Page 9 of Summer Ride

She hesitated for a split second, and he thought that she wasn’t going to answer. But then she surprised him.

“I injured my back when I was younger. The therapist I went to was kind and very helpful. She made me want to help others and even helped me get my certificate when it was time.” She sighed and glanced towards the door of the diner, and he got the hint that if he asked too many more questions, she’d jump up and bolt.

“Are you from this area originally?” he asked, pushing his luck.

She shook her head and looked him in the eye before answering. “No, I’m from a small town in Tennessee.”

“Why did you move to Florida?”

“My car broke down,” she said with a chuckle. “Zoey found me at the gas station and offered me a job after we got to talking.”

“They’re great like that.” He chuckled. “Are your parents still in Tennessee?”

“No, they’re both gone,” she said, meeting his eyes.

As the waitress set their food on the table, he wondered why she felt the need to lie to him about that detail.

“Are you an only child?” he asked as he ate.

She nodded, her eyes locking with his for a split second before she asked, “You?”

He nodded. “I always wanted siblings. Never was lucky enough to have any.” He had a million other questions he wanted to ask her, but he could see she was getting spooked, so he changed the subject. “What’s between us, you want it to just remain physical?”

She seemed to relax, her shoulders sinking a little as she leaned back in the chair. “Yes,” she answered. “I don’t do relationships.”

He thought about losing what was building between them as their food was delivered. Thought about his own life and how he had too many things consuming his time to focus on making a relationship work. Still, he wasn’t ready to give up on things. Not yet.

“Okay.” He nodded. “But this”—he motioned to the table—“isn’t complicating things. I like a little wining and dining outside of the bedroom. We can be friends and keep things casual.”

She took a bite of her burger as she ran her eyes over his face. Then she nodded. “I guess it won’t hurt having someone to hang with.”

He smiled and held up his coffee mug. “To casual.”

She lifted her water glass and tapped the mug. “Casual,” she agreed with a smile.

Chapter Three

Over the next few months, she took her enjoyment with Carter when either of them got the itch. She allowed herself to enjoy what she could when she could.

Months somehow turned into years.

There were a handful of times when Carter had pushed the boundaries of their casual agreement and tried to get closer than she felt comfortable with. Most of the time he would ask her questions about her past that she couldn’t answer without lying.

She knew he was onto her. Her lies were no longer cutting it with him.

Every single time he pushed, she backed away. Multiple times over the years they had spent days or even weeks apart from one another. Even though they had never really broken things off, they had given each other space.

When the guilt of pulling away from him would eat at her, she’d berate herself until she did something about it. Sometimes he would show up on her doorstep with an apology of some type.

He had learned early on that her favorite flowers were daisies. How, she didn’t know, but every time he arrived with an armful, she’d take him back.

Usually, they’d start up again with a very heated sex session. Most of the time it was a quick bang in some uncomfortable place followed by days of hot and heavy sex anywhere they could be alone.

They would be good for a while until he would try to get too close once more and she’d block him.

Recently, it wasn’t just her relationship with him that caused her turmoil. This time it was a shift in the fabric of life that had her pulling away.

Almost two years into their crazy relationship, he’d surprised her by purchasing an old farmhouse with land near the campground.