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Compared to the way she was acting toward me, this is like a breath of fresh air.
“So, what do I need to do?” I ask after a minute, letting her calm down before shoving my hands in my pockets. Am I supposed to help her with this stuff?
Twisting around, Melanie’s still smiling and she might as well squeeze my heart herself because there’s an ache throbbing in my chest that’s not going away any time soon.
“You can take a seat somewhere. I’ve got to write about my findings and collect some samples. It’ll bore you to tears, I’m sure.” As if catching herself in letting loose, her smile falters. Biting her lip, her fingers tangle with the bag strap on her shoulder as she stirs. “Sound good?”
“Sounds great,” I correct in hopes of bringing that smile back. I think I’ll be willing to do whatever it is to make her feel more comfortable. My acceptance must do something because the corners of her mouth do lift slightly. A win is a win.
Abandoning her, I find a nearby tree to sit under. The grass is thankfully not wet and the shade helps block out the sun. With the humid air and the constant buzzing of bugs and wildlife, I swear I can fall asleep if I close my eyes. Instead of napping, I keep my eyes trained on the plant researcher.
If I need an excuse to watch her, then we’ll blame it on the task at hand. Even if it’s not the truth, Melanie doesn’t need to know I’m somewhat more interested in her than the plants she’s getting excited about. After all, I don’t want to go scaring her off more than I already have.
Melanie
Okay, so Quinn isn’t as bad as I thought. I still have a problem with the guy, one that doesn’t seem like it’s going away any time soon.
It takes a few visits at our first stop to get everything I need for my research and Quinn has never complained once, not that I know of. Honestly, he doesn’t even talk enough to actually complain. Maybe he doesn’t want to distract me with conversation. Little does he know that talking would be a far better distraction than what he’s actually been doing.
The guy won’t stopstaringat me.Ever since I’ve met him, his eyes are always pointed in my direction. Even though he’s brought a knife with him to carve sticks to help pass the time, I don’t think he ever looks away from my direction.
He’s taking watching over me to an entirely new level, even going to the extent of moving resting places if I ever drift off too far.
My problem is the fact that I don’t hate it, not like I should. Instead of my skin crawling, I get goosebumps. It’s a terrible reaction and once they come, I tend to forget what I’m doing and my mind goes all over the place. I start to wonder how he’d feel about certain things.
Such as, what if I ducked into the tall stalks of flowers and disappeared? Would he freak out over a hopeless researcher, or would he finally give me five seconds without being under his gaze that is impossible to ignore? Or, what if I just made a run for it? Will he chase after me?
I get dirt on my forehead when I cover my flushed cheeks. I’m so embarrassed. Instead of focusing on my plants, I’m wanting to test Quinn like I’m researchinghiminstead.
“Everything alright?” Just like that, he notices my pause in digging.
If I give him some excuse, he’ll find a way to turn it around. If I complain about being hot, he’ll offer water. If I accidentally got something in my eye, he’ll want to take a closer look.
“All is well,” I tell him instead, dropping my hands and hoping he doesn’t know why my cheeks are radiating a pinkish hue.
I still have many spots to hit on this mountain. How am I supposed to thrive under these conditions? Sure, I can always tell him to stop staring, but it would be a lie if I said I didn’t enjoy being watched.
It’s like I’ve gone from a burden to discovering something far more precious. The idea makes my stomach swell with tingles even now. I seriously need to get my priorities straight.
Quinn’s a big brute who’s only here to keep me from falling off some cliff. He doesn’t care about my safety outside of this mountain. I could skin my knee outside of the research facility and he wouldn’t even bat an eye. Right?
Focusing on the task at hand, I try not to pay him any more attention than I already have. If I turn around and look at the guy, I know I’ll just see that pinched, brooding expression of his.
Once I’m done packing my bag with all my samples, I stand up and dust my knees off. After going an hour breathing in this floral scent up close, I’m a bit lightheaded. In a large field, the smell is overbearing. Knowing I still need to take notes, I bite the bullet and move toward Quinn.
The shade he’s sitting under feels lovely. I’m sighing with relief the moment the sun’s not assaulting my body. I’ve definitely got a tan going on. Last week, I burned my poor face. Never again.
He doesn’t speak when I join him, only grunting when I plop down at his side. I try to avoid his wood shavings, keeping a good foot between our bodies.
“You’re getting better at that,” I offer up when I see the marks on the stick he’s currently working on. “Reminds me of a wand or something. It’s neat.”
“Thanks.” It’s not much, but the deepness of his voice is all it takes to make me forget what I’m supposed to be doing. Maybe that wand is what’s frying my thoughts.
Focus, Melanie.
Clearing my throat, I dig around my bag and tug out my notebook. Where did my pen go? I’ve got so much going on inside that it takes me a moment to hunt one down.
“Melanie.”
