“Play it again!” She cupped her hands around her mouth and called out to Mike.
Mike laughed and shook his head. “Okay, but only for you this one time, City Girl.”
She squealed and clapped her hands together, jumping up and down. Mike winked at her and soon the song was playing again. She began dancing by me again and, before I knew it, she had grabbed my hand and pulled me out to dance with her.
I panicked immediately; I didn’t dance. At all. I didn’t even like to slow dance much. I only did it sometimes to cop a feel on a girl.
I couldn’t refuse this girl singing and holding me close. She let me go and starting grinding on me a little bit, pressing her body into me. I hoped she didn’t get close enough to feel the erection she had given me.
The song ended and she stopped dancing. Her cheeks got red when she realized what she had just done, and she stood motionless in front of me.
“Thanks for the dance,” I smiled at her, hoping she wouldn’t be scared off like she was when she spilled her beer on me.
“You’re welcome. Sorry to grab you like that. I love that song and I have to dance when I hear it,” she said shyly.
“I see that,” I grinned. I noticed her cup was empty. “How about I get you a beer?”
She laughed and nodded. “This time I’ll try not to spill it on you.”
We walked over to the keg and had to wait in line to get our beer. Good, now I had a chance to talk to her some more.
“My name is John Thomas, but everyone calls me JT.” I introduced myself.
“I’m Kara.”
I held my hand out and she took it. Her small hand felt so soft in mine. “Nice to meet you, Kara.”
“You too, JT,” she replied, and I loved the way my name sounded on her lips. I wanted to hear her say it over and over again.
“Are you from around here?” I asked her, not wanting her to know I got the scoop on her earlier from Chase.
She shook her head. “No, I’m from Madison. My grandparents live here. They have since I was young. I used to come up here all the time, but then got busy with school and activities and was way too cool to hang out with my grandparents.” She rolled her eyes with a smile. “They own that small diner named Moe’s. I recently graduated from college and I don’t have a job yet, so I was nominated to come and help out because Grandpa had knee replacement surgery.” She leaned down and started to fill her cup before looking up at me with a smile, her eyes as blue as the daytime sky. “What about you? I’m pretty sure you’re not from around here, either. I would have remembered you from all the time I spent here.”
A college girl, huh? There’s no way she would be interested in me. I looked down at my hands, still dirty from work today. In fact, they were never really clean despite the fact I washed them at least twenty times a day. This city girl probably thought being with me was slumming. I had run into girls like that before. I was fun for a weekend or a couple of months, but never anything more serious. That was always more than okay with me.
She motioned for me to bring my cup closer and started to fill it. “My dad and I moved here a few months ago. He bought the auto shop near the beauty shop. I work there and help him run it.”
“So you’re good with your hands, huh?” She teased me.
“Something like that,” I flirted back.
We stood there, an awkward silence between us. I was about to ask her more about herself when a short brunette came over, breathless. “Kara! I’ve been looking all over for you. I need to talk to you.” She grabbed her hand and pulled her away from me. She turned her head and gave me a sheepish smile and a wave, but I was disappointed my time with her was cut short.
Chase came over, his hand curled into a fist, ready for a fist bump. I reached out and gave him one, not sure why. A huge grin was plastered across his face. “Dude, I saw you dancing with Kara. Nice work!”
I shrugged, but I couldn’t hide the smile on my face. “It was nothing.”
“Nothing? She was totally grinding on you!”
“She’s a little drunk.” I dismissed him, not wanting to get my hopes up.
He shook his head. “You gotta get on that, man. She’s fucking hot and only here for the summer. That’s perfect, especially for you.”
He was right. He knew I didn’t do long-term relationships, and Kara might be perfect for a little fun this summer.
“Maybe. Next time I go to the diner, I will have to make sure to talk to her. Maybe I’ll ask her out.”
“You have to. If you don’t, I will.”
I felt a jab of jealousy. “I will,” I replied quickly. There was no way I was going to pass up a chance at Kara to let him have a try. “I’ll make a special trip to the diner.”
I found her in the crowd and our eyes met. She smiled at me warmly before going back to her conversation with her friend. Yes, I definitely was going to have to go to the diner tomorrow to talk to her. There wasn’t much to do around here, but maybe she wouldn’t mind going for a drive somewhere or over to Bagley Rapids for a walk. I would figure something out.
Maybe I should ask Mike to play her song again.
Chapter Three
Kara
“Girl In Your Truck Song”
“What was up with you and JT last night?” Brittany asked me before taking a sip of her coffee. “Remind me to never drink beer again,” she mumbled and rubbed her temples with her fingers. We both had too much to drink, but she definitely had more than me. I was bummed I never made it back over to talk to JT because I was chasing after her drunk ass all night and preventing her from going home with some douche bag.
I rolled my eyes at her comment. “My ass you won’t. You’re probably already planning tonight.”
She giggled and set her mug down. “I guess Matt is getting some people together on his boat. He invited us. JT is going to be there.” She grinned and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively at me. She put her elbows on the counter and leaned forward. “Now tell me what happened with JT.”
