Free Ready to Fall by Olivia Dade Page A

composure, plastered a cheerful grin on her face, and got on with the show.
    â€œDon’t look so worried. I know what just happened didn’t mean anything.” Tossing her ponytail, she headed around the car to the driver’s-side door. “Let’s chalk it up to the romantic atmosphere of Minnie’s Mini-Golf.”
    She slid into her seat and waited. He didn’t move. As far as she could tell, he was still leaning against the passenger door, staring at the crumbling windmill in the distance.
    When she honked the horn, he jumped. He climbed into the car and slammed the door shut, his impenetrable shell solidly in place once more. He didn’t say anything, and neither did she.
    As soon as she heard the click of his seat belt, she took off from that fucking parking lot like someone was chasing her. And she didn’t look back.

6
    S arah wants another man , Chris reminded himself the next day. The whole reason you two even met was because she’s pursuing someone else. Don’t you forget it a second time .
    He spent the entire ride to the Battlefield Library parking lot trying to focus on the task at hand: teaching her how to ride a bike safely. But the memory of the night before simply wouldn’t leave him.
    He kept thinking about the press of her pliant body against his, the sweetness of her tongue, and the sound of her moan. Even more than that, though, he kept remembering the way she’d giggled at his stupid jokes and her shocked awe when he’d lifted her over the fence. The feel of her small hand clasped in his, her hip pressed against his side. The mingled comfort and excitement of Sarah’s company during a long summer night together.
    Most of all, he kept seeing the pain in her blue-gray eyes when he’d jerked away from their kiss, the hurt she’d quickly hidden behind a bright smile and a breezy dismissal.
    He’d caused that hurt last night. He was ashamed of himself for it, and he didn’t want to give her mixed signals a second time. Now wasn’t the right moment for him to get involved with anyone, much less a woman on the hunt for another man. So he needed to make sure he didn’t touch her any more than necessary for the lesson. Didn’t kiss her. Didn’t hold her.
    He’d promised to teach her how to ride her bike, and he always kept his promises. All he could do now was try to keep it professional and hope she’d do the same.
    Her car was already waiting in the lot when he arrived, and he braced himself with a deep breath before climbing out of his car. He walked over toward her, studying the place where she’d try riding for the first time in twenty years.
    The library was closed for the Independence Day holiday, its interior lights dimmed. It sat on a hill, squeezed between a playground on one side and a Civil War battlefield administered by the National Park Service on the other. The battlefield was also closed to visitors for the evening, and both the playground and the large parking lot were deserted. In that respect, it was optimal for teaching her how to ride her bike. Then again, once the sun completely set, it was also going to be very dark. The entire area was lit by only a few floodlights on poles.
    Insects chirped and whirred in the humid dusk. A sluggish, hot breeze moved the empty swings on the playground, making their chains creak. In its own way, the sight was almost as creepy as the goddamn mini-golf course they’d seen last night.
    Shit. He needed to stop listening to his sisters’ descriptions of all the horror movies they watched. They were going to make him as melodramatic as Sarah.
    She was just getting out of her car as he approached, and her entire frame stiffened when the first blast of heat hit her. “Jesus,” she muttered. “No electrolyte is safe tonight.”
    He came to a halt a good distance away from her. “Are we even allowed to use this parking lot after