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“You too, Bodhi, thanks,” she smiles. “And it was nice to meet you, Keaton. Maybe I’ll see you at another race soon.”
“Yeah, maybe,” I smile and Bodhi’s fingers curl into me, sending waves of heat through my core.
We say our farewells and head back to his car.
Chapter 27
After we wrapped up at the track, I managed to convince Keaton to hang back and join me for drinks as a sort of celebration. That was the excuse I was using, anyway. I asked one of the locals from the ticket counter if he knew any good local low-key bars and that is how we ended up here at Charli’s.
It doesn’t look like much from the outside, but inside is a different story. This place has a personality all its own. From the deep wine-colored walls to the dark oak floors, this place sets a mood I hadn’t quite intended for at this point, but I’m going to roll with it. Along one side of the open floor plan are tables and chairs for larger groups of people, a wide dance floor filled with couples twirling around one another, and raised up from the rest of the room is a long expansive bar lined with fancy bar stools.
“Wow, this place is really nice,” Keaton says as she lets her eyes linger over the expansive room before us.
“Yeah, I would not have expected this when we pulled up,” I chuckle and tuck my hands into my front pockets as I take in the surrounding atmosphere.
“Do you want to just eat at the bar?” Keaton asks, nodding her head in that direction.
“Yeah, sure. That works for me.”
I gesture with a sweeping motion for her to go ahead of me, but change my mind halfway through and settle my hand on the small of her back as I walked beside her. When she doesn’t step away, I count that as a win.
I pull out her stool for her and after she’s seated, I slide her in and sit beside her.
Service is excellent, and the food is even better. By the time we’re finished, I’m feeling good and by the looks of it, Keaton is too.
Glancing at the dance floor behind us, I meet Keaton’s gaze with a smile and ask, “Do you want to dance with me?”
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t holding my breath waiting for her to turn me down, but to my surprise she dips her head and smiles shyly.
“Yeah, that would be really nice.”
I grab her hand, lacing her fingers with my own, and lead her out onto the dance floor. I completely luck out when a slow song plays, and I pull her in close to me, resting my hand on her lower back and holding her hand with my other one as we sway back and forth with the rest of the surrounding couples.
“I honestly can’t even believe I’m here right now,” Keaton says quietly, smiling up at me. “I almost didn’t come.”
As I look at her, I wrinkled my brows.
“Why not?”
“I don’t really do stuff like this anymore,” she answers.
“Stuff like what?”
“Going out and having fun. Doing things for myself,” she says with a shrug.
“Why not?”
I adjust my hand on her back, pulling her a little closer as inconspicuously as possible.
“I’ve been so focused on trying to take care of my family that I feel like the last few years have really hardened me.”
I trace soothing circles across her back with my fingertips.
“We never know how we’re going to react to trauma. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”
She takes a moment to digest my words and I can almost see the question form before she voices it.
“How did you react?”
