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This is my chance. Here's to hoping I don't crash and burn like the other guys. I'd really like to get her number before we go home. Something tells me she's different, and if I can catch her interest, we'll click immediately.
After she grabs her hotdog and sits at an empty picnic table, I snatch the opportunity to say hi. I chew on a chip, trying to act nonchalant. "Did you just move here?" I ask, my mind whirring with dozens of questions I want to ask. When she answers, and smiles, I know I'm in.
I couldn't leave if I wanted to. This girl intrigues me. She's not like the girls here in Walla Walla.
When Cimmeron calls me back to the water, I hold my breath, give my most dazzling smile, and invite Carrie to come with me.
I'm doing a mental fist-pump when she follows. I spend the rest of the day making sure Carrie isn't more than an arm's reach away from me.
She's feisty and smart, and strong, and she isn’t intimidated by the other girls. She's also completely oblivious to the other guys trying to get her attention. Bonus for me.
Carrie is a breath of fresh air. She isn’t entrenched in the small-town drama yet. She's someone I can be myself with. So, when we get back to town and I see her walking down the road with her beach bag over her arm, I grin to myself. If I'm lucky, maybe I'll get a kiss out of this.
I pull over to the side of the road next to her and roll down the passenger side window of my Mustang. "Need a ride?"
Carrie looks at the car, then looks at me, chewing on her lip. The lip I want to kiss. The lip I'm going to kiss. We hit it off so well, there's no way she won't say yes.
"That's okay. I'll just walk."
I blink several times in disbelief. Did she just say no? Her answer is like a gut punch. I can't make my interest more obvious unless I park my car and get on my knees.
Something between loading into the vans to go home and seeing her on the street made her change her mind.
My chest burns with confusion and humiliation at the realization. Carrie is no longer interested.
Straightening in my seat, I nod quietly. I'm not interested in having my heart ripped from my chest. I'm Ryan Stirling, Captain of the football team. I can have practically any girl I want. I'm not groveling for the new girl, no matter how intrigued I am by her.
When I hit the gas and speed away, leaving Carrie on the road, I am angry, embarrassed, and hurt. How did I get it so wrong? How did I fall so quickly for her? Was I played?
My face burns with shame. She had her chance. If she wants me, she has to do the work now. I'm not going to get my hand bit again.
Chapter 6
As Good As It Gets
Ryan
Ihadn’trealizedIwas holding my breath until Babs says, “yes” to me. That first day I met her returns in a flash.
Am I subconsciously worried she'll reject me again?
Now, sitting in front of her, asking her to lunch, my stomach flip-flops in anticipation. Sheesh. Hold it together man. She just buried her father. You’re just taking her to lunch and catching up on old times. And grilling her to find out what she’s been up to for the last ten years. Because this woman has always been in the back of your mind making you wonder what it would have been like if she’d said yes.
I catch myself staring at her way too long. I probably look like a complete idiot. While I was away from the truck, she pulled her hair into a ponytail, making her look less formal. More like the Babs I remember.
She tilts her head and smiles, a question in her eyes.
Blinking, I look away, concentrating on my laptop. I get the screen to jump to life and I go to the New Orders page. “Okay, I need some information from you before someone can look at the car and figure out what’s wrong.”
She leans back in her chair, crossing and uncrossing her legs. The black lace of her dress emphasizes the tan of her legs. Hm. Tan and Seattle. Two words I don’t normally associate with each other. Long and legs. Definitely words I associate with Babs.
I force myself not to look at her legs and focus on the screen. I know the questions by heart, but there’s no way I’m going to let her catch me ogling her again. Besides, I can get every detail I need about her under the guise of work. “Address and phone number?” I ask, schooling my face to be professional.And I revel in every new detail she divulges. This time around, I'm not going to let her slip out of my life so easily.
When I’m done getting the necessary information about her car, I stand. “Gimme five minutes to get out of these soggy clothes and then I'll take you to lunch.”
“Do you have any idea how long it will take to repair the car?” she asks.
“Not until they know what’s wrong,” I say, shaking my head. “I’ll pull some strings and make sure someone checks it out ASAP.”
