Page 63 of The Charmed Friends of Trove Isle
“I was out walking Mr. Beast and saw you miss that mailbox by a solid inch.” He grinned. “I thought I might check on you and make sure you were okay.”
“Better than okay,” she said, beaming at him.
Matt nodded. “Good. Where are you going to next?”
Liz nibbled at her lower lip as she contemplated. “Back up the driveway, I guess.” That’s as far as she’d gone when she’d driven with Melody on their second girls’ night.
“Or,” Matt said with a growing grin, “I can stay in the car with you and we can go down the road.”
“Down the road?” She waited for the panic to consume her. Where was it this evening? All she felt was exhilaration. “Yeah. Let’s go. Close the door and buckle up.”
Matt’s grin flatlined. He suddenly looked unsure. “I was only halfway serious.”
“Well, I’m fully serious.”
“I do have Mr. Beast with me,” he said, gesturing to his little Chihuahua.
Liz loved dogs. She certainly didn’t mind one coming along for the ride. “He can ride in the back seat. Hurry before I lose my nerve.” Because this wasn’t like her at all. This felt amazing. She felt free and uninhibited for the first time in years.
Matt placed his little dog—the most unbeastly creature she’d ever seen—in the back seat and closed the door behind him.
Liz didn’t waste any time. She moved the gear out of PARK and slowly started backing onto the road.
“Easy. Easy does it,” Matt said as she guided the car out of the driveway. “Whoa!”
Liz slammed the brakes as she nearly hit the mailbox across the street. Her heart jumped into her throat. “Sorry.”
Matt looked unfazed. “No problem. You’ve got this,” he said. “Deep breaths.”
She nodded. Then she blew out a heavy breath. “Okay. Here we go.” She pressed on the gas pedal and guided the car down the street, rolling slower than her bicycle would go, but she didn’t care. When she got to the STOPsign, she glanced at Matt before checking both ways. Not another car in sight, which was perhaps for the best.
“We can circle around,” he said. Their street was one big loop. “We can go in circles as many times as you want. Or we can turn on another street.”
Liz shook her head slightly. “Baby steps is fine by me.” She circled around their street and ended up back in her driveway. Then she put the car in PARK and glanced over at Matt. “That was . . . amazing.” She resisted leaning over and giving him a hug. “I can’t believe I just did that.”
“I can.” Matt’s gaze was unwavering. “Want to do it again?”
Liz did. She wanted to do that simple loop of driving all night. “Hell, yeah,” she said, putting the car inREVERSEand backing out of the driveway again.
“I think you missed the mailbox by a good two inches that time,” Matt joked, giving her a wink as she glanced in his direction. “That’s progress.”
To: Bri Johnson
From: Liz Dawson
Subject: Brave
Bri,
You’ll never believe what I just did! I drove down my street! I mean, we didn’t leave the neighborhood, but I actually reversed out of the driveway, without hitting the mailbox, and navigated around the block. It was the most exhilarating moment, maybe in my entire life. Isn’t that crazy? Sometimes you can work yourself up about something to the point where it seems like a mountain. And in one instant, one breath, the mountain crumbles.Mymountain crumbled. I know, I know. It was just one street, but being behind the wheel without panicking is half the battle. I know, in time, I can do more.
You were the first person I wanted to tell because I knew you’d get it. Now, I’m going to call Melody and tell her. Maybe I’ll rope her into driving us to see you next week. Or better yet, maybe I’ll drive us there myself. Just kidding. I’m not ready for that—yet.
xx,
Liz
CHAPTERNINETEEN
