Take it All (Blinded by Love) (6 page)

Shaking his head, he laughed to himself, and motioned for her to go ahead then followed behind. They weaved in and out and around the tables in the cafe that were still occupied with couples and groups. Some turned their heads as they saw Lennox approach and gave her a small wave or smile before returning to their conversation at hand. They approached the front door, stopping, just as it opened and two guys walked in. They looked Lennox up and down then looked past her to Caleb, who was looking at them with raised eyebrows before he nodded his head once, as if telling them to keep moving, then stepped around Lennox and opened the door for her.

“Where did you park?” he asked as they made their way outside into the cool winter air.

Lennox jerked her thumb in the direction over her shoulder and said, “Over there, you?”

“Right there.” He turned and pointed to his Sunfire that was parked two stalls away.

“Okay, well I uh... I won’t keep you from um... your work,” she said stumbling over her words, nervously. “It was really good to see you, Caleb,” she said, with nothing but sincerity in her voice as she began to back away, hoping he’d stop her and at least ask for her number; she didn’t want it to be the last time she saw him, again.

“You too, Lox.”

Lennox, trying to hide her disappointment, smiled then turned and started towards the direction she had parked her black jeep, only to be stopped by a hand gently gripping her elbow and making her turn around.

“You didn’t really think, after all this time, after ten years, that I was just going to let you walk away without first, getting your number and second,” he paused, his eyes roaming over her face, “asking you out to dinner on Monday night?”

Lennox felt her cheeks redden and a smile pull on both corners of her lips as she looked down at her snow covered purple chucks. “I wasn’t sure what to think really, but yeah,” she looked up at him, her smile not faltering, “Monday, it’s a date.”

“A date,” he confirmed with a steady nod and grin.

Lennox slid her purse down her arm so it was dangling from her elbow, as she opened it and dug around inside for a pen and piece of paper. Pulling her hand out, she took the pen in her free hand as the other went back in for a scrap piece of paper. Finally finding it, she wrote her number on it and handed it Caleb.

“I’ll call you tomorrow night when I’m off work,” Caleb said, gripping the paper in his hand tighter.

“Sounds good,” Lennox said, and no sooner did Caleb move in closer to her, their bodies just barely touching, but close enough they could feel each other’s warmth radiating off one another. Lennox froze in her spot, unsure what to do or what Caleb was thinking.

Staring straight ahead, her eyes on nothing but his white shirt that was stretched across his chest, she could sense him watching her. Not a second went by before his hand rose to her chin and lifted her head up so their eyes met. Lennox sucked in a breath as his thumb brushed softly across her chin before he tilted his head down closer to her. Closing her eyes, she anticipated his lips meeting hers but they didn’t. Instead they brushed gently on the tip of her nose, just like he had done the day he moved away. Lennox swallowed hard as she felt his warm, fresh, and slightly smoky breath whisper across her face before he let her chin go and took a step back.

“Night, Lox,” he said and she could hear the grin in his voice as he began turning away from her.

Her eyes snapped open, and met his backside, “Night, Caleb,” Lennox said in a more breathy voice then she had meant to, before she turned and made her way to her Jeep, feeling as if she was on top of the world, and that nothing could pull her down.

Hopping into her Jeep she started it and turned on the heaters to defrost her icy windows. Waiting, she watched as the tail lights on Caleb’s car lit up and he backed out of his spot, and headed in the direction where she was parked. She watched as his car approached, slowly passing hers; he turned, winked, and then sped off out of the parking lot, taking the exit and hitting the highway.

Lennox watched until his red tail lights disappeared before pulling out of her spot and heading in the direction of home, only to change her mind half way there, deciding she needed to tell Londyn all about her surprising night. A night that turned unexpectedly, into one of the best night’s she’d had in a long while, and it was all because Caleb Kingston walked back into her life, and after all the years that had passed, he looked better than she could have ever imagined.

Lennox sat on her bed, head slightly bent, looking down at the blank screen on her cell phone. It was coming almost five o’clock and other than a call from her mom and texts from Londyn and Tatum, her phone hadn’t rang all day. It was now almost four full days since she heard from Caleb. She had sent him a couple text messages and called him twice but he hadn’t returned any of them, and she had no idea what to think of it.

He had called her as she pulled into Londyn’s driveway that night, shortly after leaving the cafe, just to say hi and that he felt bad for being late and having to bail out on her so soon. Like she had already done earlier, she told him it was fine, and she meant it. They talked for a few minutes then he had to let her go because he was where he needed to be. He told her he would call her the next day, then disconnected as she walked into Londyn’s room to see Tatum on the queen sized bed, practically out of breath from running over, not wanting to miss any details about her date. Thinking there was no way of keeping who KingK was to herself, she told them every shred of detail from the minute she walked into the cafe right until she walked into Londyn’s bedroom.

Both Londyn and Tatum knew about Caleb, briefly, but they still knew who he was and just how much moving away had affected her. When they had arrived, months apart, Lennox was missing her best friend, and they were slowly beginning to drift apart; something that hit Lennox hard.

Once she met Londyn the two hit it off and she slowly came out of her shell. She started to move on and put Caleb behind her, but not after countless attempts from her parents telling her that friends came and went, and sometimes drifting apart happened and there was nothing you could do to stop it. Then Tatum arrived and life kept moving forward and Caleb became a distant memory forever placed in the back of her mind. She locked away all their wonderful memories, but she never truly forgot about him.

“Oh, my God!” Londyn had exclaimed, after Lennox finally told them who had walked through the doors that night. “This whole time he’s been the one you’ve been talking to, and even exchanging pictures you didn’t recognize him?”

