Chapter 146
"I beat you!" Claire smiled and turned around to look at Blake.
She slowed Parker down a few meters from the creek banks.
"I didn't know it was a race!' responded Blake as he pulled Boomer next to Claire. "You've got to tell a bloke when he's racing."
"Do you want to walk around by the creek bed?" Claire asked as she jumped off Parker.
"Okay. Hey, are you hungry?" asked Blake.
"Yeah, I only grabbed a small sandwich on my way out to meet you, I missed lunch."
"Here, I thought you might be hungry, so I brought some snacks. Maybe we can sit on one of those big rocks and eat them together." Blake went into the saddlebag on Boomer.
"Sure. what did you bring?" Claire asked, as she sat on a rock.
"Well, I brought a couple ham sandwiches, plus I got these!" Blake pulled out a big bag of chocolate chip cookies. "They were left over from the picnic Ben made for everyone. He used the Killarney kitchen and Stevie said I could take whatever I wanted."
Blake went and sat down next to Claire on the rock. He handed her a sandwich and offered her a canteen of water.
"Thanks. Good on ya for the little picnic." Claire said as she bit into the sandwich. "I didn't realize how hungry I actually was. It was nice of you to plan ahead." She laughed and looked at Blake. He was looking at her too.
"Um, so Claire, I was just wondering if when I go back to my mom's if I might still be able to text you and stuff?" asked Blake.
"Blake, is this a date?" questioned Claire.
"Um, well, um, only if you want it to be." Blake replied nervously.
"Blake?" Claire looked at the boy who was sitting very nervously next to her. "I want it to be a date." She smiled at him as she finished speaking.
"You do?" confirmed Blake.
"Yeah. I do." She smiled at him again.
Blake put his hand on top of hers as it rested on the rock. Claire let Blake hold her hand. She liked feeling his hand on hers. She liked sitting close to him. She was holding Blake's left hand with her right hand. She didn't want to let go of Blake's hand, but the cookies were on the other side of him, and she wanted one. She started to reach over him to grab a cookie from the bag on the other side of him.
"Oof, sorry!" Claire had turned her face to reach for the bag of cookies at the same time that Blake turned to face her. It would have been a kiss except Claire's head was down and Blake's wasn't. Claire's forehead crashed into Blake's nose.
"That's okay. It doesn't hurt too bad." Blake had been going in to try for a kiss.
You idiot! You can't even figure out how to kiss a girl, Blake thought angrily to himself.
"Oh! Blake, you're bleeding! Do you have a handkerchief? Or some napkins?" asked Claire.
"What? No, I don't have one. Oh man. This is so embarrassing" said Blake.
"Here, Let me help. Ummm..." Claire looked around for a cloth or a tissue or something to help Blake with. She finally took off the button down flannel shirt she was wearing, exposing a black tank top underneath. She held the button down shirt up to Blake's nose.
"It's okay, Claire. I've got it now. Thanks." Blake slumped over in embarrassment.