Last night another girl who wasn’t drinking took us home, and I decided to go to my grandparents’ instead of Brittany’s house since I had to get up early for work at the diner. We didn’t get a chance to gossip about the night and what had happened.
“We danced,” I said nonchalantly. “And talked some. That’s all.” I grabbed a towel and started rubbing the counter even though it was already clean. I had to do something to calm my nerves. Even though JT and I didn’t spend a lot of time together, I got a vibe from him that he was interested. At least I thought so. I was a little bit tipsy, though, and maybe he was too. Or maybe he was just a friendly guy. Whatever the case may be, I couldn’t wait to see him again. Every time the bell on the door chimed when someone opened it, I couldn’t help but look to see who came into the diner. The lunch rush was going to start in a little bit, and I was hoping he would show up.
“I heard you were dancing pretty close,” she said in a sing-songy voice.
I didn’t say anything, but I could feel my face get warm. I remembered the way his hands felt on my hips, holding me against him. His breath had been hot on my neck and his lips had been dangerously close to kissing the sensitive skin there. If the song had lasted a minute or two longer, he probably would have kissed me.
A couple of groups came in for lunch, saving me from Brittany’s grilling. “Listen, I have to get back to work. I’ll call you when I’m done.” I grabbed my pen and paper and walked out from behind the counter to wait on the new customers.
It seemed like the place was packed in minutes; I didn’t even have a chance to think about JT. I brought a table their lunch and rushed over to the next one to take their order.
“Sorry for the wait. Can I take your order?” I asked, not even taking the time to look up.
“I was wondering if I could get another dance,” a deep voice said, and I dropped my pencil. I stood there frozen and looked up slowly. Sitting at the table was JT and what looked like an older version of him.<
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He bent down and got my pencil, handing it to me with a lazy smile. His brown eyes were twinkling in the summer sun coming through the window. “Here’s your pencil.”
“Thanks,” I finally managed to utter. Oh my god, he must think I’m such an idiot standing there looking at him and not saying a word.
“Any time,” he winked at me. He nodded across the table. “This is my dad, John. Dad, this is Kara. Her grandparents own this diner.”
He reached to shake my hand, his smile as dazzling as JT’s, and it was easy to see where JT got his good looks. “Nice to meet you, Kara.”
“Nice to meet you too, John.” I smiled back at him, but I could feel JT’s gaze on me. I bet I looked terrible. My makeup was probably all melted off, and my hair was up in a ponytail. I was wearing jean shorts and a t-shirt–nothing special.
Both men were wearing navy blue button-down shirts and baseball caps. They must be on their lunch break from the shop. I couldn’t help but notice their hands, especially JT’s. They were still dirty from working on cars, but I found that incredibly sexy. I bet he was good with his hands.
I blushed from the thought and realized I had done that an awful lot since meeting JT. “What can I get you guys?”
They ordered their drinks and burgers right away. After I went back to the kitchen and put their order in, Grandma came over to me. “Who’s that handsome young man that keeps looking back here at you?”
He kept looking back here? My heart soared, but I wanted to keep my cards close to my chest. “His name is JT. I met him last night.”
“He’s cute.” She winked at me before leaving to take some orders out to the dining area.
I laughed and shook my head; I had a feeling she and I were going to spend some late nights talking about him. I loved my grandma and we had a great relationship. I could always tell her anything. Even when I was living in Madison and didn’t make it to visit here very much, we talked on the phone every week; we were extremely close.
I had to wait on a few more tables before JT’s and his dad’s lunches were ready, but he caught my eye a few times and smiled. I was disappointed when I was too busy with some new customers and someone else took their order to them.
I finally brought them their check, my heart racing as I approached their table. “How was everything?” I asked, putting the slip down between them.
“Excellent as always,” JT said and leaned back in his chair.
“Very good,” his dad nodded and grabbed the check. “I’m going to go up front and pay this. Meet me outside?” he asked JT.
“Sure.” He nodded at his dad before turning his attention on me. “How are you today?”
“Good. I had a little headache when I got up, but I’m pretty good at knowing my limits,” I replied, looking down at him.
“Me too,” he said before standing up. “I guess Matt is having a few people out on his boat tonight.”
“Yeah, Brittany was here earlier and she told me.”
“Walk with me?” he asked, and I turned to find Grandma. She smiled and nodded.
I turned back to JT. “Sure.”
We walked outside of the diner. “Are you going?” he asked.
I wasn’t sure how to answer this. I wanted him to ask me out so I didn’t want to seem busy, but I also wanted to go if he was. “Maybe. You?”
“I think so. It’s a hot one today and being out on the water might be fun.” He stuck his hands into his pockets and smiled down at me. “You should go.”
“Brittany will probably drag me there.” I smiled up at him.
“Good.”
We stood there looking at each other in the middle of the parking lot, with silly grins on our faces. A loud truck started up, getting his attention.
“That’s my dad. I better go. See you tonight?” he asked as he walked backwards towards the truck.
“Yes,” I nodded firmly and smiled. You couldn’t keep me away.
I watched him get into the truck, and when they drove past me, he hung out of the window and smiled at me. He waved and I raised my hand to wave back. When they turned out of the parking lot, I finally went back inside.
