Eight
Ryan
By the time we get back to Sylvie’s car, it’s nearing rush hour. It’s not cold but her little white capped sleeve button up blouse and Capri pants can’t be keeping her warm. She has periodically rubbed at her arms, but not complained once.
I don’t want to step on her toes, assuming she can’t change the tire, but she doesn’t disagree when I offer. I’ve been changing tires since I was a kid. I’ve always been a hands-on kind of guy.
Helping women out might be looked at differently these days but my mom always taught me to be chivalrous. So long as the person on the receiving end of it doesn’t take offence.
Sylvie stays close by, watching. She chatters away about anything and everything and I grin while I work, throwing in some questions to keep her going.
She’s nervous again. I get it. After our last meeting, I didn’t think I’d see her again. As I was making my escape from my cousin’s questions and the firehouse, I spotted her car. The distinctive logo on the sign caught by eye first.
Then the woman crouched down holding her head in her hands made me pull over to help. It was obvious she had a flat the minute I got out of the car. I could have lectured her about the spare tire, but she looked annoyed enough at herself as it was.
Derek knocked off a good amount on the tire, telling Sylvie it was repurposed when it was brand new. I’m sure she realizes I got her a deal, just not that good of one.
The last nut is tightened, and I stand up, stretching out my back. Sylvie gets up from her seat on the sidewalk and watches as I lower the jack, so the car sits level on the road.
“Thank you, so much. You saved my butt.” She wipes at the seat of her pants to brush any dust away.
It’s a nice butt to save. “No problem,” I tell her instead of what I’m thinking. “Just glad I could help.”
“It’s really appreciated.”
“You know you still need to get another spare.”
“Don’t remind me,” she laughs. “I’ll get it sorted.”
Her phone beeps and she turns away to read it while I put the equipment away in the trunk.
“That was the towing company, they said they're free now,” she smiles with a shake of her head. “I told them someone already saved the day.”
“Not sure about that,” I close her trunk.
“Are you kidding, not only did you help me get the car roadworthy again. You took me to my client’s place too. Not many people would have done that.”
“You’re making me blush,” I grin.
Sylvie’s eyes widen slightly but she laughs back at me. Damn she has a great laugh, infectious.
There is no more reason to linger. Walking away right now feels kind of shitty. It was not what I was expecting to do this afternoon, but I’m glad I ran in to her again. Colt is right, there has been something on my mind the last few days.
My internet history will prove that given the number of times I’ve gone to Love in Bloom’s webpage.
“Here.” Sylvie is holding out a packet of wet wipes. “For your hands.”
“Thanks,” I take them and do as good a job as I can with getting the grease off my hands. “Are you going home now? Or back to work?”
“Home. Perks of being the boss. I’ve already called the girls and told them to close up for me. It’s been a day,” she says with a wry smile.
“Do you mind if I follow, just to make sure everything is okay?” Seriously. That sounded lame even to me. “That way if the tire falls off, I’ll be able to help.”
“If the tire falls off, I’ll be blaming you and fixing it myself, buddy.”
She laughs at my indignant look. We stare at each other for a moment, then she agrees. I hide the full-on smile until I’ve walked away towards my truck.
There is no reason for me to follow her. That tire is on properly, it will not fall off.
What I should have been doing this afternoon while I’m off shift is pick some things up from the hardware store. I’ve been working on a rear extension at the house for a couple of years now and it’s finally watertight and open to the rest of the ground floor.
This is a pleasant reprieve. I’d much rather be helping a beautiful woman than picking up drywall. As I follow, I come to a decision. I’m going to forget she didn’t tell me who she was on our first date, and focus on who she really is.
She may have lied, but she made me laugh. She’s thoughtful and selfless and has a lot of interesting stories. Sylvie cares about her work and doesn’t like to let people down. It’s written all over her face how bad she felt not telling me the truth on our date.
She’s hot as hell too. That woman today was wrong about her appearance. Her wild curly hair and stained knees only made her more appealing to me. Plus, she has a pet tortoise who she calls a little asshole, then cuddles.
I’m going to ask her on an actual date.
We pull into a small cul-de-sac with about six houses. Lights are glowing in most of them, two are dark and one has its porch lights blazing. It’s quiet, the houses are all one level, with attached garages and front lawns. In my head, she lived in some quirky style apartment.
She pulls her car onto the drive with no mishaps. I park on the street, get out and walk up the path. I could have just waved from the truck but again, that chivalrous thing is taking over and I want to see her into the house.
“Looks like you did an okay job,” she jokes, as she grabs her purse and straightens her blouse.
“I’ll try not to brag.”
Sylvie laughs and locks her car. She looks up at her house and back at me. “Thank you again, for everything today. I would have lost a lot of money if I hadn’t got the flowers there on time.”
“It’s no problem, I’m sure you would do the same thing for me.”
“I can change a tire,” she points out as she walks towards her porch. Hers is the one with the lights on, even though it’s not quite dark yet.
She climbs the stairs and I wait at the bottom, holding onto the wooden railing and putting one foot up on the first step. Sylvie turns around and looks at me, her breath catching. Guess she likes what she sees too. Yeah, I am asking her out.
Before I get the chance, she surprises me.
“Do you want to come in for a drink? As a thank you,” she adds on hastily. “Also, I have some left over lasagna that I need to eat today and there is a lot.”
She’s rambling again. “I’d love to,” I say, climbing up the stairs. “Thanks.”
“Okay,” she stares for a second, then whirls around and unlocks her front door.
Inside, it’s got that bohemian look that I’d been imagining but it is all neat and smells of fresh flowers. I follow her through to the kitchen and she heads straight to the back door.
“Okay, time to go outside.”
“Why?” I ask.
