.
Paige ran her hand through his soft, dark hair and shivered as his mouth ventured to her neck. She could smell the hint of aftershave lingering from his shave. It was intoxicating, smelling woodsy with a hint of sweetness. It reminded her of his beautiful land that she found herself beginning to love.
She felt herself getting lost in his touch, felt him quickening his pace, his tongue feverishly finding hers. Just when she felt herself wanting to give in, to drag him quietly inside her apartment, she heard the door to the entryway swing open, revealing an older guy heading to his apartment above hers. They both abruptly stopped, quickly pulling away as if caught doing something they weren’t supposed to be doing, and watched the older guy shuffle up the stairs.
Once he was gone, they both looked breathlessly at each other. Her mouth twitched, as if she wasn’t sure whether to laugh or not and uncertainty began to come over her. But when she saw one corner of his mouth tilt slightly, she couldn’t help but smile back.
Where Forever Lies Page 11