Chapter Three- The Ride Home
1026 Words
The rain had gotten worse.
By the time Elena reached Nathan's car, the ends of her hair were already damp, and her shoes had collected enough water to make every step uncomfortable.
Nathan unlocked the passenger door.
“Get in.”
She slipped inside.
He closed the door, walked around the front of the car, and climbed into the driver's seat.
For a few seconds, neither of them spoke.
The quiet felt different from the silence they'd shared at work.
This was closer.
More private.
Elena suddenly became very aware that they were alone.
She adjusted her seatbelt.
“Thank you.”
Nathan started the engine.
“You're welcome.”
The car pulled away from the curb.
Elena looked out the window, watching London's wet streets blur beneath the streetlights.
She had been in cars with men before.
She had been alone with men before.
So why did this feel different?
Maybe because Nathan wasn't trying too hard.
He wasn't filling the silence with pointless conversation or flirting aggressively.
He simply drove.
One hand rested on the steering wheel while the other occasionally shifted gears.
Calm.
Focused.
Unbothered.
Elena glanced at him.
Big mistake.
His profile looked unfairly good beneath the soft glow from the dashboard.
She quickly looked away.
“You can stop staring.”
Her head snapped toward him.
“I wasn't staring.”
Nathan smiled.
“You were.”
“I was looking.”
“At me.”
“At the road.”
“You're facing the opposite direction.”
Elena narrowed her eyes.
“You're very observant.”
“I told you.”
She folded her arms.
“Maybe you're the one who keeps staring.”
“I do.”
The answer came so easily that Elena didn't know what to do with it.
She turned toward him.
Nathan kept his eyes on the road.
“You do?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
He was quiet for a moment.
Then he glanced at her.
“Because you're interesting.”
Elena's stomach tightened.
“That sounds like a dangerous compliment.”
“Why?”
“Because interesting can mean anything.”
Nathan's lips curved.
“Not when I say it.”
She looked away again.
“You're very confident.”
“I know what I mean.”
“And what exactly do you mean?”
The car slowed at a red light.
Nathan turned toward her.
For a moment, their eyes met.
“You make people want to know you.”
Elena forgot how to breathe.
The light turned green.
Nathan looked forward and continued driving.
She stared at him.
“That was... unexpectedly deep.”
“Was it?”
“Yes.”
“Good.”
She laughed softly.
“You're strange.”
“So I've been told.”
---
Twenty minutes later, Nathan pulled up outside Elena's building.
She unfastened her seatbelt.
“Thank you for bringing me home.”
“Anytime.”
She reached for the door handle.
Then stopped.
“Nathan?”
“Hmm?”
“Why are you being so nice to me?”
He looked at her.
The question had caught him off guard.
Elena wasn't sure why she'd asked it either.
Maybe she wanted an explanation.
Maybe she wanted to know if she was imagining the little things.
The sandwich.
The access card.
The umbrella.
The way he remembered what she said.
Nathan's gaze remained on hers.
“Do I need a reason?”
She shrugged.
“No. I just...”
She trailed off.
“You just what?”
“I don't know.”
Nathan smiled.
“You don't have to know.”
Something about that answer made her chest feel strangely warm.
She opened the door.
“Goodnight.”
“Goodnight, Elena.”
She stepped out.
Before closing the door, she looked back at him.
“Drive safely.”
“I will.”
She closed the door.
Nathan waited until she reached the entrance of the building before driving away.
Elena stood under the awning, watching his taillights disappear.
She touched her lips lightly.
Then immediately dropped her hand.
“What are you doing?”
She laughed at herself.
This was ridiculous.
She barely knew him.
And yet, somehow, Nathan had managed to occupy her thoughts for most of the day.
She walked upstairs.
---
Nathan drove for several minutes before his phone rang.
He answered through the car system.
“Hello?”
His sister's voice came through the speakers.
“You sound distracted.”
“I'm driving.”
“That's not what I meant.”
Nathan smiled.
“What do you want?”
“I want to know if you're coming Sunday.”
“I'll be there.”
“And bring someone.”
He frowned.
“Someone?”
“You know exactly what I mean.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“I'm not bringing anyone.”
His sister laughed.
“You've been single for too long.”
“I like being single.”
“You like being difficult.”
Nathan shook his head.
“Goodnight.”
“Wait. Is there someone?”
He didn't answer.
“Nathan?”
He ended the call.
But her question remained in his mind.
Is there someone?
He thought about Elena.
The way she laughed.
The way she tried to hide her smile.
The way she challenged everything he said.
He wasn't sure what this was yet.
He only knew one thing.
He wanted to find out.
---
Upstairs, Elena had changed into comfortable clothes and was sitting on her bed.
Her phone buzzed.
A message.
She looked at the screen.
Nathan: Did you get inside safely?
Elena stared at it.
She smiled.
Then frowned at herself for smiling.
She typed a response.
Elena: Yes. Thank you.
Three dots appeared almost immediately.
Nathan: Good.
She waited.
Nothing else came.
Elena stared at the screen.
Then tossed her phone onto the bed.
“Why am I disappointed?”
She buried her face in her pillow.
This was bad.
Very bad.
Because she had promised herself she wouldn't fall easily.
And Nathan Hayes wasn't even asking her to fall.
He was simply standing there...
making her want to.
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