“I haven’t seen a smile on your face like that for a long time–if ever,” Grandma teased me. “Making plans to see him tonight?”
“I think so. Brittany mentioned going out on Matt’s boat, and I guess JT is too.” I busied myself organizing things behind the counter. The lunch rush was finally over, so I couldn’t escape her by going to wait on customers.
“I don’t know much about him or his dad. They seem like nice people. I know they moved here a few months ago. They work hard at that shop, just the two of them,” she said, filling me in on what she little she knew.
The rest of the afternoon was quiet at the diner and, when Brittany texted me around three to ask me if I wanted to go boating, I quickly agreed. We made plans to meet at Matt’s place at five. I didn’t tell her I knew JT would be there because she would have given me a hard time.
I took a shower and wrapped myself in a towel while I figured out what swim suit to wear. I wanted to look sexy but be practical. I ran and did yoga, so I was fairly comfortable with my body and wasn’t lacking self-confidence. I was definitely going to wear a bikini, but needed something that would keep me covered even when we were screwing around in the water.
I settled on my simple black string bikini. It kept everything in place but showed off all of my curves in the right places. I put on some short cut-off jean shorts over the bottoms and a sheer cover up top. My hair was up in a high ponytail, and I kept my makeup simple with some mascara and blush.
I walked downstairs to say goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa. They were reading the paper together. I watched them for a minute with a smile. They are my role models for true love. They had been together since they were fifteen and had been through a lot. Grandpa lit up when Grandma walked into the room, and she smiled like a school girl when she talked about him. I could only hope to find a love like theirs one day.
“I’m heading out.” I went over to give them each a kiss on the cheek.
“Have fun, dear.” Grandma smiled at me.
“Tell that JT guy that, even though I have a bum knee right now, I could still kick his ass,” Grandpa told me sternly.
“Grandma!” I looked over at her. “What did you tell him?”
She smiled but looked a little bit embarrassed. “I just said you like him.”
“Right.” I rolled my eyes but laughed. “See you guys later.”
I drove my old Toyota Celica over to Matt’s. I had no trouble finding the place as it was where we had hung out last night. We were going to pile into his truck and another vehicle before heading over to Chute Pond to ride around on his boat and do some drinking.
When I arrived, Brittany was already there. I went over to her and we started chatting while waiting for everyone to get ready. I was disappointed that JT wasn’t there yet. Had he changed his mind about coming?
We were about to leave when his truck came barreling up the driveway. I usually never noticed what a guy drove, but I had to admit he looked damn sexy driving that truck. He had the windows rolled down and his arm hanging out the window. He had his red baseball cap on backwards, and he grinned when he saw me.
“It’s about time!” Matt called to him. “Can you drive there too?”
“Sure, everyone pile in.” He looked at me specifically. I casually walked over to his truck and got into the front seat.
“Hey,” he said as we waited for everyone else to get in. “You look good in the front seat of my truck.”
The butterflies went into overtime in my stomach, and I smiled so hard I thought my face would crack. Before he could say anything else, Brittany got in the backseat.
“Let’s get this party started!” She called out the window and Matt honked his horn at us. He took off down the driveway and we followed behind. I looked out the window, letting the wind hit my face, while Brittany chattered on
. I turned my head towards JT and caught him looking at me. He winked at me and I stifled a giggle.
I looked out at the side mirror and decided he was right; I did look good in his truck. I hoped I would be spending a lot of time in it this summer.
Chapter Four
JT
“Makin’ This Boy Go Crazy”
I had an ulterior motive when I agreed to go boating tonight.
I wanted to see Kara in a swimsuit. She would probably look amazing. She even looked hot at work today in her jean shorts and t-shirt.
I worked late and almost missed the group by the time I got cleaned up and headed out to Matt’s. Thankfully, I caught them before they left. I was thrilled when Kara sat in the front seat. There was nothing better than a pretty girl next to me in my truck.
Her friend Brittany came with us, along with two others, and they were chatting loudly in the backseat. I fought the urge to reach across the seat and touch her.
“Oh my God!” She cried out and reached for the volume on the radio. “It’s our song!” She turned it up and sat back in the seat, singing along to the same song we had danced to the night before, Luke Bryan’s “That’s My Kind of Night.”
Everyone in the truck joined her and started swaying to the music. I swore I could feel the truck moving. I tried to keep one eye on the road and one on her. Her eyes were closed and she was singing along. It was the sexiest thing I ever saw.
The song ended as we pulled up to the lake. I parked my truck and everyone got out, laughing and smiling. This was going to be one hell of a summer, and I suspected it had to do with a certain girl I couldn’t keep my eyes off of.
Chase and I helped Matt get his boat into the water. The girls came down on the dock to get in, and I took Kara’s hand so she could step into the boat. “Thanks.” She smiled at me and brushed a stray piece of hair from her forehead.
I watched her pull a beer out of the cooler and sit down next to Brittany. It was going to be hard to get any quality time with her since we were in a group, but I was going to give it a try. I wanted to ask her out for later in the week. My palms started to sweat when I thought about it; I had never been so nervous about asking a girl out.
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