“Oh,” she lets out a laugh. “Not you.”
Lurch is ambling towards the back door as Sylvie pushes it outwards. This is the surrealist thing ever. She waits for him to cross the threshold before closing the door over.
“How is he by the way, after his near death experience?”
“Fine, as you can see,” she nods and I look through the window. “I’ve hidden all the ribbon in the store when he comes in. Although he hasn’t been in since the incident.”
The tortoise heads across the grass to a small garden of vegetables. Is it always eating?
“Did you want to eat too? Or just a drink. Either is no problem.”
“I could eat.”
To emphasize that, I pat my stomach. Sylvie’s eyes trail the motion before she snaps herself out of it. She sets her things down, kicks off her shoes and washes her hands, telling me to help myself to a drink, pointing out where everything I need is.
“It only needs warming so shouldn’t be too long.”
“Could I wash up somewhere first?”
“Of course,” she gives me directions to the bathroom.
By the time I’m cleaned up, and after giving myself a pep talk, Sylvie has heated the lasagna and the house smells amazing. She sets the table for us and we sit down with the beers I got out.
“Am I the only one who thinks this is surreal?” she asks after settling her napkin in her lap.
“It doesn’t have to be,” I sip my beer and then lean forward putting an elbow on the table.
“It’s hard not to let it. What I did was terrible.”
“It was hardly terrible. Was it right, maybe not, but like I said the other day, I enjoyed the date. The woman I met that day was someone I wanted to see again. Even if it wasn’t who I thought it was going to be. You’re interesting, and funny.”
She sips her beer, hiding her face behind the glass.
“Not only did I have fun on our original date, I also got to meet Lurch and witness you saving his life,” I grin. “The little guy can run, huh?”
“He’s feisty when he wants food. He knows when I get home, he gets to go outside. Do you have any pets?”
“Not now. I had a dog, but he passed about three years ago, never had the heart to get another.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry. It’s hard when they die.”
This is getting a little morbid. I take a bite of the lasagna and close my eyes. I am kind of hungry. Wow.
“This is good. You made this?”
“Yeah, I like to cook.”
“Well, you’re good at it. And coming from someone with an Italian grandmother that says a lot.”
Sylvie smiles, it’s a broad, genuine smile. I can’t help but return it. We eat in silence for a while, which means I get to savor the taste of the food.
“Remember when we said we’d tell each other three things and at least one had to be funny?” I ask her. “I don’t think we got past the firehose and tortoise story.”
“Lurch has a way of taking over,” she replies with an eye roll.
“Is he okay out there?” I glance to the back door.
“He’s fine, he should spend more time outside.”
“Don’t you worry about other animals?”
“Not out here. We may get the occasional fox from the woods but only at night. He’s usually inside. You’d be surprised how big his claws are, and he has his shell if he needs to protect himself. It’s other tortoises that would be the real problem.”
She talks about tortoises fighting which sounds pretty wild.
“Lurch is a big old softie though. He nipped a bit when he was younger Grams said, but he grew out of it. Don’t forget he is fifteen years older than I am.”
“That sounds so weird,” I laugh.
“Yeah, he’s a good talking point.”
“So tell me something else about you,” I finish my last bite of lasagna and set my cutlery down, leaning back.
“After the excitement of Lurch,” she laughs. “I’m kind of a homebody,” she says a little shyly. “I like to read, curling up in a quiet corner. I’ve got a good group of friends, so we go out but nothing too wild.”
“Me too,” I tell her, which surprises her. “Work takes up a lot of my time. My social circle is the other firefighters too and we’re all super responsible.”
“Unless your pranking each other.”
“Yeah, we can be kind of immature too. I’m doing some work on my house at the moment, so that takes up my spare time too.”
“Having a good relationship with the people you work with is always a bonus. The girls at the shop are good friends.”
We chat for ages about our friends and family, places she’s traveled to and the ones I wish I had the time to get to. We avoid other romantic partners, and the first date is behind us. Things are taking a positive turn and our looks are lingering a bit more, her smiles are more coy and I’m not doing a great job of hiding my interest.
Sylvie refuses to let me clean up and tells me to take a seat in the living area. Guess she doesn’t want to send me packing just yet. That can only mean good things.
Tonight has been fun. We’ve shared a lot and the events of the first date are put behind us. I’m happy about that. I don’t like the thought of her being upset about that. What I did like, was her getting flirty tonight. The attraction is going both ways, for sure.
There are a few photographs in the sitting room, all of women who I assume are her mom, sister and grandma. When we had our date, I remember thinking she hadn’t mentioned any men being in her life which is evidenced here.
Sylvie calls that she wants to freshen up and she’ll be through shortly.
The couch is a three-seater, dark green with black decorative cushions. Settling into it, I lean back and get comfortable.
I’m glad I ran in to her today. I’d spent so long thinking about her and not knowing how to pick things back up. It’s fate that I ran into her the way I did. If I believed in things like that.
The meal was delicious, and the beer is a good brand. I set it on the table beside a paperback and lean back a little further.
Despite the good fortune bumping into Sylvie, it’s been a long day. The accident this morning took a lot out of me, mentally and physically. I’m coming off a three day shift too. Usually I take things easy after I get off.
My stomach is happy, I’ve had a nice time with her, and this house is giving off calming vibes.
I close my eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. This couch is comfortable. My head lolls and I jolt, shifting in the seat. Shit, I’m tired. I should get going. It’s at least a twenty-minute drive across town to get home.
My lids droop again. I’ll just rest until Sylvie comes back. Then I will ask her out to a proper dinner, while I’m still off shift. Also, I don’t want to lose any momentum with her. She’s really sweet.
Without realizing, my head drops forward and my chin hits my chest. I lose the battle with sleep.