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Beaming, she replies, “It’s going really, really well.”
7
Jo
I’m being too forward, but I’m feeling bold today.
I’ve essentially said the equivalent of “Hey, sexy, do you want to get out of here and go someplace private?” My cheeks are on fire. Who am I?
But still, I wait for Jakob to follow up.
“I’d love to see your village,” Jakob says. “If you’d like to show it to me.”
And there it is. Is this really happening? Am I really going to bring a suitor back to Mirror Lake and have him interrogated and examined by all the nosy villagers?
“I would put myself up in a hotel tonight, of course,” he says, misreading my hesitation.
“It’s not that. I’d love to take you home with me. I mean—oh gods.” I shield my eyes, laughing at my choice of words.
“Relax, Josephine. If you’re not ready for me to see your village and where you live, we can try this another day,” he says.
I move my shielding hands and study that rugged face. So much has changed, but I feel that same spark, that same connection. And I feel that my awkwardness is leading him to think I feel pushed.
He’s trying to hide the disappointment in his face, but I feel it in his entire demeanor. Jakob likes me. He really wants to spend time with me. Knowing that a man—a handsome, smart, gentle, interesting friend—wants to see where I live and is willing to put himself up in a hotel to make me feel more comfortable? It’s too good to be true.
Or maybe it’s exactly as good as things should be. Maybe this is my time, and I deserve good things.
I deserve to have someone like Jakob in my life, and what better time to start our time together than right now?
“What I meant to say, Jakob, is I would love to show you where I live.”
And oh my gods, the creases that frame his eyes may as well be Cupid’s arrows flung straight to my heart.
“You would?”
Feeling lighter all of a sudden, I confirm, “Yes, absolutely.”
“Excellent.”
I crane my neck to take a look at the timetables and see that there’s a shuttle leaving for Mirror Lake in ten minutes.
If that’s not a sign that we should leave now, together, I don’t know what is.
We quickly purchase our tickets and board the shuttle bus together. Jakob’s comforting hand on the small of my back as we move through the Salska station and onto the shuttle adds a layer of sweetness I’ve never experienced before. He’s so gentle and protective with me: paying for my ticket, insisting that I go first on the bus, checking with me before choosing two seats together near the rear. I feel as if I’m walking around in his own personal warm bubble of protection.
Is that what it would feel like to be his girlfriend?
I wish. I really, really wish. I know it’s so soon since we met again, but my mind and my heart are in alignment.
The bus is mostly empty, save for us and the driver and a family of four heading to the village for what looks like an epic vacation, judging by the amount of luggage they’ve stowed down below and in the overhead compartment.
One of the children, about the age of four, runs to the back of the bus and shows us a picture she’s drawn of a popular cartoon character.
“That’s a very good likeness,” Jakob says.
“Thank you. You can keep it!”
“What’s your name?”
