Bodie by Nyssa Kathryn

Chapter 8

Maya took a bite of her burger. A huge bite that should have had her feeling embarrassed. It didn’t. The burger was the best-tasting thing she’d eaten in months. The delicious flavors woke up her deprived taste buds, reminding her that good food did exist.

When she looked across to Bodie, it was to see him staring at her, a ghost of a smile on his lips. Still, she couldn’t feel embarrassed. She was too happy.

“Sorry.” She said the word with a full mouth.

“Don’t apologize. I’m glad I chose the right spot for dinner.”

Any spot that wasn’t her kitchen would have been the right spot. “You did. This burger is amazing.”

So too was the company. Before the burger had arrived, she hadn’t been able to take her eyes off the guy.

Bodie took a bite of his own burger. She wouldn’t say he looked as consumed by the burger as she was, but he also didn’t look like he was hating it.

“So, tell me, what did you get up to on your day off?”

Maya paused, a fry halfway to her lips. Her brain scrambled to come up with a lie. “I, ah, just spent the day at home. Slept in, watched some TV. Nothing special.” She hated lying. And it didn’t help that she was terrible at it.

Maya wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but she almost thought she saw disappointment cross his features. If she had, it was fleeting. Before she could think too much on it, a smile stretched his lips. “Lazy days are the best. You can just switch off from the outside world and live in your bubble.”

Unfortunately, it was almost impossible for Maya to switch off from the outside world. Although, while she was with Bodie, she was pretty damn close.

His phone lit up on the table. He glanced at the screen before turning it over. Suddenly, Maya was reminded of the fact that she’d never responded to his messages.

Crap. He hadn’t even asked about them.

“I’m sorry I never texted you back today. I didn’t look at my phone much. I wasn’t trying to ignore you.”

He popped a fry into his mouth before lifting a shoulder. “It’s okay. Trish has been matching our shifts, so I knew you were off with me. I was just interested in knowing what you were up to. Now I know.”

Only he didn’t. Not really.

“Now you know,” she murmured quietly, kind of wishing she could tell him the truth.

Offloading her secret to him would be nice. It would also be incredibly selfish, seeing as she’d be putting his life at risk. The only reason she’d shared part of her story with Quinn was because the woman had been so persistent. Not to mention that as a journalist, she was in a position to warn people.

Taking another bite of her burger, she realized it didn’t taste quite so amazing anymore.

“Tell me about yourself. Any siblings?” he asked.

Oh, boy. Maya hated family questions. After all, who enjoyed sharing information on an upbringing that was less than perfect? “I don’t remember my parents. They died when I was really young, and I grew up in and out of foster homes.”

The fact that she didn’t have a family used to cause an ache in her chest. When she was younger, she would see kids with their parents and wish she had what they did.

That didn’t happen anymore. She’d learned that life wasn’t fair. The sooner she’d accepted that, the quicker she’d been able to shift into survival mode.

The pity she was expecting to see from Bodie didn’t come. If anything, his features remained neutral. “That would have been hard.”

“It was.”

Some of the homes had been less than ideal. Absentee caregivers, alcohol abuse…one of the foster mothers had even been violent. Maya didn’t like to think about that.

Being with good families was almost as tragic, though. Because her time with them always came to an end.

“The loneliness was hard,” she continued, swirling a fry around her plate. “Families couldn’t always keep me because their circumstances would change. It meant I had to move around. I changed schools a lot. Creating lasting relationships was impossible.”

This time, the sympathy she was expecting was there, but for some reason, she didn’t hate it as much as she thought she would.

“I’m sorry.”

She lifted a shoulder. “It made me work harder at school. I was academic and my grades were something I could control.” Her brain was the one thing she knew would save her once she’d aged out of the system.

“What did you do after high school?”

Casting her eyes down, she debated over what to tell him. The truth was, she’d won a scholarship to study science at Dartmouth University. But admitting that would raise too many questions. Questions she didn’t want to answer.

Forcing a smile, she looked back up. “Hang on a sec, buddy, it’s your turn.”

Bodie didn’t appear annoyed in the slightest that she hadn’t answered his question.

“Sure. I grew up in Jacksonville. My parents still live there, happily married. I have an older brother and sister.”

“Ah, youngest of three. That explains it.”

He chuckled. It was a deep, masculine chuckle that had her stomach quivering. “If you mean that you’re not surprised my parents stopped with me because I’m perfect, then you’d be correct.”

