To her disappointment, he released her hand as they climbed to the third floor. He unlocked the door and held it open, gesturing for her to precede him.

“This is really nice,” Lauren said. The front door opened directly into the living room outfitted with furniture typical of a single guy. A dark gray couch faced a large flat-screen TV flanked by shelving. The living room opened to the kitchen, separated by a wood table with four chairs. The entire wall to her right was exposed red brick, giving off a trendy vibe.

She glanced at Andrew, taking him in with the space. While he looked every bit the part of the young, confident, professional male, she still didn’t think he quite fit in here. Not completely. The more she got to know him, the more she saw the boy who grew up on a farm in a tiny town in Nebraska, surrounded by his family, hard work, and traditional values.

He caught her staring and tilted his head to the side in question. She looked away to survey the art and photographs hanging on the walls and knelt to examine the books on his bookshelf. Mostly textbooks and crime fiction novels, just like he’d said. She shifted slightly to the left and found a large stand full of DVDs.

“Wow. I didn’t know they made these anymore.”

Andrew laughed. “Besides documentaries, I love movies. I stream nowadays,” he said in a tone that indicated he knew that was the “cool” thing to do, “but when I was in high school and early college I ended up with a pretty serious collection of discs.”

“Uh-huh,” she said with a grin, turning back to the assortment in front of her. She gasped and pulled one off the shelf. “Oh my gosh, you have Love Actually? I adore this movie.”

“Let’s watch it.”

“Really?”

“What else are we going to do?” Andrew gestured to the living room window. “Doesn’t look like it’s gonna clear up anytime soon, might as well do something to pass the time.”

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, thoughts of alternative ways she and Andrew could pass the time invaded Lauren’s mind. Heat spread through her body, and she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, looking up at him from her crouched position.

He stood with his hands clenched at his sides, his intense eyes on her.

“A movie sounds good,” she said, her voice a notch higher than usual. She stood and grasped the edge of the bookshelf, her legs a little unsteady.

Andrew took the DVD case from her, seemingly careful not to touch her as he did. She was thankful, because in that moment, she wasn’t sure she could control herself if she felt his skin against hers.

As he bent over to put the DVD in, Lauren’s stomach growled, and she checked the clock on the cable box.