Page 13 of Enemy Crush
He smiles and nods but looks a little off. Maybe it was the connection we shared when we touched. My hand is still tingling from it and I wonder what in the hell that was. Did I pinch a nerve in my arm? Was it because we were touching? Surely not. I’ve always been attracted to Pax, but I never in a million years thought anything could ever happen. Nor do I now. We’re on our way to being friends, sure, but that’s it. It can’t go any further, not that I think it is. Ugh, I’m just overthinking all of this.
I exit the restaurant and, the moment I step outside, I feel like I can breathe. I suck in a large gulp of oxygen and feel my head begin to float back down to my body. I feel a little dizzy like I’d been holding my breath. It must be all the wine. I’m not usually a big drinker but I had so much fun talking with Paxton that I forgot to limit myself.
With the evening being such a success, I rush home to get to work on my proposal. I remove my makeup, throw on some warm pajamas, and grab my laptop and take it to bed where I can crawl beneath the blankets and do some research. The sooner I figure this puzzle out the better because that means I’ll get to see Paxton that much sooner.
Chapter Eight
Paxton
Iwatch as she walks away from our table and I can’t keep my eyes off her round ass or long legs. This has always gotten me into trouble before, but I can’t help it. If someone doesn’t see how beautiful Stella is, they’re blind as far as I’m concerned. Luckily for me, she doesn’t turn around and catch me. Instead, she slips out the door and has vanished from my sight.
I toss down some cash for the tip, finish my drink, and stand to leave. I walk out of the restaurant just in time to see her car’s taillights drive off into the distance. My thoughts are filled with her as I walk over to my truck and climb behind the wheel. I twist the key and the engine roars to life. As much fun as I had with her tonight, I hope she can do what she says when it comes to keeping the store afloat. I tell myself that I need to put a block between the two of us. She’s doing this as a favor and I don’t need to mix work with pleasure. To be honest, Stella has always been work mixed with pleasure. Regardless, I don’t want to shatter her trust or ruin the friendship we’re starting to build. I will do my best at keeping my thoughts and feelings to myself when it comes to Stella.
I make it home and I let Bundy out of his cage. He flies around the room and stretches his wings. I head to my bedroom where I strip off and pull on some sweat pants to get ready for bed, but my mind is still filled with thoughts of Stella. She looked amazing at dinner tonight. Her long dark hair was curled perfectly and her big brown eyes held a sparkle like I’ve never seen before. Her lips were plump and looked sweet and every time she ran her tongue across them, I wanted to pull her against me.
I shook my head free from the thoughts of her as I exited my bedroom and went to lock up the house and turn out the lights. I spend a few minutes talking to Bundy, petting him, and locking him back up for the night. If I’m home, Bundy is usually free to fly around as he pleases, but the last week I’ve been so busy at the store that he hasn’t gotten as much free time as he usually gets. It would be nice to one day be able to hire someone for the store so I didn’t have to be gone all day. I pray that’s something Stella can fit into her plan.
Sleep finds me easy but it’s not dreamless. When I close my eyes, it’s Stella’s face I see. I see her as a little girl and watch her grow into the woman she is now. I dream of kissing her, making love to her, and even marrying her and having children. I wake in the morning with a smile on my face, but I tell myself to knock it off. It can’t and won’t happen. The most I can ask for from Stella is a friendship that I hope lasts long after her help with the store. At this point, it’s about all I deserve anyway.
I go through my morning routine: shower, feed Bundy, let him fly around while I have a quick breakfast, and then I’m rushing out the door to go to work. The moment I walk into the store and the silence hits me, I’m taken back to a time when I was just a boy and I was coming to work with mom because I was too young to stay home alone. The smell takes me back and it’s almost like I can watch her working behind the counter like I used to. I can even smell the perfume she used to wear. The phone rings and I rush to answer it, confused as to why it would be ringing before the store even opens.
“Hello?”
“Hey, son,” Dad says on the other end of the line.
“Hey, Dad. What’s going on?”
“Oh, you know. I’m just enjoying my morning coffee and reading the paper. I heard something the other day that I wanted to talk to you about.”
“What’s that?” I ask even though I know what this is about.
“The store. Is it in danger of closing?”
I run my hand through my hair. “It’s been a rough couple of years, Dad. Nothing is getting cheaper. It cost more and more to open every day and I’m not even paying myself. I’m lucky if I sell a book a day at this point.”
“I hate to hear that, son. That place was very important to your mother, but you know that.”
“I know, Dad. That’s why I’m fighting so hard to keep it open. I’m going to be getting some help from Stella. She’s turned a lot of businesses in town around. Hopefully, she can help me out too.”
“Ahh, yes. Stella. She helped save Bud’s Vet clinic.”
“Yeah, she’s helped several local businesses. I’m praying for a miracle.”
“I’d really hate to see that place go, but if you need out, I’ll trust that you’ll take it to take care of yourself. That store means a lot to a lot of people, but you mean more. Got that?”
“I got it, Dad.”
“I don’t want you thinking for one second that you’re letting me or your mother down. Things change and we knew that when we bought the business. We never would’ve guessed that it would’ve lasted this long.”
I smile from hearing his words. It means a lot that he understands and doesn’t blame me. “Thanks, Dad. That means a lot.”
“You’ll pull through. I have faith in ya.”
I laugh. “How’s it going anyway? I haven’t heard from ya in a while.”
“Florida is great but I’m getting bored down here. There isn’t nothing to do but eat, nap, and play golf.”
“That’s why you went. How’d you hear about the store in Florida anyway?’
