Everywhere, All At Once

Chapter 9 - Miscalculated

 Aaron stood waiting for her in the parking lot of his friend's garage when Kenna pulled in at seven in the morning that Friday. She was so nervous, and couldn't even fully comprehend why she was so nervous, but she was. She had never been in a car with Aaron, so maybe that was it. The nerves were because she was about to be in close quarters with him.

She pulled into a spot and when she exited the car, Aaron and a man in coveralls walked over, smiling. When she handed the man her keys, he said, "I'll have this all taken care of for you in a few hours."

"Great," she said, smiling. "Thank you so much."

The man walked away after a quick handshake and a pat on the shoulder with Aaron and when she looked up at him, and her stomach quavered. He still looked like he was half asleep, his eyelids low, and he wore glasses instead of contacts. He was in what she assumed to be his teaching clothes: a light blue button-down shirt, gray slacks, and black shoes. He looked... She had no words. Perfect? Her hands shook a little. He was definitely perfect.

"Thank you so much for doing this," Kenna said, when Aaron only stood there looking at her.

He shrugged and quirked a smile. "Friends, right?" He asked, his voice still gravelly from sleep. It was beyond sexy. God, she was crazy to do this.

"Right," she breathed, nodding and looking away. He led her toward his truck, opened and closed her door for her, and they were off.

"Do you want to stop for coffee? I have a little time before work. My treat," she offered. He looked exhausted, and she felt bad, even though she knew he would be up this early for work and getting the kids off to school, anyway.

He glanced over at her and chuckled. "Am I that obvious?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Keurig went to the shitter this morning. Then I was running late trying to fix it and didn't have time to caffeinate before meeting up with you."

Kenna grimaced. "Yikes. That sounds like a terrible morning."

He glanced at her again. "Not entirely terrible."

Their eyes met for a millisecond and Kenna bit her lip to keep her mouth from hanging open in shock. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

"So is that a yes to coffee?" Kenna asked after she'd recovered from his comment.

"I will never say no to coffee," he declared, and took a turn off the main road.

***

Inside the Starbucks at the mid-point between their respective jobs, Kenna unzipped her sweater and sat down at a table by the counter where she'd ordered their drinks, under heavy protest from Aaron.

"You're doing me a favor," she pointed out as he glared at her halfheartedly when she passed him his cup. "Let me buy you a cheap coffee, geez."

Sipping at his drink, he raised an eyebrow. "Nothing at Starbucks is cheap."

Shrugging, she waved him off. "Thanks again for doing this," she said with sincerity. "I really appreciate it."

"I'm happy to help," he told her, looking more bright-eyed already after a few sips of coffee.

They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes before Aaron spoke again.

"So, um, question. Do you have plans? For tonight, I mean?"

Uh...

"No, I don't," Kenna answered, side-eyeing him.

"Okay. I'm asking because I have this work thing later." He stopped, and she waited, unsure. "I promised some coworkers I would go, but I don't really want to go alone. I was wondering if maybe you wanted to come with me? It's just drinks at a bar near the high school."