Chapter 4
Encounter
Grace awoke the next morning feeling like packed dirt. Worse, she knew what it meant. Strike three came when she discovered she was freshly out of tampons. She had exactly one left, thank heavens, and she needed it that morning.
“Why the hell didn’t I notice it before now and get some when I was at the store last?”
She briefly debated whether or not to buy a few pads from the hospital supply closet, but administration frowned on personnel using them as an on-site supermarket.
Of course, there was a chance she could wheedle Bernie into letting her have a couple of pads to get her through until lunchtime when she could make a dash for the corner drugstore.
But, again, if admin somehow found out, she’d face disciplinary action.
Grace checked the time. If she hauled ass now, she could pick up a box from the dollar store on her way to work. Tearing off a sheet of paper towel, she grabbed her toaster pastries to dashboard dine and rushed out the door.
The nearest Grab-n-Go Dollar Store was midway between her apartment and the hospital.
“And on my side of the road!” It was a fortuitous happenstance.
She didn’t have to worry about going up to the next intersection and waiting for the light or for traffic to thin out enough to make a U-turn in order to get to it.
Then doing the same thing again once she had her purchase to put her back on track.
“I can run in, get a box, and pay in less than five minutes! Tops!” She made a face.
“Hopefully.” She gave another check of the time, glancing at the clock on her dashboard. Five minutes she could easily spare.
Fate was smiling down on her. A car was pulling out of a parking slot in front of the store as she pulled in. She took advantage of the opportunity and pulled in.
The clerk behind the counter greeted her with a, “Welcome to Grab-n-Go!” when she entered.
Although she’d been to this location before in the past, it wasn’t for the particular item she had in mind.
Pausing beside a display of snack chips, she looked for the sign that would give her a clue as to where the tampons would be.
“Can I help you with something?” the clerk inquired.
Grace kept her voice low. “Tampons?”
Smiling, the female clerk whispered back, “Aisle three.”
“Thanks!”
Unfortunately, the direct way to aisle three was blocked by a cart filled with cardboard boxes. Items the clerk was unloading and putting out on the shelves between waiting on customers. Undeterred, Grace turned down the adjacent aisle in order to reach her target via the back way.
She ignored the books, stationery, markers and pens, and blank journals as she strode past them.
She almost swept past the man perusing the coloring books and kids’ workbooks until her hunk radar alerted her.
She couldn’t help herself, and she allowed herself a few precious seconds to slow down and get an eyeful.
Tall, check.
Built, check.
Handsome…depending on what she could see, oh, yeah. Check.
The man sensed her studying him and looked over at her. He removed the sunglasses he wore, folded in one earpiece, and stuck the other earpiece inside the neckline of his t-shirt. His light gray gaze was almost spellbinding, and when he smiled…
“Do you work here?” he asked in a voice that seemed to rumble from his chest.
“Uh, no. Sorry.” Her attention dropped to the book in his hands.
It was one of those hard cardboard books meant for toddlers and pre-school children.
The cover showed a cartoonish little boy sitting atop a pig, along with the title Peter Rides a Pink Pig.
Her curiosity got the better of her, and she just had to ask, “Is there something I can help you with?”
He held up the book. “My…nephew… Will this help teach him all the colors?”
All the colors? She gave him a smile that was half amusement and half patience. “That depends on how many colors you want to introduce to him. I mean…” She chuckled. “Considering there’s so many variations to every specific color…”
He frowned. Actually, he looked perturbed. She couldn’t help herself.
“But he doesn’t need to know all those variations just yet. How old is your nephew?”
He looked at the cover again. “Three. He’s three years old.”
She noted that a banner on the cover read Ages 3+. A part of her wanted to tell him she didn’t believe he had a nephew, but common sense told her to stay out of it. Maybe he just learned he’s an uncle. Or maybe his family member adopted a three-year-old boy.
She held out a hand. “May I?”
He turned it over to her, and she quickly checked the contents.
“A white wolf, a black bat. There’s red, yellow, orange. It has the color and the word. That’s good. Blue, green, purple, brown, gray.” She gave him a smile as she returned it to him. “It has all the basics. That’s all he’ll need to begin with.”
His smile returned. It almost seemed grateful. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. He’ll like it.” She added a, “Good luck!” and hurried to the end of the aisle. She’d spent too much precious time with the guy. But in all honesty, she didn’t regret it. Something about the man made their brief interaction worth her possibly punching in late at work.
“Too bad I couldn’t get his name. Then again, he’s probably already taken. Men like him always are, damn it.”
She discovered her good luck had run out when she reached aisle three and discovered there were no more tampons. Instead, she was forced to buy pads. No biggie. She made a mental note to go by the grocery store on her way home that evening.
Mr. Tall, Built, and Wearing His Sunglasses Again was already at the checkout when she joined him.
Her first inclination was to shield the box of maxi pads from his view, then scoffed at herself and set them firmly on the counter where he couldn’t miss it.
Far be it from her to be embarrassed by her womanly menstrual cycle.
If the guy found it repugnant, tough shit.
Of course, the man glanced over at the box and seemed to take a deep sniff. Or maybe it was her imagination. Regardless, he paid for the book and accepted the plastic bag from the clerk, along with his change. But before he left, he cast Grace one more of those award-winning smiles.
“Thanks again for the help.”
“You’re welcome again,” she countered.
Not gonna lie, she had to watch as he exited the store, unchained a ten-speed bike from the handicapped parking sign pole, and pedaled away. When she turned to the clerk, she discovered the woman was also admiring the man’s rear view.
“He rode a bike?” Grace remarked with a snicker. “You’d think a guy that good-looking would be driving a Maserati, or something that just screams sex, right?”
The clerk laughed as she scanned Grace’s purchase.
“Well, you never know. Maybe he did, but he lost his license for speeding or whatever, and that’s the only way he can get around.
” She checked outside again, but the customer was no longer in sight.
“I wouldn’t mind buying a bicycle just to be able to join him,” the woman admitted.
Grace laughed. “You and me both.”
She paid for her purchase and left the store.
Once she was inside her vehicle, she opened the box to stuff a few pads into her purse.
That done, she continued on her way to work.
She also kept her eyes open, hoping to catch a glimpse of the hunk on the bicycle.
Although she didn’t, she didn’t lose hope she might see him again sometime in the near future.
At least, it was a nice daydream.