Sucker Punch (TKO 4)

“I’ll text you in the morning.”

“Goodnight, Paige.”

“Night, Austin.”

I hang up the phone and grin. She initiated this one and I’m fucking elated. I’ll be too excited to sleep tonight. She’s so damn beautiful and I’m not sure what she sees in me but I’m glad she does.

Chapter 15

Paige

I just dropped Darla off to my parents’ and told Mom I had a coffee date with Austin. Her grin stretched from ear to ear.

I was worried last night my secret would be revealed. Austin and I were talking on the phone and Darla came walking sleepily into my room and asked if she could lie with me. I was able to play it off as my TV being on. I don’t even have a TV in my room.

My hands clamp up against my steering wheel as I begin driving to a coffee shop near the hospital. I texted Austin the name of it earlier and told him what time to meet me. For some reason, seeing him feels like the first time all over again. He takes my breath away and I feel like a giddy school girl.

I pull up to the coffee shop and notice his car parked a few spots down. I decide to get out of the car and walk in that direction in case he hasn’t gotten out yet. Just as I’m about to approach his car, he steps in front of me, wearing a grin.

I nearly jump out of my skin. “Oh, you about scared me. I was coming to see if you were still in your car.”

“Sorry.” He leans forward to kiss my cheek. “I saw you pull in so I decided it would be a good time to get out.”

I know a few people from the hospital frequent this place but I’m not worried about them right now. I don’t hardly know any of them and it’s not like this coffee date is going to be a big deal. Austin grabs hold of my hand as we walk through the front doors. This is so unlike the burger joint from our date. No one is gawking at us, everyone is just minding their business and enjoying their coffee. We approach the counter and each give the barista our order. I get a vanilla latte and he wants a black coffee. I scrunch up my nose, wondering how people can drink it black. I try to pay for my own, but Austin forces his credit card in front of mine. The poor barista looks so confused as to which one she is supposed to grab. With one final attempt, I push my card forward with such force it slips behind the counter. As the barista bends down to pick it up, I smirk at Austin before looking back at her.

“You can just use that card,” I tell her.

“Fine, you win this time,” Austin whispers in my ear. “Thank you for the coffee.”

“You’re welcome.” I grin, feeli

ng awfully proud of my victory. It’s not every day I’m able to get away with buying coffee for a guy I like.

Austin spots an empty table in the middle of the coffee shop and we go sit down. “Thank you again.”

“Not a problem,” I reply. “So, what were you like before the accident?”

He looks down at his cup for a moment before meeting my eyes. “I was an okay guy. I could have almost anything I wanted with no issues. Before I moved here, I lived with my parents. I got into some trouble and they thought it would be best for me to live with my cousin, and then things got a little better before they got worse.”

I scrunch my brow, wondering what he means. “The accident?”

“Yeah, the accident changed everything for me,” he admits.

My mind begins racing. I wonder if he would have even batted an eyelash at me if we met and he’d never gotten in that accident.

“Tell me a little more about you,” he insists.

My coffee cup nearly slips out of my hands. “Well, you know I’m a nurse. That’s pretty much it, I haven’t led an exciting life.” I nearly shut down on him. I can tell him some things, but I keep Darla tucked far away.

“You’re a good girl, there’s nothing wrong with that.” Austin smiles.

“I guess you could say that,” I reply.

The more I talk with him, the more I like him. There’s something about him. Maybe it is indeed his good looks, but then maybe it’s how courageous he is as a person. Life twisted him all around and he’s still standing, probably stronger than ever.

“Thank you,” Austin says out of nowhere. I finish telling him whatever he wanted to know about me and then took a sip of my latte.

“For what?” I ask him, puzzled. I’m not sure where he’s going with this.