“That wasn’t the first time I met her,” I explained. “Her name is Kelly. I met her three years ago. On my birthday, actually. On my twenty-first, Quentin decided I had to celebrate by going out to the bar for the first time. It was just the four of us. We got shots and I was being ridiculous and dancing because I figured if he was going to push me out of my comfort zone so much, I was going to do it up right.”
“Fair enough,” Colby said.
“Well, I was trying not to look like a complete ass on the dance floor, and I saw her sitting at the bar by herself. She totally stunned me. You saw her. She’s gorgeous and I couldn’t pay attention to anything else. I ended up walking up to her to talk to her.”
“That doesn’t sound like you,” he said. “That definitely doesn’t sound like you three years ago anyway.”
Colby and I had gotten closer since he’d started training me, but he had known my family for several years. He was familiar with how reserved and quiet I was when I was younger. Not that I was the picture of bold, outgoing personalities now, but I’d come out of my shell slightly since then.
“It wasn’t. But I couldn’t resist her. We ended up hanging out for most of the night, and then we left together,” I told him.
“You spent the night with her?” Colby asked, looking surprised.
“Yep. She was the one who instigated it, but I wasn’t about to argue with her. I got her to my place as fast as I could.”
We both laughed, but then he looked slightly confused.
“Why haven’t I heard of her? Was your night together that bad she had to disappear?”
I shoved him playfully.
“No. She left the country the next day.”
“Wow. Your night together was so bad she had to leave the country.”
I glared at him. “It was incredible. But she seriously did have to leave the country. She left a note and was gone before I woke up. I haven’t seen or heard from her since. Then I walked into the bar last night, and she was just there, sitting at the bar just like she was then.”
“So, after three years she not only comes back into the country, but she shows up at the same bar on your birthday?” Colby asked. “That has to be fate.”
I shrugged. “I put the ball in her court. She’s the one who’s going to have to take the next step. I gave her my number before I went back to the table last night but didn’t get hers. If we’re going to see each other again, it’s going to have to be because she called me.”
I let the story end at that, glossing over the fact that I pretty much lost my heart during that one-night stand. I really didn’t need the jokes that morning, and Colby was already on a roll with his teasing. I’d rather keep the emotions to myself until I could figure out what exactly was going on. We worked out for a little longer, and then it was time for me to head to the racing complex. I took a quick shower in the locker room of the gym, dressed for work, and hopped in my truck to head out there. As I drove, I thought about what Colby had said. It really did seem like fate to have her show up again like that.
It wasn’t a coincidence. She’d admitted that herself. Kelly went to that specific bar because it was my birthday, not just randomly. But I still didn’t know what brought her back here. Colby was right. I needed to find out if there was anything behind this thing with Kelly, or if I needed to just focus on finding closure to it. For the last three years, I’d been measuring every woman I dated up against Kelly, and that wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair to the other women, who would never be able to compete with her. And it wasn’t fair to me, who would always feel like I was missing out, no matter who I was with. I needed to figure out once and for all if something real could happen for us or if I just needed to put Kelly in my memories and be open to someone else.
By the time I parked at the complex and headed toward the garage, I was sure I knew what I wanted. I just wasn’t counting on Kelly surprising me two days in a row.
6 Kelly
Usually I tried to be a fairly positive person. Even when things were going wrong or I was dealing with a difficult time, I tried my best to be optimistic and use positive thinking to get me through. Not that it always worked. I wasn’t one of those dreamy-eyed whimsical people who truly believed they could create anything in their lives just by whispering sweet nothings out into the universe or some ridiculous nonsense like that. But I did believe that optimism and trying to see the good in every situation gave me a mental boost that helped me think more clearly and handle situations better. It had done me well over the last few years as I dealt with life throwing me curveballs like it was the bottom of the ninth and the score was all tied up.
That morning, not so much. My internal monologue as I walked across the impressive grounds and into the sprawling garage was essentially shit, shit, shit, shit.
It didn’t start out that way. I actually started that morning feeling cautiously optimistic and telling myself to be confident. It wasn’t going to be an easy sell, but if there was anybody who could do it, it was me. I would be able to go to that racing complex, talk to the owner, and convince him I was a perfect addition
