Page 30 of The Heart Shot
I held out the pumpkin in further challenge.
When she still made no move to start scraping, I set it on the table and moved behind her.
“May I?” I gestured at her hands. Elsie’s throat bobbed before she gave a single nod. I wasted no time taking one hand in mine, and resting the other on her side.
“Just like this,” I whispered into her ear, relishing the shiver that shuddered through her as I guided her hand through the pumpkin innards. It wasn’t the most pleasant feeling in the world, and the squelching sound left a lot to be desired, but it was all drowned out by having my skin on hers, of holding her in my arms.
I wasn’t sure if she leaned back into me or if I imagined it. My heart stuttered a strange rhythm as I held onto her while she scraped out the pumpkin. Thanks to its small size, it was disemboweled far too quickly, which meant it was time to let go of her. It was an act of self-control, every ounce I had within me, to release my hold on her.
“Now it’s time to carve,” I declared, prying my fingers away.
Her eyes were hooded as though my touch had sent her brain into a fog.
Likewise.
Showing her how to stick the sharp tool into the pumpkin, then carve out the snowman went too fast after that with no further excuses to touch her.
Elsie’s concentration was so focused on slicing through the thick flesh that it left little room for conversation. Instead, we fell into comfortable silence. It was easy to be around her. I didn’t have to think about it—or overthink it for that matter. It was natural, like breathing. None of the disastrous dates I had been on in the past month were like this. I had had to fight tooth and nail for any ounce of conversation, while trying to come up with a valid excuse to escape the date as soon as possible.
But not with Elsie. With her, I found myself not wanting the night to end.
The last piece of the pumpkin fell away, leaving a hole the shape of a snowman. It wasn’t perfect, with lots of jagged edges and a spot where she had cut a little too far, but it was cute. It hadElsiewritten all over it, andthatmade it perfect.
“All done,” she said. Her nose scrunched as she studied her work. “It’s terrible,” she laughed, noticing the snowman looked more like a wavy oval than anything else.
I brushed her hair over her shoulder, stepping closer. “No, it’s great. Way better than most of the kids here do.”
“Wow. Better than a child. What a compliment.”
My body shook with laughter.
“Are we done then?” she asked, cutting my laughter with a knife, sobering me.
“Do you want to be done?” I studied her face, trying to understand her. Maybe Elsie didn’t feel what I felt. Maybe there was no spark for her, though I had a hard time imagining such a thing could be possible.
Elsie didn’t respond as her brown eyes flicked back and forth between mine, likely trying to figure me out, too. Finally, she gave a slight shake of her head. The movement had her curls slipping over her shoulder, the scent of her floral shampoo lingering in the air.
The fact that Elsie admitted she didn’t want our date to be over loosened tightness in my shoulders, and the donuts I ate before she arrived stopped churning in my stomach. A wide smile spread across my lips, and I nodded toward the hayride in the distance.
“Come on. The night’s not over yet.”
Elsie
As Jameson led me back through the patch toward a wagon attached to a massive tractor in the distance, a chill settled beneath my jacket in the fading sunlight.The faint scent of fried donuts lingered in the air, and my stomach rumbled quietly. I had been too nervous to eat before our date, and the few donuts Jameson had given me when I arrived hadn’t been enough. The lack of food made my hands tingle and my brain was fuzzy.
My hands were slightly sticky from the slimy pumpkin innards, and I kept wiping them against my jeans, hoping it would get rid of the residue in case Jameson decided to hold my hand.
Why are you thinking about him holding your hand, Elsie? No touchy, no kissy. Don’t get attached, remember?
I sighed at Smart Elsie’s reminder. Clearly, I needed to eat something so my mind would work right. I couldn’t afford to have jumbled thoughts around him—err,morejumbled thoughts.
Jameson looked at me, one brow raising as he studied my face. “How do we feel about a hayride?” He gestured to the wagon ahead. “It’ll take us to the corn maze.”
The idea of getting lost in a maze with Jameson made my mouth dry up like the Sahara Desert, although Smitten Elsie whooped for joy. The conflicting emotions made me hesitate a moment too long, so Jameson cleared his throat and put more distance between us.
“Or we could get some cider first and then head toward the wagon,” he offered, shoving his hands into his pockets. “I could use a drink after all that carving.”
“You didn’t do any of the carving,” I teased, wanting to erase the sudden stiffness in his shoulders. While I didn’t particularly care for the scraping guts part, having Jameson’s arms guiding me while I did so was a nice distraction.
