Page 58 of Spotlight
“Wow.” Flynn’s deep voice filled with awe startles me and freezes me in place. Goosebumps spread over my arms and legs as I slowly turn to face him.
My breath hitches as I take him in. He’s dressed in jeans and a plain white T-shirt. No hat tonight and his reddish-brown hair is wavy and curls around his ears.
“You look…” He trails off as he keeps staring at me, then his throat works with a swallow.
“Thank you.” I shift my weight from foot to foot. I wore my favorite dress, a simple black one that fits me well, and heels that are already pinching my toes. Flynn is so tall I felt like I needed an extra few inches. “How’d you find me back here?”
“Ruby said you were finishing up. Are you done?”
I’m grateful she covered for me and didn’t tell him I was hiding back here fighting off a panic attack. “Yeah. I’m ready.”
He nods, then his gaze finally slides past me to the wall of notes.
“What is this?” he asks as he steps toward it.
I turn with him to face it again. “Notes my grandpa has written Gigi over the years.”
Flynn’s brows rise. “That’s a lot of notes.”
“One every day. He puts them in her lunch.”
“I love that,” he says, smile lifting on the left side. His gaze roams over the wall as he takes it all in.
I step away from him, steady my breathing with a couple deep inhales and slow exhales, and grab my purse.
“Ready?” I ask him, finally letting myself feel the one thing I’ve fought all day. Excitement.
He moves his attention from the wall to me and he gets a cocky, flirty look on his face. “For months now.”
Something about his playfulness makes the rest of my nerves retreat. They’re not gone completely, but I feel more like myself.
“All right, Hotshot, let’s go.”
* * *
“Where are we going?” I ask once we’re in Flynn’s truck.
It’s nicer and more comfortable than I expected it to be, and while I was taken aback at first at the idea of him driving something like this instead of a new, flashy vehicle, I have to say it suits him.
“When’s the last time you went roller skating?”
“Roller skating?”
“Yeah.” He takes his eyes off the road long enough to smile at me. “I figured you’ve been on a million dates that included dinner or drinks. I want to take you somewhere different.”
That’s exactly the kind of thing I was expecting, if I’m honest.
He pulls into the parking lot of a huge nondescript building with no windows. If it weren’t for the neon lights above the front doors, it could pass for a warehouse.
“I feel like I might be overdressed,” I say as I step out of the truck. The nerves I was feeling earlier have turned into butterflies. I’m on a date with Flynn and we’re going skating of all things.
Flynn comes around the front to my side. The grin on his face is all boyish charm. “You look perfect.”
Inside, Flynn pays for our skates and socks for me. We walk over to a bench on the side of the rink to change our shoes. Only a few people are skating right now, but the music is loud and the lights are flashing.
Flynn gets a locker and shoves our stuff inside while I stand on wobbly legs.
“You got it?” he asks with a hint of a smile. He looms even taller on skates.
