“Yeah, great.” He looks away from the road in front of him and offers me what I think is supposed to be a reassuring smile, but does the opposite. His mouth is so strained, it hurts me.

“I know we kinda just fell into this whole thing.” I rest my hands on my legs as an attempt to stop my knee from bouncing. “If you’re worried that I’m reading into this and going to become some crazy stalker, know that I won’t.”

Alright, so the no-stalking thing is a lie. We live in the time of the Internet and social media. I will for sure cyberstalk him. Torturing myself with thoughts of what could be and endless scrolling between the hours of twelve to three a.m. is my favorite pastime. But I won’t like “show up at his house” stalk him or anything.

“No.” He manages to pry one of his hands off the steering wheel and grab mine. “That’s not it at all. If you couldn’t tell, I’m really fucking into you. I want to see where this goes. I want you to read into this, I know I am.”

My knee stops bouncing as my heart explodes into tiny little hearts in my chest. I’m not sure anyone has used the word “fucking” in such a sweet way, but it might be my love language. Well, that and Diet Coke, both of which Quinton has mastered.

“I’d like that too.” Mr. Mahler crosses my mind, but I quickly shut it down. If I’m going to make a decision, I can’t not be present when I’m with Quinton or at work. There’s no way I can make up my mind if I’m checked out when I’m around them.

“Good.” His fingers wind around mine and his jaw flexes beneath his thick beard. “Where we’re going, I’ve never taken anyone. Ever. And I need you to know bringing you here isn’t something I take lightly.”

“Oookay,” I drag out the word as I look at the nondescript neighborhood he’s driving us through. The houses are nice, but cookie-cutter, typical for the suburbs. “Where are we going?”

He didn’t tell me and I never asked. His surprises haven’t let me down yet, so I didn’t feel the need to ask until now.

“I’ve been pretty vague about my family life, but I’m a lot closer to them than you think.” He flicks on his blinker, making the right-hand turn like it’s second nature. Like these are streets he frequents. “I just like to keep my family private. It’s not something I’ve ever wanted to advertise. And a few years ago, something happened and I grew even more private at my family’s request.”