Page 25 of A Heart On A Sleeve

“Nope. I just loved this place as a kid. My dad would rent it once or twice a year from the old man who lived here, and we would come out to camp. My parents always stayed in the cabin but us kids would put up tents and have bonfires out here. When the owner was selling, I had just had a good year at the shop, so I bought it thinking one day I would build a house on the land. I haven’t yet. ”

“Sam, that’s amazing. It’s so gorgeous, I can see why you would want to live here.

” She presses up onto the balls of her feet, placing a soft, chaste kiss to my lips.

I feel like my heart could explode from her proximity, the feel of her in my arms, and her love of my favorite place in the whole world.

“Are you ready to see what else I have in store for our date?” I ask, knowing I need a few minutes to set everything up.

“Let’s do it.” She tugs my hand, and we walk back to the truck.

I grab the essentials needed to set up the projector screen and head toward the trees after giving Olive instructions to pull the truck to the center of the clearing and spread out the blankets and pillows in the back.

Rigging this screen up is something I’m nearly a professional at, seeing that I’ve been doing it for years for our family outings out here.

I have it up and ready to go in a matter of minutes.

Olive works hard to create a cozy setup, complete with flannel sheets and a huge fluffy comforter that I threw in so she wouldn’t be cold.

From inside the truck, I pull out the basket of snacks and the actual projector to sit on the roof of the truck and play the movie.

“Did you look in my cupboards when I wasn’t home?” she asks as she rifles through the snack bag.

“Huh?” I turn around, seeing her sitting with her legs tucked up underneath her and snacks strewn all around.

“How did you know these were my favorite chips?” Olive holds up a bag of the same wavy salty crisps she had in her hair the other day. They are hard to find here. I had to drive three towns over to get a bag.

“I remembered from the taste of them.” I wink at her before a laugh breaks free.

“Oh my gosh, stop. I can’t believe I did that. Clearly there is something wrong with me.” She covers her face with her hands, hiding her embarrassment. I climb into the truck bed and crawl over to her pulling them away.

“I’m teasing you, babe. I asked Ariella,” I say, pressing a gentle kiss to her lips. Her breath hitches slightly.

“Okay, but seriously, I promise I’m not usually so . . .” She waves her hand around in the air. “Nuts, disheveled, unhinged?”

“I liked it. It led to the best kiss I’ve ever had. I will always buy these chips from now on.” Olive’s cheeks turn an adorable shade of pink as she scoots back into the pillows and tears open the chips.

“Well, now that I know, I will just eat these instead of popping a breath mint.” She winks before popping a chip in and crunching it down. The sight of her so relaxed and casual stirs something in me, and I have to adjust myself before I let my guy downstairs get away from me.

“What are we watching?”

I grab the two discs from my bag and hold them behind my back. “Left or right?” I ask.

“Mmmm . . .” She licks the salt off her thumb and index finger, sucking tenderly while she eyes me. Fuck, I wish I was one of those fingers. Stop it! You need to woo her, not jump her.

“Left.”

“Good choice.” I pull the movies from behind me, revealing that she selected Practical Magic .

It’s a classic and one that I’ve watched numerous times with my sisters and mom.

I insert the disc in the player, hit start, and settle in next to her, stealing a chip as I wrap my arm around her, pulling her close.

“You really are a nice guy, aren’t you?” The question makes me laugh before I can respond.

“What? I think so?”

“Well, it wasn’t obvious when we first met, and I was completely convinced you hated me for some unknown reason.

Ari and Meg swore you were nice, but I just hadn’t seen that side of you yet, not until the porch decorations.

” She looks at me like she’s shocked that this could be the real me.

Almost like she doesn’t trust it or that it could be too good to be true.

“I didn’t hate you. I hated that I thought I would never have a chance with you. And some people might say I’m anything but nice. That’s usually just them judging me on how I look, though.”

Olive shifts slightly. “Yeah, I know how that feels.”

I kiss her lightly on the cheek, brushing a few strands of hair out of the way first. “I hope you don’t just think I’m nice, but that you believe it.”

“How are you so calm about this?”

“Calm about what?”

“About this.” She gestures between us.

“I’m not. Believe me, I’m scared out of my mind that I’m going to fuck it up.

I wish every day I had some sort of cheat code so that I’d always make you happy and never mess it up.

But I’m not going to let the first person I’ve ever felt this connection with slip through my fingers without a fight.

I’ve worked hard for everything I have. This is no different, other than it being more important.

” I slide my hand up and down her arm gently, enjoying the feel of holding her.

Olive shivers a bit as I do it. “Are you cold? Let’s get this blanket on you.

” I pull the comforter up over our legs, snuggling her in closer.

