As he stood there, staring down at his combination lock, he knew he should have been feeling relieved that she had been so understanding, that she was so willing to put their friendship before anything else.
But that memory would haunt him for years to come, that moment when she told him she understood, when she looked up at him with that smile.
Because this time, it didn’t reach her eyes.
.
December 2011
Lauren walked through the glass door that Adam held open for her, the wine in her system making her feel warm and tranquil, despite the cold December air that assaulted her as she exited the restaurant.
She watched as Adam approached the valet, handing him their ticket and saying something to him that made the man laugh. She never tired of watching him interact with people; there was something about him that instantly disarmed whomever he was speaking to.
The restaurant he had taken her to was extremely exclusive; in fact, Lauren felt a little out of her element when they first arrived. The staff, much like the décor, was overtly formal, maybe even a bit stuffy. But within seconds, Adam had everyone who waited on them engaged in conversation, smiling and laughing. Over and over again, she found herself completely captivated by his charisma, as if it were the first time she was witnessing it.
Lauren smiled as she walked over to him, gently taking his hand and intertwining their fingers as she rested her head on his shoulder.
He squeezed her hand gently, turning his head to look down at her. “You sleepy?” he asked, his voice a soft purr against Lauren’s cheek that only added to the serenity she was feeling.
She shook her head and looked up at him, and he smiled before leaning down and planting a kiss on her forehead. “Good,” he said. “I couldn’t let you fall asleep before midnight on New Year’s Eve. That would be blasphemous.”
“Blasphemous?” Lauren echoed with a laugh.
“Absolutely,” he said, releasing her hand as the valet pulled his car up in front of them. “Or at the very least, pitiful,” he added with a smirk over his shoulder as he opened the passenger door for her.
Lauren laughed again, sliding into the seat as Adam tipped the valet and wished him a Happy New Year.
“So,” Adam said once he was seated beside her and starting the car, “shall we begin phase two of our date?”
“What’s phase two?” Lauren asked as she buckled her seatbelt.
“Depends. I have a few options. You can decide where the evening takes us.”
Lauren smiled. ">She stood there for a second. siChoose Your Own Adventure books?”
Adam laughed, looking over at her. “Exactly like that. So, your character can either attend this party one of my neighbors is throwing—apparently he’s notorious for his New Year’s parties, although I’ve never been,” he said. “Or, your character can go somewhere low-key. Lauren Monroe, choose your adventure.”
She looked over at Adam’s profile, the smile curving his lips, the angle of his jaw, highlighted and defined every few seconds by the flash of streetlights as they passed, and her decision was made.
“Low-key,” she said.
“You got it,” Adam said, glancing in his rearview as he switched lanes and took the highway entrance ramp.
They drove for a little under an hour, and Lauren was so consumed by their conversation that she paid no attention to where they were going until the terrain suddenly turned bumpy.
She glanced out the window, seeing nothing but trees and darkness.
“Are we going off-roading?” Lauren asked, reaching out to steady herself on the dash. “I didn’t think we were going on an actual adventure.”
Adam smiled, his eyes still on the road. “We’ll only be off-roading for a few more minutes.”
“Okay, but just so you know, hiking in the dark is definitely not my idea of low-key. And there’s no way I could do it in these shoes.”
“Or that dress,” Adam said, glancing over to let his eyes run down her body before he brought them back to the road, and Lauren stifled a triumphant smile.
A few minutes later, they came upon a sudden break in the trees. Adam slowed the car, bringing it to a complete stop and cutting the engine and the headlights.
If she hadn’t already trusted him, she would have been terrified. It was as if the car was covered with a tarp. She couldn’t see anything, save for tiny little specks off in the distance that she assumed were the lights of some far-away town.
She glanced over to where Adam was sitting; as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she could just make out his features. He was smiling at her, his eyebrow quirked.
“What are you thinking?” he asked.
“Um, that you’re planning on murdering me and disposing of my dismembered body out here? Either that, or you just brought me to make-out point.”
Adam burst out laughing, the hearty sound of it filling the car, and Lauren smiled as she unbuckled her seatbelt.
“Not exactly,” Adam finally said through his laughter. “But good to know where your mind is.”
She turned in her seat, facing him fully. “Okay, I give. Where the hell are we?”
He followed her lead, unbuckling his seatbelt and shifting in his seat so he was facing her. “I did find this place hiking once. I used to do it a lot right after I recovered from my neck injury.” He turned to look out the blackened windshield. “I’ve never come here at night, though. I just always thought tonight would be a cool night to do it.”
“Why?”
He smiled and glanced down at his watch. “You’ll see in about four minutes.”
“Oh my God, it’s four minutes until midnight?” Lauren asked, surprised. When Adam nodded, she said, “How is that possible? It feels like the night just started.@ sittingleasi”
“I know,” he said. “It’s always like that with you.”
She smiled. “You mean the night flying by?”
Adam looked down as the corner of his mouth lifted in a smile. “Night, day, phone calls, chiropractic appointments.” He took a small breath, and to Lauren’s surprise, he almost looked sheepish. “I always feel like time goes too fast with you.” He laughed softly as he looked up at her. “Or maybe I just never feel like it’s enough.”
Lauren stared at him, and he looked down again. “I know that sounds—”
She leaned forward, cutting him off as she pressed her lips to his.
He chuckled softly in surprise and amusement, kissing her back. “That wasn’t a line, you know,” he said against her mouth, and she nodded.
“I know,” she breathed before taking his bottom lip between hers, and he made a small sound in the back of his throat, leaning forward and kissing her fully.
His hand came to her face, his thumb caressing her cheek as his fingers slid behind her ear, and she shivered, shifting her body and trying to get as close to him as the console in between them would allow.
A sudden hissing sound followed by a muted pop caused Lauren to open her eyes just in time to see a rainbow of colors explode in the sky, lighting it with a million shimmering twinkles. She broke the kiss, turning her head to look out the windshield; just as the colors fizzled away, the silence was filled with a new series of hisses and pops as fireworks shattered the darkness, some little starbursts of color, while others were tremendous explosions of glitter and light.
Lauren stared out the windshield in awe until she felt his thumb on her cheek again, and she finally pulled her eyes away from the spectacle to look at him.
“Happy New Year,” he whispered.
Another pop sounded, louder than the ones before, and by the sound of it, and the way light danced over Adam’s face, Lauren knew it must have been amazing.
But this time, she kept her eyes on him.
He leaned toward her, bringing his mouth back to hers, and she kissed him, the soft sounds of their lips brushing together mixing with the muted booms of the fireworks in the distance.