She holds the book up. “This might be a while.”
“Alyssa,” I say quietly, moving closer. “Take all the time you want. I have nowhere to be, and I can honestly say, there’s nowhere else I’d rather be. I saw a vending machine in the lobby. Why don’t I grab us a couple of coffees?”
“That would be nice, thank you,” she says and the sweet look of pure gratitude on her face fucks me over a bit. Leaving her alone with her grandmother, I fish change from my pocket and walk through the nursing home. A few heads turn my way, but I stare at the floor, and only lift my eyes when I reach the machine. I grab a couple of coffees and head back.
Surely to God, her grandmother didn’t recognize me. Didn’t put Alek and charmer together to come up with my nickname The Puck Charmer. I shake my head. It has to be impossible. She barely recognized her own granddaughter, and even if she was still watching hockey, playoffs were over months ago.
I quietly slip back into the room and Alyssa doesn’t miss her stride as she accepts the steaming cup of coffee. I sit back and cross my foot over my leg, closing my eyes as I follow along, but soon realize she’s reading a romance. I grin at that, finding this whole situation completely adorable. After about a half an hour, Rose’s soft breathing sounds fill the room and Alyssa sets the book down.
“Ready?”
“Only if you are. I don’t mind staying longer.”
“She probably needs her rest.” I stand, and Alyssa fixes the flowers in the vase before she leaves, and I follow her out. She’s quiet on the walk to the car, and barely says a word as I drive her back to my place.
“You’re a good granddaughter,” I say when we reach my front door.
She smiles. “She was always so good to me.” She places her palm on my cheek. “You were sweet to stay for so long.”
That’s a funny thing for her to say, considering I never stay anywhere for very long. Eventually I’ll move on. I always do. This town won’t be different from any other I’ve been in.
Why then, does that idea bounce around inside my stomach like a runaway puck?
7
Alyssa
I awake to a bird chirping outside my window, and my mind instantly goes back to last night, and the way I tossed and turned restlessly in the most comfortable bed I’ve ever had the privilege of sleeping in. I couldn’t settle down after a hard day’s work. Likely because the hottest guy on the planet was in the room next to me, and my imagination was on hyperdrive. The only way I could finally get to sleep was to give in to my imagination and touch myself beneath the warm sheets.
Seriously though, long before we visited with my grandmother, I had every intention of seducing Alek. Neither of us were hiding the fact that we wanted each other—heck, he told me I gave him a hard on—but when we returned back to his friend’s house, his mood shifted to mellow, and he grew quiet, so different from how he was all day.
The guy is definitely a contradiction, and I was a little confused by the shift in his behavior, so I left him to his thoughts and called it an early night. Maybe he doesn’t want to start something with me because he’s leaving. Maybe he thinks I’m the type of girl who’s looking for long term. He’d be so wrong about that. Been there done that, and I know better than to expect anyone to stay.
I roll and wince at the sun streaming in through the crack of the curtain. I might as well get up and get an early start of it. I make a trip to the bathroom, tie my hair back and climb into a fresh pair of overalls. I gather all my things, and plan my escape, figuring I’ll never set eyes on Alek again. I should probably be happy about that. Do I really want to get mixed up with a guy like him? Yeah, I do. But it’s not wise.
My door creaks when I open it and I wait a second. With the all-clear, I tip toe down the stairs. Before I leave, I dig a few bills from my purse and put them on the table. I search for a notepad and pen and leave him an old-fashioned note. This is better than texting, and I don’t have his number anyway.
Once finished, I head outside and jump into Moxie. I don’t know why I have this strange sense of betrayal tugging at me. Maybe because I told him I’d stay for twenty-four hours and
I’m sneaking out. But my head is perfectly fine, and I’m no longer dizzy, and he is not responsible for me. I’ve been taking care of myself for a very long time, although I have to admit, it was rather nice having someone care. I head home, and drive past his abandoned car on Main Street. It’s a bit of a walk for him, which is why I left cab money.
Back at home, I head to the kitchen for a much-needed cup of coffee. As I drink, I make a list of things to do, and print off a few more fliers to hang at the garden center. While they’re printing, I head to the kitchen to make a sandwich, and when I do, I spot my journal peeking out from underneath a stack of papers I keep forgetting to recycle.
I pull it out and run my hand over the cover. Mixed emotions curl through me as I crack the binding. It’s been a long time since I looked through it. Starting a bucket list was a project in my senior year, and I’ve added to it since then. With another cup of coffee in hand, I drop down into the chair, and grin as I read through my list. A few make me laugh, a few I roll my eyes at, and a few are so ridiculous I wonder why I ever wrote them in the first place. Yeah, no way in hell would I let Alek look through this list. Not that I have to worry about that. I think I left a pretty good message when I snuck out earlier.
I jump when my printer jams, and tug out the mangled piece of paper. Once I get it going again, I make a sandwich and place it, along with some fruit, into my cooler, and head to Greenleaf to grab a few shrubs that were on backorder for Mrs. Henderson’s garden. I pin my fliers to the board inside. I’m really hoping to get a few more big jobs like Mrs. Henderson’s. They’ll go a long way in paying the bills over the winter when times are tight.
My cell rings, and my heart jumps, but then I remember Alek doesn’t have my number. My God, I wish I wasn’t so excited thinking it might be him. I slide my hand across the screen, and have a quick conversation with Mr. Fraser, who needs his lawn mowed. I put him on my list of things to do, and go about grabbing bags of fresh soil and fertilizer. Fortunately, Eli is here to help me today. Although, after I ring in my purchases, I suddenly realize I won’t need him to do the heavy lifting.
“Step aside.”
My heart jumps into my throat at the sound of Alek’s voice. I turn to find him tugging on a pair of gloves and handling the cart like it’s his business to do so. I glare at him, even though my stupid stomach is doing some weird happy dance that might resemble the macarena.
Get it together, girl.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
His look is pure confusion when his eyes meet mine. “Loading this onto the back of your cart. What does it look like I’m doing?”