“No, I’m just . . . never mind. Why is it more important?”

Christ! She’s not going to let me get away without sharing some of how I’m feeling.

“Because it’s you. I’ve waited a long time to meet someone who I had this kind of connection with. I don’t want to fuck it up.”

“Oh, Sam. You won’t, but I hate to break it to you, I’m not that special. I’m just a girl who flashes the town her oversized underwear from time to time.” Olive laughs at her own joke.

“I mean, you said it, not me.” I hold my hands up in surrender. “But you are so much more than that.”

“How could you know that?” She’s turned serious, shifting her body to face me fully.

“I just do. Like when you came to my mom’s house to help her with a book.

How you started to open up to me at the corn maze, and when you gave Mrs. Baxter a hug.

You have a kind heart. You’re a good egg.

” Her cheeks turn a deep crimson as she looks away.

“Hey, don’t hide from me.” I touch her chin softly while turning her back to look me in the eyes.

She bristles slightly, shaking off whatever she was feeling.

“Let’s play a game.”

“So, we aren’t actually watching the movie then?” I hit the clicker to pause it.

“I’ve seen it a million times. I want to know you better. Let’s play twenty questions.” She grabs the strawberry licorice I packed and tears into one.

“Okay, haven’t played that one since middle school, but I’ll give it a go. What are the rules?” Her eyes bug out at my question.

“Um? It’s pretty simple, we ask each other questions and answer them.”

“I know that, but shouldn’t we make it more interesting?” I grin at her as she shifts, clearly thinking about my proposition.

“Okay . . . what do you propose?”

“How about if one of us refuses to answer, they have to do a dare instead?”

Her mouth drops open as a sound that’s half laugh, half scoff bounces out. “That’s literally just truth or dare then.”

“And?”

“Okay, fine. I’m going first though. How old are you?”

“Thirty-two. How old are you?”

“Twenty-four.”

Jesus, I knew she was younger than me, but eight years . . . I’m surprised by how intelligent and poised she is. At twenty-four I was a fucking nightmare.

“What’s your middle name?”

“Dare. I choose dare.” I cross my arms waiting for her to come up with something.

“Seriously? It’s that bad?” She looks around the truck and then the clearing we are in. “Okay, I dare you to show me your most embarrassing tattoo.”

I shift up onto my knees and start unbuckling my belt. Her face morphs into what I think is shock as she covers her mouth with her hand. “Don’t be shy now. You asked for it.”

“Wait—oh my gosh. Wait.” Her hand is up in the universal sign for stop. I can’t help my roaring laughter.

“I’m kidding.” I sit back down and pull my arm out of my flannel button-down. “This one,” I say, pointing at some very poorly done barbed wire that is mostly covered but can still be seen on the inner part of my bicep.

“What even is that?”

“It was barbed wire when I was seventeen. But I grew up and realized it was a mistake, so this is all that’s left.” She takes a minute looking over my arm, tracing the lines of ink that outline the different pieces.

“These are beautiful.” Her words come out soft and breathless.

“Thanks. What’s your middle name?”

“Anne. After my mother. What’s your next tattoo?”

“Olive Anne, that’s—”

“It’s actually, Olivia. I just go by Olive.”

I put two fingers under her chin and lean in to kiss her.

“I don’t have one planned. Would you ever get a tattoo, Olivia?

” I’m curious if she would, not that it’s a deal breaker either way.

She made it pretty clear after the town hall meeting that she wasn’t interested.

But I have to ask again, now that things are different between us.

She looks around rapidly, avoiding my question. A sinking feeling lodges itself in the pit of my stomach. I’ve been worried the tattoos would be a problem for her. I ask again, and still no answer. I’m about to ask what’s wrong when she blurts, “Is there a bathroom out here?”

“Oh, uh, yeah. In the cottage. Let me get the keys.”

We scoot out of the truck bed, and I pull them from the seat inside. Olive and I walk toward the cabin, avoiding the branches that have fallen since I last cleared the path.

“You going to answer my question? Or do I need to give you a dare?” I ask, while unlocking the door and flicking on the lights.

“I’ll answer, just, um . . . let me use the bathroom first.”

Why is this such a big deal? I would think it’s a simple yes or no.

This feels exactly like the day I walked her back to work.

Something is off, but I don’t know what it could be.

Unless she doesn’t want to hurt my feelings by saying no.

Does she think I want her to say yes just because it’s my job?

Olive heads into the bathroom I’ve directed her toward, and I step back onto the porch to give her privacy. It’s not a big place, and you can hear everything. I don’t want her to feel awkward even more so than she apparently already does. I sit down on the front step and wait.