AllFreeNovel
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“Well now that we’re both off the clock, can I take you out for a bite? I get the feeling you weren’t in line for a lunch break if you only worked till noon.”
“That woman probably knows the labor laws better than you,” she says, blowing air up toward her bangs.
“I wouldn’t be surprised there. That’s lawyerin’ territory. You probably know the labor laws better than me,” I laugh.
She looks down at her watch. It’s not long, but it’s a hesitation. I don’t know what I was expecting, her to pin me up against the brick wall and plant one on me or something. ‘Take me now, Brady, take me now!’ I kick myself inwardly. This is why I don’t reach out too much when I’m on my own. I never can read things right. And this one should’ve been a slam dunk. If some sixty or eighty-year-old broad hit on me I’m not sure how I’d react either. Probably the same way. Scramble for time to come up with a good excuse to get out of it gracefully.
“That was probably rude of me,” I say, trying to save a little face, make it seem like it was just a nonchalant thing. “I just figured I was gonna eat and they say college kids are always looking for a bite.”
“No,” she looks up at me, and somehow, even though I don’t know what she’s going to say next, she makes me feel at least all right for having asked. “You’re not wrong there, except I don’t think it’s just college kids. Who would turn down free anything?”
“I could think of a few things,” I say. “You know Mickey down at the tire shop?”
“I can’t say I’ve made his acquaintance yet.”
“Ah,” I say. “Well, here’s a tip from a local. No matter how good ‘free’ sounds, if it’s from Mickey, you better believe he’s gonna find half a dozen expensive things while he’s working on the free part.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” she says, hitching her purse up on her shoulder again.
“Well, I won’t keep ya. But the offer stands, if you’re ever bored and looking to hang out with an old-timer.”
“Hey, now,” she says, pretending to pout. “I didn’t even say no and you’re running me off. Maybe your offer wasn’t as genuine as I thought.”
I shrug. “I figured somebody like you had plenty of places to be.”
“Actually,” she laughs, “I have one place to be and I really would rather not be there, so lunch sounds like an amazing alternative.”
I can hardly believe it but I do my best to stay calm about everything, although my brain is already realizing my gallant move in asking her to lunch didn’t include any plan for where to go. “I don’t wanna throw off your schedule,” I say, more trying to fill the pause than anything.
“It’s nothing,” she says. “Just the gym. I mean, I need to go, but I can just go later. Or twice tomorrow. Or something.” She shrugs like she’s told herself this a couple of times with varying amounts of success.
“The gym, huh?” I say, looking down at her. “Why?”
6
Megan
Iknow it’s a small thing. A ridiculously small thing. And maybe he wasn’t even thinking when he said it. Although, if that’s the case, then he really probablymeantit. I mean, it just popped out of his mouth like I’m some professional body-builder or model or something, and the idea that I would need to go to the gym never even crossed his mind.
I can feel him looking down at me and it’s easy enough for me to appraise what I know is underneath my sweater and slacks. Maybe my clothing is better camouflage than I realize though. Marla would be so terribly proud if that were the case.You aren’t the one on sale, dear. You need to blend into the background. The less a person notices you the more they notice the gems.Alwaysthe gems, neverthe jewelryorthe purchase. And never, neverthe product.We could never sully the Reynolds good name with a plebian term like that.
I feel like I’ve just been silent for way too long though so I kind of laugh, probably sounding like an idiot, and look back up at him, trying to think of something funny to say.Some people can rely on looks, but others need to cultivate a personality. There’s another Marla-ism. It doesn’t really roll off the tongue, and I pray to God I never get it in a fortune cookie. I’m not sure why it has to be one or the other, either. Like, even if someone were as rugged and just like, magnetizing as the man standing beside me right now, if there was nothing upstairs…
I can feel my cheeks getting hot as I realize I’d probably let him do with me whatever he wanted, at least once, even if he were more looks than logic. He’s just so…erotic.
I put a hand to my forehead. Now not only have I let the pause last way too long, even thinking about the pause lasting too long has started lasting too long. And, with him, it’s like he can flip a switch, and not only are my cheeks warm, I can feel it between my thighs too.
“Well, ya know,” I say quickly. “Gotta get my steps in and all.”
Laaaaame.
He shrugs, completely cool about it. “We’re walking to lunch. That oughtta help.”
He’s so take-charge. I love it. And clearly, as much as I like to think I’m never the damsel in distress, I have my moments of what one might call a ‘lapse in focus.’ Lord knows Marla probably half-hoped I would get mugged on the way to the bank, just to point out the fact I’m irresponsible and flighty.
Which, truth be told, I’m being again.
“Seems like a solid argument to me,” I say. “Where to?”
