Chapter 1 #2
When the cell phone had landed at her feet she'd been surprised and prepared to offer a few words of consolation to whoever owned it, but when she'd looked up and seen the handsome man on the stairs coming down from the elevated train, she'd lost some of her good sense.
It had been a long time since she'd seen a man who could turn her dumb with a single look.
Okay, she'd never been struck dumb by a guy.
Ever.
Mild interest? Sure.
Drooling over a few hot actors on TV like Taylor Kinney from Chicago Fire?
Absolutely!
But a long time ago she'd set her sights on a career. (what is her family like? why would she be so career driven)
And now she was weeks away from becoming a Registered Nurse and nothing, absolutely nothing would get in her way.
Taking the man she'd met to a local Tellnet office was just her good deed for the day.
Nothing earth shattering.
Right?
Right, her inner voice mocked her, Keep telling yourself that.
She really couldn't argue back.
It wasn't just that the man was hot with an AW in the middle of it, instead of the O.
He had a smile that would and had made her melt.
Thank goodness it was fall in Center City so at least she wasn't in danger of turning into a puddle at his feet.
She turned her head to get another look at the man.
After all, she only had about forty feet left of time with him.
He was tall, a good four or five inches taller than she was.
It was a good height, she reasoned.
And he looked like he worked for a living. He looked fit, not the kind of muscle that was from body building, but something active, hands on.
Oh my, she smiled to herself. If she wasn't studying like a fiend for her last exams, she wouldn't mind getting 'hands on' with him.
Those arms... Wait.
She stopped short on the sidewalk, and he stopped walking to move back to her side.
"You okay?" His eyes narrowed slightly, and a muscle moved in his jaw.
"Me? Yeah." She shook her head. "I was just wondering," she let her gaze move over his arms again. "Aren't you... cold?"
He looked down at his arms before lifting his face and smiling at her. "A little." Then he shrugged. "I thought about buying a coat while I was still in Hawaii, but it felt a little like guessing. I thought I could get away with buying a coat here. Save me some space in my bag."
He shrugged and she saw the bottom of his duffel bag peek around his arm.
"Yeah," she nodded, seeing the logic in his words, "I doubt you see a lot of cold weather in Hawaii."
"A few places, yeah, but not in my area. It was still over eighty degrees for a few days before I left. So buying a heavy coat felt kind of stupid."
Lexie thought it over for a second and said the first thing in her head, which was not always the best idea.
"I have a couple of classes this morning, but I'm free in the afternoon. I can take you to a place to get some clothes that will be better suited to Center City weather. That is," she pressed her lips together, wetting them a little, "if you want some help."
"Given that most of my clothes are T-shirts and shorts, and a few pairs of pants, I'm going to need a little help."
"I'm a helpful kind of person!"
Oh my goodness! Did I just say that?
How stupid did I sound?
"Uh..." she felt her molars grind together as she gestured to the door just beyond a planter. "That's the Tellnet Office there."
Her shoulders sagged.
Why was she so stupid in front of him?
She took a step back, hugging her books tighter to her chest. "I need to get to my class."
She didn't get a chance for a quick escape.
"Wait!"
He moved closer to her and reached into his pocket. "Give me a minute to find a pen so I can get your phone number."
They both stared at each other as if they were shocked that he'd said anything at all.
"I mean, if you have the time to help me find a decent coat before I freeze to death."
His smile looked a little pained and she wondered if they were both feeling a little of the same awkward embarrassment.
She set her books down on the lip of the massive cement planter and pulled out a pen and paper from her purse. "I've always got notepaper in my bag," she explained for no real reason, "I'm always writing stuff down to remember it."
"Then you're better at remembering things than I am," he chuckled softly as she wrote out her first name and her phone number.
She paused after she'd finished, making sure that the numbers were legible. "I'd like to say that's true, but unless it's about medical jargon or an episode of Chicago Fire, my mind can be like a sieve."
Lexie held out a piece of paper and the pen she'd just used.
He looked a little confused for a moment and it gave her time to second guess the offer.
"Can I get your number, or-"
The paper pulled free of her fingers before she could figure out what to say next.
"Sorry," he murmured as he wrote on the notepaper, "my brain kind of blanked out for a moment there."
"Ah," she smiled, telling herself, I know that feeling. "I didn't want to assume."
He smiled brightly at that.
"My mom always told us that if you assume, it makes an ass out of 'u' and me.
" He handed her the paper and pen back. "Thanks," he looked down at the paper she'd given him and then back up at her, "Lexie.
For the help in getting here and for the offer to keep me from freezing.
It... I feel like moving here... is going to be a really good thing. "
With a smile so bright she thought he might have winked at her, he took a step backward before he turned around to go into the cell phone store.
She stayed there beside the planter until the door closed behind him and then she headed off to her class.
Almost forgetting to grab her books off the edge of the planter.
Oh boy, she told herself, I think you're in trouble!