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“Wait. Are you nervous?”

He glances at me. “What? No.”

I make a disbelieving sound. “Come on. You can tell me. What's got you nervous?”

He shrugs. “I don't know. I just wanted to plan something you'd actually like.”

My smile softens. “You know you didn't have to do anything elaborate, right?”

“I know.”

“We could've just gone somewhere easy.”

"Yeah." He exhales, short. "Didn't want that tonight."

The exit sign for the coast flashes by overhead, and he doesn't take it, keeps driving north instead, past where I guessed we'd go.

A few minutes later, he pulls into a small parking lot near the coast. There's a taco stand at the far end, with string lights hanging above it and a hand-painted sign that reads Tacos El Primo. About ten people are waiting in line.

I turn to him, smiling. “You brought me to a taco stand?”

“Not just any taco stand. Best tacos in LA. Come on, Peachy. You're gonna love it.”

He gets out and comes around to open my door, then takes my hand as we head toward the stand.

I feel like I’m walking on cloud nine. Where our fingers touch, my skin tingles.

The guy behind the counter recognizes him immediately. “Wyatt! What's up, man?”

“Hey, Luis. Brought someone I need to impress, so don't let me down.”

Luis looks at me and grins. “Don't worry. I'll take care of you.”

“Oh, great,” I say. “No pressure or anything.”

Wyatt orders several different tacos, insisting I need to try more than one, and pays before I can even get my wallet out.

“Hey, I could've paid for mine.”

“No chance I'm letting you pay on our first actual date. I know how to treat a woman, Princess.”

I glance at him, expecting a teasing grin, but he looks completely serious.

We carry our food back to the Porsche and lean against the hood, balancing our plates while we eat. The ocean is close enough that I can smell the salt in the air, and the string lights above the taco stand make the parking lot feel surprisingly cozy.

I take my first bite and immediately understand why Wyatt brought me here. “Oh my God.”

He looks over. “Good?”

I nod, still chewing.

“Told you.”

I swallow and take another look at my taco. “Okay, these might actually be the best tacos I've ever had.”

I glance around the parking lot, then back at him. “So this was your big secret plan? Tacos in a parking lot?”

“Hey, don't knock it. I had a whole fancy restaurant picked out, but I figured you'd like this better.”