“You’re still shaking. I am so sorry,” he said gently, stroking my palm gently with his thumb. “I’m Nolan Briggs, by the way.”
“Sharolyn Cooper,” I said automatically. My voice sounded incredibly small in the quiet of this room, but then a burst of applause trickled down the hallway from the huge event space.
“Sharolyn is a beautiful name,” he said softly. Then he set my hand down and stood up. “It’s probably almost my turn to be sacrificed to the wolves.”
It was so odd seeing such a big, impressive man stopping everything to take care of a little nobody in the kitchen. “If you can calm your breathing, the adrenaline rush will relax a bit,” I heard myself saying. “The heart and lungs are constantly transmitting messages. If the lungs are relaxed and the respiratory rate is slow and steady, the brain receives the message that everything is fine and there’s no reason to keep flooding you with adrenaline and cortisol.”
Nolan cocked his head, looking absolutely delighted. “How did you know that?”
“I have stage fright just from speaking with strangers,” I admitted. “So I study this sort of system control stuff to try to get by.”
He nodded, and dropped his shoulders, taking a few slow deep breaths. “Thank you so much, Sharolyn. I really appreciate it.”
There was another voice booming from the hall, sounding like an announcement. “Good luck,” I called out as he rushed off down the corridor. I wondered if he was up right away.
Sitting very still, I forced myself to take a few breaths as well. What the heck just happened? A strange man had popped out of nowhere, scaring the daylights out of me, but was then so concerned for me that he held my hand to try to comfort me.
My hand should not have still been tingling where he touched me. I didn’t know whether that meant I had truly been craving a man’s touch, or that he was simply the most gorgeous guy I had ever laid eyes on.
Forcing myself to get moving, I finished the last two trays of cookies at lightning speed, packing everything away, and setting parchment over the gingerbread men as if I was tucking them into bed for the night.
I tiptoed down the hall to the doors at the very back of the event space. I couldn’t help it. I really wanted to catch just a minute of his speech. I could lie to myself and say that it was curiosity, but I also needed to re-examine that incredibly chiseled jawline.
His rich voice was speaking about facing challenges head-on, and using the turn of the New Year as a point of reflection. He suggested that we look beyond ourselves, to how we can reach out to others. He also suggested that we attempt to filter out some negativity, and promote positivity. Everyone can spare two minutes online to promote causes or spread good news, and perhaps be a bit slower to share horror stories.
Nolan was hypnotic. He was an amazing speaker. There was something about those deep eyes and booming voice that was absolutely riveting. He should be a movie star. Glancing around, I saw every woman staring at him as if he was the only thing they wanted for Christmas.
“And now I challenge each of you,” Nolan said with a wide grin. “What’s something big and brave, or tiny and wonderful that you can do today?”
There were a few answers called out from people at the front, but I couldn’t hear them without microphones.
“Amazing,” Nolan said to them. “Thank you so much for listening, and Happy Holidays and New Year!”
A similar looking man in a crisp suit, but slightly younger and slimmer, came out to shake his hand. He was the face on the brochure - Richard Briggs, the CEO of Briggs Holdings who was sponsoring this event. “A round of applause for my big brother, everyone!”
As Nolan turned to walk off the stage, Richard stopped him. “Hey wait. Nolan, what big, brave thing are you going to do today?”
He chuckled. “Besides speak to a huge room full of people?” While he waited for the laughter to fade, I stared at that rugged, handsome face. Although he did look pretty tough, once he got talking, he was unbelievably sweet. I wondered what he was like when he was relaxed, and chatting normally.
Nolan leaned into the microphone. “Can you all keep a secret?” There was a murmur, and the room became quiet. “I just met the most gorgeous woman I have ever seen in my life. She works here in the kitchen.” He paused, then nodded to himself. “I’m going to go ask her out.”
Three things happened at precisely the same time. The crowd burst into laughter and encouraging applause, with yells of, “Go get her!” Nolan looked up across the room, grinning to the audience, but he saw me staring right at him. And I backed out the door before I could hear another word.
Tearing down the hall, I darted into the prep area, grabbed my purse and jacket, and bolted out the back door. I don’t think I took a full breath until I was on the streetcar, headed across town to my apartment. I was breathless, and not from running to the stop. My hands were shaking, I felt flushed, and I didn’t even know why.
He hadn’t said my name. None of the organizers would know who he meant. Maybe he didn’t even mean me. Trying to slow my breathing, I convinced myself that I was being silly. There was no way he would ever have even noticed me if I hadn’t burst in on him. He was likely just playing to the crowd, telling a charming story.
I stared out the window, overwhelmed with relief. I made it through another rough day, I was closer to getting through this fairly lonely season without my family, and I was almost home. Tea and leftover pizza would both be in my hands within twenty minutes.
My gaze danced over the holiday lights, the bright red signs, and the snowy parks. Toronto was beautiful in December, even when it was a soggy mess. Lost in the haze of exhaustion, I almost didn’t hear my stop being called.
Ringing the bell quickly, I rushed to the rear doors of the streetcar, looking to the right before I stepped off to be sure no bikes or careless drivers were about to flatten me. But there was only one bright orange cab, stopped a polite distance back, pausing to let someone out.
Stepping down carefully, I quickly turned left as soon as I was safely on the slippery sidewalk, heading up the street.
“Hey, Sharolyn!” a deep voice boomed.
I jumped, spinning into Nolan’s arms, staring up into eyes that were so gorgeous my stomach did a flip.