“No, well, I kind of did. I mean his eyes were familiar but he’s changed so much that it wasn’t until I saw him up close that I knew for sure it was really him.”

“Lennox this is beyond amazing–”

“Wait, hold on just a minute,” Tatum interrupted as she sat up and leaned back on her elbows, turning her head to eye Lennox. “Before we get outta control excited, Lennox, when you say he’s changed... please tell me it’s a good change and that he grew up to be
extremely
gorgeous.”

Londyn, glancing at Lennox, rolled her eyes as she walked passed Lennox who was sitting on the edge of the bed, and into her closet. “Yes, Tatum, because the most important part of this is how hot he is now.”

“Maybe not to you, but I know I’m curious,” she said looking from Londyn back to Lennox, smirking, “so, Lenny, spill the beans.”

She knew there was no way out of the question, not when Tatum was involved; she was like a dog with a bone and wouldn’t let it go. Lennox let out a breath and went into exact detail of what Caleb looked like; right down to the worn out black chucks he was wearing.

“Holy bananas, Lennox,” Londyn said, leaning against her closet frame with a giant smile spread across her face, and her eyes full of excitement.

“Ha, more like holy lucky hotness has graced your ever life,” Tatum said, leaning back on the bed.

Lennox shrugged her shoulders as she felt her face redden. She didn’t know what was so lucky about it. Sure, Caleb was back in her life, and yes they had a date Monday but that didn’t mean anything. After their date she could never hear from him again.

“What’s with this,” Londyn said, copying the look on her face and shoulder shrug.

“Nothing.”

“Liar,” Tatum mumbled, her arm resting over her eyes.

“I’m not lying.”

Londyn looked at her with a look as if telling her to give it up already. Sighing, Lennox explained, “It’s stupid, but, just because it was Caleb doesn’t mean I’m lucky or anything. I mean, nothing could come from it except another date then going our separate ways. It’s hard to tell, so who knows.”

Tatum looked at Londyn with raised eyebrows, and the two burst out laughing the moment their eyes met. They were unable to speak for a few moments as their laughing fit continued. “It’s not funny, it’s true,” Lennox said annoyed.

“Should you tell her or shall I?” Tatum said, her laugh dying out.

“Be my guest,” Londyn said, still laughing and shaking her head as she went back into her closet to finish changing.

“Tell me what?”

“You seriously can’t think that. I mean, this kind of thing doesn’t just happen.”

“What thing? What are you talking about?” Lennox asked, confused.

“A boy, who you clearly had a crush on back in the day, doesn’t just come strolling back into your life after, what, nine years without–”

“Ten years.”

“Ok, ten years without a word or anything; there’s a reason for this happening and I highly doubt it’s just to catch up then be on his way. Lenny, you of all people, should know that. Think about it.”

She did, and she didn’t know how or what made her forget, but Tatum was right, completely right. If there was one thing she believed in, it was things happened for a reason, and that behind every unexpected event there was bound to be reason. Sometimes it wasn’t made clear to you at that precise moment, but eventually, it would all come to light and you would know why.

Later that night, after both Londyn and Tatum passed out during their second chick flick, Lennox laid there wide awake thinking of her upcoming date. It was still six days away but that didn’t stop the thoughts or her mind from jumping around, both thrilled and terrified. She tried pushing the thoughts of where things could go to the side, not wanting to get overly excited and get her hopes up. She didn’t want to end up jinxing herself and have things end, without even a start. She was superstitious that way, no matter what the situation was.

Her minded started to drift to her parents and what she was going to tell them. Being close with them both, she never had a problem going to them for advice, except when it came to boys and dating. For her, it all came back to her superstition and not wanting to jinx herself. She didn’t want to tell them about their date, have them get all excited for her only to feel embarrassed and feel like garbage when things didn’t work out. It happened twice in high school, both times being asked for pizza on a Friday night then having to explain to her mom why she wouldn’t be seeing them again. And that was difficult, not only for feeling like she wasn’t good enough but also because she didn’t want to tell them the real reason. Both pizza dates had gone fine, but then came the part after pizza when both asked her if she wanted to go to the Overpoint, also known as Lovers Peak; and she said no. But since both guys had somewhat of a reputation, she wasn’t surprised with the outcome.

Lennox knew her parents wouldn’t say much about her date, other than the typical questions a parent would ask. She was pretty sure they would be thrilled and excited that it was Caleb and that he was around again. Of all people they knew how close the two were when they were kids and how much his moving away had affected her, plus they hadn’t had a problem with him back then and they had liked him, so now shouldn’t be any different. But that didn’t help her sway her final decision to her other choice, instead she had decided to not say anything at all and just go on the date and see what happened, and if something were to start then she would tell them. There was a part of her, even if it was just a small part, that wanted to rush home in the morning and tell them but, for now, what they didn’t know wouldn’t hurt them.

But now, without having heard from him, she had no idea if their date was still on. She wanted to think so, since he had asked her and hadn’t verbally cancelled it but not calling or texting, especially when she had, really started to mess with her head. She couldn’t help but think it was his way of breaking it off because he changed his mind and didn’t want anything to do with her anymore or possibly that he had no intentions of actually calling her like he said, let alone take her out on a date.

Lennox spent the rest of the week constantly checking her phone, making sure it was working and that it received text messages. She didn’t leave it anywhere other than next to her and every time it rang, she jumped and swiped it off whatever surface it had been occupying only to be annoyed to see it wasn’t Caleb’s name flashing across her screen. Her moods were uncontrollable. She could only fake a smile for so long before she got tired of it and her grumpy side came out swinging. Her parents, having no idea what her deal was, brought up why she was so moody and emotional, and all she could think to tell them was it was nothing but her upcoming monthly visitor that was right around the corner.