Free The Hollow by Jessica Verday Page B

taking over my entire face as my jaw dropped slightly. I was stunned. I didn't know what to do. He was bringing me flowers'?
    Okay, so technically it wasn't like a dozen roses or anything, but it was still oh-my-God amazing.
    I grasped the flower's stem. Right above where his thumb rested. In some other alternate universe, where I was cool and completely not shy, I saw myself sliding my hand down to rest on his, all confident and sexy-like.
    But that was so not me in this universe, and with a soft sigh I deliberately made sure that there was at least an inch of space between us.
    "Thank you," I replied. "It's… beautiful. Absolutely beautiful, Caspian." He grinned at me again, and my heart melted into a puddle at my feet. Yes, I wanted to tell him, you have just made every single romantic fantasy I've ever had come true. But since Coward is my middle name, I kept my thoughts to myself.
    I grew even shyer when his gaze wandered over me. Frantically hoping that my hair still looked as good as it had in my room, I tried to discreetly run my tongue over my teeth in case I had any lipstick smudges on them. "I wasn't sure what time to get here. You never mentioned it." I let my gaze do a bit of wandering too, and noticed that he was dressed in black jeans and a black long sleeve shirt. It suited him, made him look dark and mysterious. And sexy. Very, very sexy.
    Was I drooling? Good Lord, I hoped not.
    He shrugged. "I'm just glad you could make it. Whenever you got here was good enough for me. Did you have sweet dreams?"
    I shrugged back, praying a telltale blush wouldn't betray me. "Yeah, sure, I guess I did. I don't really remember my dreams." Liar, liar, pants on fire.
    "You didn't go through the cemetery, did you?" He looked concerned.
    "No. I went along the main road."
    "Good," he said softly. "Good."
    I glanced down at the book he was holding. I couldn't read the title. "How long have you been here?"
    "Since seven. I didn't want you to think I was standing you up."
    "Since seven? Seven a.m." I felt both my eyebrows rise up into my forehead.
    "Yeah." He ducked his head shyly and changed the subject. "So, do a lot of people normally come by here?"
    "Not really. It's pretty sheltered under the bridge."
    He turned and made a slight leading gesture in front of him with his book. "After you, then."
    I led the way under the bridge, holding tightly to my flower, and the wind picked up on the water, blowing a cool breeze over us. I caught the slight fragrance of my vanilla shampoo wafting on the wind, and I was glad that I had picked something warm to wear.
    We both sat down somewhat awkwardly, with a foot of space between us. I wanted to get closer but wasn't sure how to pull it off smoothly. Settling for "readjusting" my legs, I managed to lessen the space by an inch or two.
    He didn't seem to notice at all.
    I looked out at the river as I spoke. "So, what book were you reading before I got here?" Not exactly the most exciting of topics, but at least it was conversation.
    "Great Expectations. I've already read it once before, but I'm sort of going back to pick up on all the things I missed. There are a lot of details."
    I knew that one.
    "Poor Pip and Estella," I sighed. "To be so unhappy for so many years? It kind of seemed cruel to keep bringing them together when they were younger since they could never be together in the end."
    "Cruelness was the only reason why they knew each other at all, though," he pointed out. "Miss Havisham manufactured it that way to teach Estella to break hearts."
    "I know," I agreed. "But don't you think true love should fix all? I don't know, maybe it's just the romantic in me…" I trailed off, realizing that the conversation was heading toward true love and happily-ever-afters. I didn't want to scare him off already.
    "So did you think that the ending was believable?" I steered the conversation back to safer territory. "I really went back and forth on that one. Half of the time I thought it was pure