“This is it,” she thought, her breath catching in her throat. The moment of truth.

But instead of the collision she’d been expecting, Daniel simply smiled, a small, secret thing that caused the color to climb to her cheeks. “Thanks for the ride, Juniper,” he said, his voice barely audible over the sound of the rain. “I’ll see you tomorrow, next time we can charter.”

“See you tomorrow,” Juniper managed, a small smile finding its way to her lips despite the rain.

He paused, meeting her eyes with a look that held something she couldn’t quite name… warmth, question, promise.?. then nodded once, slowly, before turning and walking away disappearing into the night, leaving Juniper standing alone in the downpour, her heart in her throat and her mind reeling with the implications of what had just transpired.