Braydon(53)

“If you want me to put you to shame . . . then okay.”

Braydon laughed, the sound of his voice sending a jolt of heat through Jessie. It didn’t help that she was sitting on her bed, her eyes closed as she listened to his voice.

“Horse races are obviously out, since we don’t have any around here. Stargazing? Seriously?” Clearly he wasn’t talking to her, so Jessie just smiled contentedly as he worked it out. “No stars, so what about live music? Austin is the Live Music Capital of the World, so I’m sure we could find something.”

“Too loud,” she told him.

“Okay, then. Shoot that one right down, why don’t ya?” He laughed. “Fishing?”

“Nope.”

“Museum?”

“Nope.”

“What about . . . Wait, nope. That one’s out.”

“What was it?”

“You don’t wanna know.”

“Yes I do,” Jessie told him, trying to sound serious but failing.

“Skinny dipping,” he said seriously.

“No way. On a first date? Does it really say that?”

“No,” he answered easily.

Jessie laughed again, feeling so much lighter than she had in days. She had missed this. The banter back and forth with Braydon. They’d always laughed and joked, but she had never even noticed that it was blatant flirting until now.

“See, I told you that one was out. Okay, so I think we’ve narrowed it down. Arcades or go-karts?”

“What about miniature golf?” she asked sweetly.

“Is this your competitive side coming out?” he asked.

“Maybe.”

“Hey, wait a minute. There’s a huge place off 35 just north of Austin. They’ve got miniature golf and go-karts, I know. I think they’ve got arcades inside. They’ve even got rock climbing if you’re feelin’ adventurous. What do you say?”

“I say what time will you be here to pick me up?” Jessie answered, anxiously looking forward to seeing him.

“Twenty minutes?”

“Hold up, cowboy. You’ve got to give me time to get ready.”

“Fine. Thirty minutes.”

“Okay, then. I’ll see you in thirty minutes. Should I eat something first?” she asked.

“Nope. I’ve got that covered, too.”

They were both quiet for a moment. Jessie listened to the sound of his breathing, her eyes still closed. This was the day she’d hoped for for so long. An actual date with Braydon Walker. Sure, they might’ve started from the wrong direction, but did it really matter? To her it didn’t.

At least not yet.



“WOW! IMPRESSIVE!” BRAYDON laughed as he moved toward Jessie, stepping over the small bumpers that outlined the miniature golf course.

“Why did you pick this game again?” Jessie asked, her eyes laughing, her sarcasm evident.

She had just hit the ball and missed the hole for probably the fifteenth time on this one, and it was a par three. After that, she’d stood up straight, held her hands up in victory, and then dropped her club. Jessie had never stopped smiling, although he knew, despite the fact she had mentioned it, she wasn’t particularly fond of playing the game.

“Hold on, I’ll help you out,” he offered, stepping away from her to retrieve the colorful golf ball. Once he had it in hand, he took a step over to the left and dropped it into the little cup.

“Yay! See, I can play this stupid game!” Jessie exclaimed, pretending victory again. “And technically, I think the rules say that if the other player hits the wrong ball into the hole, I win.”

Braydon laughed as he reached for her, pulling her into his arms and swinging her around once. “Whatever you want. I’ll give you all of my points if you really want ’em.”

“But?” Jessie asked when he put her back on her feet. “I hear a ‘but’ in that statement.”

“But you’ll owe me,” Braydon told her, leaning down and kissing her on the lips. “Come on, let’s finish this up so we can head inside. It’s too damn hot out here.”

Thirty minutes later, Braydon was leading Jessie back toward the main building that housed the arcade games and the food center. “You suck at miniature golf,” he informed her as he held open the main door to the huge air-conditioned building.

She laughed and punched him lightly in the arm. “If I remember correctly, someone cheated.”

“How do you cheat at miniature golf?” he asked, feigning innocence.

“You make up the rules as you go along,” Jessie challenged, moving a little closer to him.

Braydon purposely bumped her arm, keeping her close without actually putting his arm around her. It was a family place, and there were hordes of kids running around, but he had a sudden urge to be closer to this woman. For now, touching her arm was going to have to be enough.

“What rules did I change? You hit the ball into the hole. It’s as simple as that.”

“With my eyes closed? Or what about when you made me putt backwards?”

“Semantics,” he teased. “Fine. I’ll give you extra points for the difficult shots. You still lost by at least fifty.”

“Nuh-uh. I took all your points because you hit my ball into the hole.”