She couldn’t stop her own laugh. “No. I mean it explains your boyish personality. Your humor.”

Bodie leaned forward. “But mostly my faultlessness, right?”

Maya’s smile broadened. God, the guy was something else. She never smiled as much as when she was with him.

Throughout the next half hour, Bodie continued to make Maya smile and laugh while she resumed her meal. Her hard day had definitely turned around.

“That was amazing,” Maya said, popping the last fry into her mouth. “Thank you for dinner.”

“Thank you for joining me.” He started pushing his chair back. “I’ll walk you home.”

Maya wasn’t going to argue with him. “I’ll just use the bathroom first.”

When Maya stood, she was surprised to see Bodie standing, too. She had no idea that men still did that.

So, he was a gentleman and good-looking. And funny. And smart. And just about every other positive trait she could think of. Jeez, she was in trouble.

As Maya walked past him, she was almost certain she felt the light brush of his touch on her hip…probably wishful thinking.

She used the bathroom quickly before washing her hands. When she looked at her reflection in the mirror, she noticed that the person staring back at her looked completely different than the person she’d seen in the mirror a few weeks ago.

There was color in her cheeks, and the anxiety-ridden expression was nowhere to be seen. She almost looked happy. Maya hadn’t looked or felt that way in a long time.

Smiling, she started to grab her phone out of her back pocket, only to stop when it wasn’t there. What the heck? Had it fallen out?

Darn it. She hoped not. She didn’t want to have to buy another burner phone. Not so soon, anyway. This one was almost brand-new.

Heading back to the table, she breathed out a long sigh of relief when she saw it sitting beside her empty plate. “I thought I’d lost my phone for a minute,” Maya said, shaking her head. “I didn’t even realize I’d taken it out.”

Bodie smiled as he stood beside her. “I’m glad you didn’t lose it. I’d have to convince you to give me your number again.”

Maya almost scoffed. Yeah, like that would take much convincing.

When Bodie held his jacket open for her, she just stared at it blankly. “What are you doing?”

God, the man probably thought she was simple. It was obvious what he was doing. What she really wanted to know was why he was giving her his jacket.

“Your jacket isn’t warm enough, and it’s a ten-minute walk back to your place.”

She opened her mouth to say no but Bodie was already stepping forward. Hesitantly, Maya slid her arms through the sleeves.

Holy jam on a cracker, the thing was so warm. And even better, it smelled just like the man in front of her.

Stepping outside, they began walking back to her place. When his hand reached for hers, she almost jumped out of her skin.

“It’s dark,” he said quietly by way of explanation. “I’d feel better holding your hand.”

Maya threaded her fingers through his. His hand was like a mini heater. And it pulsed awareness all the way up her arm and through her body.

Along the way, Bodie asked Maya a few more questions about herself. Questions that were mostly safe. The questions that she couldn’t answer, she successfully managed to dodge or give half-truths. Half-truths would be easier to remember.

“What’s something that attracted you to Keystone?” Bodie asked as they turned onto her street.

Other than the safety and anonymity? There was one other thing.

“Ice skating.”

She could feel Bodie’s eyes on her. He was no doubt surprised.

Maya continued before Bodie could ask. “I’ve never been. You know how you watch a movie where a woman ice skates and she looks so happy?” Andfree. “It made me want to try it.”

While living in New York, she’d walked past Rockefeller Center more times than she cared to remember. Not once had she stopped and skated. She was going to make that a priority while she was here in Keystone.

If there was anything this last month had taught her, it was that life is short.

Bodie’s hand tightened around hers. “What a great idea.”

They came to a stop outside her door. The only light was the reflection from the moon. It was dim. Almost romantic.

“Thank you for tonight.” Yet again, he’d made her feel normal. Something that was so far out of reach so much of the time.

“Thank you. It was the best night I’ve had in a while.”

Maya was sure he was exaggerating. The compliment still made heat fill her cheeks. Sliding her key into the door, she pushed it open but didn’t move to step inside yet. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

His gaze was still fixed on her face, studying her with the usual intensity that she’d grown used to. “You will.”

When he leaned his head down, Maya held her breath and didn’t move a muscle. She just waited to see where his lips would land.

When they touched her cheek, she sighed.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Maya. Lock the door after yourself.”

Plastering a smile to her lips, she nodded and stepped inside. She shouldn’t have expected a kiss. She’d only known the guy a short amount of time.

Then why was disappointment bearing down so heavily on her chest?