Chapter 26 Phoebe #2
He’s so tired, I can hear light snores before my feet have even hit the floor. Good, he needs to sleep. Their game tomorrow night is make-or-break. If they lose, their season’s over. It’s only a five-game series, and they lost the first two.
I shower and dress in the bathroom as quietly as possible. Whispering a quiet goodbye to Ollie, I slip out of the bedroom and grab my stuff. I’m walking to work because I don’t want to leave Ollie without a car. I leave the key on the counter and send a quick text.
Me: Left a key to my car on the counter in case you need it. I should be home a little bit past noon. Help yourself to anything in the fridge.
The morning is steadily busy, selling lots of donuts and cinnamon rolls.
My wrist feels fine even when I pour the infrequent cup of coffee.
Most of our regular customers buy coffee from The Caffeinated Cow coffee shop across the walking bridge on the other side of the Village.
Our coffee isn’t that great, and the Cow’s baked goods are sad.
Jack and the highland-cow-shifter owner of the coffee shop have a feud going on.
They accuse each other of stealing customers.
It’s obvious they should work together, but they’re stubborn. Not my problem.
I’m boxing up half a dozen cinnamon rolls when Andie appears behind the donut display that opens into the kitchen part of the bakery.
“Um…Phoebe…look behind you,” she whispers.
“Why?” The way her eyes are wide has me kind of freaked out. Andie is usually unflappable. I close the box and tape it shut before taking a deep breath and bracing myself to turn around.
My heart leaps when I see Ollie standing there, but my elation fades when I see the serious expression on his face.
This isn’t happy Ollie or even bashful Ollie.
This is an Ollie I haven’t seen before. I hand my customer their box of yummies, tell my coworkers I’m going to step away for a few minutes, then holler to Jack that I’m taking my fifteen-minute break.
I step from behind the counter and wrap my arms around Ollie’s waist. He hugs me back, but his body’s radiating tension.
“You okay?” I ask, looking up into his face. His brows are drawn together, and his jaw is clenched.
“Hmm…”
“Let’s step outside,” I say, taking his hand and leading him out the door.
“It’s cold, Phoebe.”
The saucy wink I throw over my shoulder lifts a corner of his lips, so that’s a win. “You’ll have to keep me warm then, Ollie.”
He gives my hand a gentle squeeze. Hand in hand, we walk along the brick walkway past the quaint shops. It is cold, and a shiver runs through me.
“If I had a jacket, I’d give it to you,” he says.
Leading us into a gazebo along the bank of the lake in the middle of the Village, I sit on the bench, and Ollie sits next to me, wrapping his arm around me.
“You’re so warm,” I say, snuggling into him. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m pissed off,” he says in a voice so low it’s more like a grumble.
Stiffening, my mind goes blank. He’s done with me, with us. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I gather my courage.
“Why?” I ask.
“You didn’t wake me up to drive you to work!”
“What? It’s only ten minutes. I walk it all the time, I need the exercise. Today was a late day.”
His arm around me tightens, and I don’t think he realizes it because his whole body is tightening.
“So you’re out walking in the dark? Phoebe, no! You can’t do that! It’s not safe.”
It’s my turn to stiffen. “Are you forbidding me?”
As much as I want to be loved and cherished, I don’t want to be restricted. I’m a grown, independent woman, and I’m not giving that up to be with a man. Not even Ollie.
The man proves how smart he is by thinking before he responds.
“No,” he says, sighing. “I’m requesting you don’t because it scared the shit out of me to realize you walked here alone so early. I was driving myself crazy, worrying that something had happened to you. I couldn’t relax until I saw you behind the counter, but then I got pissed.”
He’s blinking rapidly behind his glasses. OMG, he’s got tears in his eyes. That breaks my heart.
“Easier to be pissed than scared?” I feel all the tension leave his body.
“Yeah. If anything happened to you, Phoebe, I couldn’t take it. I lo—need you to be careful.”
My breath catches. Did I imagine he almost said he loved me? Is it wishful thinking?
“O…okay. But you gotta be careful too. I love watching you play, but it scares me. You all zip around so fast and hit each other, and the skates are so sharp. I’ve seen the videos where things go horribly wrong.” I swallow thickly. “I can’t lose you,” I whisper.
He wraps both arms around me and the cold completely disappears. “You will never lose me, Phoebe. I’m yours. I…”
Gobble! Gobble! Honk!
It comes from directly behind us, causing us both to jump.
We turn to look over the rail of the gazebo, and there’s not only a giant male wild turkey, but a Canada goose too.
Staring at us like we challenged them to a duel or something.
Wings start flapping like they’re going to fly over the rail and attack us. Have they unionized?
Jumping up, we rush from the gazebo and away from the birds. I hate how our moment was ruined, but I must get back to work.
Ollie looks over his shoulder and then down at me.
“Is that the turkey you tripped over?” he asks. I think if I said it was, he’d go back and kick his ass.
“I don’t know. Could be, but there are a few turkeys around here, and they all look the same.”
An indignant “gobble-gobble” reaches us like I’ve deeply insulted him.
“Time to get back to work,” I say. “Have you heard from the movers?”
He nods as he looks at his watch. “Yeah, they’ll be there at eleven. Finn is coming over, probably with your sister. I’m leaving your car here.” He fishes in the pocket of his jeans that fit his long legs and glorious hockey ass so well.
I hold out my hand for the key, but he pulls me toward him gently.
“Enjoy the rest of your shift. See you when you get home.” There’s a low, sexy rumble to his voice that makes my lady bits tingle.
Home. To him. This is what I’ve dreamed of, and it’s finally happening. Now it’s my eyes filling with tears that I hurriedly blink away. I go on my tiptoes to press a way-too-brief kiss to his lips before stepping back. People are walking around and noticing us. Shit.
We walk together to the bakery. It’s busier than when I left, and people are pointing at us and raising their cameras.
Ollie’s steps slow as he realizes how much attention we’re garnering.
There’s panic in his eyes. I don’t want to kiss him to please a crowd, so I hug him and go on tiptoe to whisper in his ear, “Consider yourself kissed.”
He’s chuckling as I lower back down, and he presses a kiss to the top of my head. The panic is gone and replaced with a mischievous gleam when he leans down and whispers, “I don’t know everything, but I know that’s not how it works. I expect to collect later.”
My cheeks are pink when I say goodbye and slip back into the bakery to resume my shift—and it’s not from the cold. This is a debt I can’t wait to pay.