Curtis was keeping me busy with lots of work and long hours. In the last month, we’d been working so much that I’d only had two days off. That was fine with me because long hours and extra days meant big paychecks with plenty of overtime hours on them.

As the money was rolling in, I was able to get a lot of things that I really needed. It was nice to be able to finally by my own deodorant, soap, and shampoo, but it was especially nice to be able to buy any brand I wanted instead of whatever commissary decided to carry.

I didn’t like the fact that Curtis had been supplying me with the things I needed, and I was grateful to be able to purchase them on my own.

Once I had the necessities, I saved every other penny I made so I could get my own set of wheels. Curtis took me all over the place, visiting many different car lots until I found what I was looking for: a black Chevy pickup truck.

The truck wasn’t even close to being new, but it looked nice enough, and it ran like a dream. It didn’t need any additional work and was ready to go right off the lot, which was the most important thing to me.

When I wasn’t working, I killed time hanging out with Curtis and Kim. Alexa had been hanging out with us quite a bit as well. Even though I hadn’t had much downtime, I’d gotten to know her quite a bit better. She even spent the holidays at the house with us.

Alexa and I had long conversations that usually continued well after our best friends went to bed. As much as I hated it, I had no choice but to lie to her about my past. She was aware that Curtis and I met in foster care, but that was all she knew about me. I hated lying to her, but what else was I supposed to do?

There was no way I could be honest with her. Not if I wanted her to actually take an interest in me and want to be with me. If she knew that I’d spent time in prison and would always be known as a former convict, she’d just view me as a fuck up and never want to speak to me again.

It wasn’t like I was proud that I’d spent time in prison. As a matter of fact, I’d never been more ashamed of anything in my life.

Even though I loved spending so much time with her at Curtis’s house, it wasn’t nearly enough for me. I wanted more. No, I needed more. The problem was that I was having trouble coming right out and telling her.

It wasn’t like me, and I had no idea what my fucking problem was. Before I got sent to prison, I would have asked her without any hesitation. Instead, I found myself conflicted about making a move, mostly because I feared I’d never be able to show her the real me.

Even though we talked a lot and she flirted, I still wasn’t sure whether or not she was as into me as I was her. There were times when it felt like she was hanging on every word that came out of my mouth or would smile while looking at me with a gleam in her gorgeous eyes.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that there was definitely something there between us. There was almost a sort of electrical charge anything she would reach over and lightly touch my arm. I loved making her laugh because she had a smile that could melt the heart of any man, and the sound of her laughter filled the room and gave me a happy feeling that had been missing for years.

* * *

I was surprised to see Alexa sitting on the couch next to Kim when Curtis and I arrived home from work. She usually didn’t come over until later in the evening.

“Hello boys,” Kim joked as we took our work boots off in the foyer, so we didn’t track mud through the house. “Alexa is going to have dinner with us this evening. You don’t mind, do you Nick?”

I shot Kim a look that told her to shut up, and she replied with a mischievous wink. I was glad to know that Alexa was going to be having dinner with us.

“It’s your food,” I said laughing.

As we ate our meal, I had a hard time looking at Alexa. I worried that my window of opportunity may be closing and that if I didn’t ask her out soon, I might blow it. Seeing her that night, I knew I had to make my move.

She was giving me all the right signals. She was laughing at all of my jokes, even the ones that weren’t very funny. I’d catch her checking me out when she thought I wasn’t paying any attention.

Once dinner was over, and everything was cleaned up, Alexa said she had to go and started telling everyone goodnight. My chance had come, and I wasn’t about to let it slip by.

“Hold on just a second,” I said as she put on her coat and headed for the front door. “I’ll walk you out to your car.”

I snatched my coat off the hanging and clumsily threw it on.

“Okay,” she replied, acting shy all of a sudden.

She gave Kim a hug and waved goodbye to Curtis. I held the door open for her and followed her out, closing it behind me.

“Dinner was delicious,” she said, breaking the awkward silence that had developed as we stood next to her vehicle.

“It really was. Between you and Kim, I’m eating better lately than I’ve ever eaten in my life.”

She smiled at the compliment, showing off a dimple in her cheek that I’d never noticed before. I looked down at the snow, trying to find the right words to say what I wanted to say. I figured the best thing to do was to spit it out and get it over with.

“So, when I was at your apartment fixing your SUV, you told me that you owe me big time. Do you remember that?”

“Yes,” she laughed, looking as though she was confused as to where this conversation was going.

“I was wondering if maybe I could cash in on that,” I told her.

I closed my mouth and waited to see what her reaction was before I went any further. The last thing I wanted to do was make a giant fool of myself if I had misread her signals. My heart was pounding in my chest, and she looked even more confused than she had previously.

“Um, maybe. What do you have in mind?”

“I think you should let me take you out to dinner.”

Finally, it was out there. I’d asked her out, and the ball was no longer in my court. It was up to her to give me a response. I was a little nervous that her reply might not be what I wanted to hear, but at least it was all out in the open.

Alexa didn’t give me an immediate answer. I studied her facial expressions, hoping to get some kind of clue of what was going on inside her head, but I couldn’t read her at all.

She appeared to be surprised that I asked her out. Remaining silent, she just stood there looking at me. I could feel the smile that had formed on my face slowly beginning to disappear. I was genuinely worried that my biggest fear was about to become a reality. She was going to say no.

I knew that this was going to happen. I told myself that I would just make a fool out of myself, and there I was. I was about to tell her goodnight and go back inside when I saw her surprised look turn into a huge smile.

“When I said I owed you big time, I meant that I owed you something. Not the other way around,” she told me. “How does you taking me out to dinner justify that. I’m supposed to owe you something, not the other way around. Maybe I’ve got a better idea.”

“Okay, let’s hear it.”

“Why don’t you come over to my place this weekend and I’ll cook a special dinner just for you. How does that sound?”

Was she being serious? How does that sound? That sounded amazing. As much as I wanted to take her out and have an official first date with her, this was a much, much better idea.

Not only would I get to enjoy a meal with her, but I’d get to spend time with her alone in her apartment. Kim and Curtis wouldn’t be there. It would just be her and me. In a restaurant, there was only so much that could happen between the two of us. In her apartment, though? The possibilities were endless.

The night could hold anything in store for the two of us. It would be just her and me sitting at her kitchen table. Maybe we’d sit on her couch and watch television. Hell, perhaps the two of us would even end up in bed together.

“Nick?” she asked, bringing me back to reality and alerting me to the fact that I hadn’t answered her question.

“I’m sorry, yes, that sounds great. I can’t wait.”

“I can’t wait either. How does 6:00 Saturday night sound to you ?”

“That will be perfect. I’ll be there,” I said as I shoved my freezing hands into my coat pocket.

“Great, I’ll see you then,” she told me as she got into her SUV and started it up.

I stood in the driveway and watched as she drove away, not moving from my spot until I could no longer see the red from her taillights.

The amount of happiness I was feeling could not be put into words. I couldn’t remember the last time I felt as happy as I did at that very moment. I wondered if I was falling in love. I’d never truly been in love before, and the feeling was foreign to me, but I had to assume that it was precisely that.

I was in love with Alexa, and it looked things might finally be starting to happen. I was finally on my way to making that woman mine.