Page 17 of Flights and Sights

“Thanks for coming. It would have been miserable to go by myself.”

“You have Charlie,” he pointed out.

“I do, but it’s not the same. Obviously.”

“I hope not.”

We both laughed before quieting again for a moment. I knew I was stalling but I cleared my throat and gestured toward the house. “Let me walk you to the door?”

Paxton grinned. “You don’t have to do that.”

“I’d like to.”

“Well, then.”

We both climbed out of the car and headed up his short walk. I stood behind Paxton on the porch as he unlocked the door and when he turned to me, my heart skipped a beat.

“Thanks again for putting up with my family tonight.”

“Anything for my boyfriend.”

My face heated at that, but I forced myself to laugh lightly. Paxton’s grin was wide and relaxed as his gaze dropped to my lips for a long moment before meeting my eyes again. My breath caught in my throat. I was sure he was about to step closer and put his hands on me and my skin tingled in anticipation.

“I should…” His voice was low and husky and he stepped forward just a bit, closing some of the distance between us. Before he could speak any further, his phone began to ring in his pocket. “Shit,” he hissed and stepped away, pulling the phone out. “I should take this.”

“Everything okay?”

He shrugged and grimaced. “I don’t know. I’m so sorry. I’ll see you soon?” With that, he tapped the screen to answer the call and stepped inside his house, leaving me on the porch alone.

My stomach sank. I headed back to the car, a heaviness settling over me. It had been a great evening. I tried to shake off the disappointment and remind myself that we were just friends, after all. He was doing me a favor. We weren’t… anything else. We were helping each other and that’s all there was to it. If I hoped for anything else, well, that was entirely my own problem. I headed home and went straight to bed, feeling sorry for myself.

The next day was Saturday and I woke up determined to get out and work on finding other locations for my article. As I fumbled for my phone, still charging on the nightstand, I thought about how I couldn’t just write about a single mead taproom and call it a travel feature. I could always visit the Foggy Basin Brewing Company, to offer a contrast to Celestial Cask.

The first thing I did was check my notifications, and I was surprised to see I had several missed texts from Paxton.

Paxton: So sorry again. It was my uncle. Family stuff.

Paxton: I had a great time tonight.

I took a slow breath and released it, a sense of relief lifting some of the weight that had been pressing on my shoulders. There was one more text from him that had been sent about an hour ago.

Paxton: Good morning boyfriend.

It was accompanied by a winking emoji. I chuckled and grinned, my cheeks heating as I texted back.

Callum: Good morning. Don’t worry about last night. You don’t owe me an explanation.

He replied immediately.

Paxton: Are you busy today?

Callum: I was thinking about visiting Foggy Basin Brewing Co. For the article.

Paxton: I have a better idea. Can I pick you up?

Callum: Sure. See you in an hour?

Paxton: Can’t wait.