Page 34 of Lucy Loves Him Not
“Just like you were scared the other day in my office. Something about this carousel scares you, huh? Is it a control thing?” He was grinning down at me.
I narrowed my eyes. I knew this stubborn man was trying to mess with my mind, but I couldn’t resist proving him wrong—even if he already knew he was. I twirled around and marched toward the carousel.
“I’m not scared,” I hissed. He ran after me giddy with laughter.
He reached for my arm and then spun me toward him a little too quickly until I was slammed against him, my hands landing on his warm chest. The expression on his face said he had forgotten until this very moment that this was a “research project” for work, too. His mouth fell open in surprise. Part of me could easily imagine a different reality where this was so much more than a work trip. Where my hands could be on him on purpose instead of by accident. I swallowed and stepped back. But I could still feel him on me like an imprint.
There we were in front of a pastel and sparkly children’s ride.
“I’ll come with you so you’re not too scared,” Adam said low with a wink. His hand slipped into mine leading me through the gate, then his hands were on my waist as he lifted me onto one of the carousel horses. I tried to stop noticing every single touch, but it was as if any collision between his body and mine was combustive.
He hopped on a horse beside me. This grown man in his slacks riding a tiny pony made me break into a grin.
I always saw things through to the 105 percent mark. I committed to the project, the person, the bit with my all. And Adam seemed that way, too. He kept up with me—quite literally running beside me, enjoying every second of it.
The song started, the carousel lurched to life, and we were slowly twirling in circles.
Adam beamed proudly. “Ah, Lucy, you’re doing it!”
“A dream finally realized, thanks to you.” I looked out at the downtown alive around us under the afternoon sunshine.
“I get my to-do lists done. You know that about me.”
“An admirable work ethic.” I turned back to him as my pony rose above his. “You know I wasn’t scared.”
He was grinning up at me, devilishly smug.
I shook my head at him, knowingly, and he grinned wider.
“I need ice cream,” Adam said as we stumbled off the ride and back onto the sidewalk pavement.
After that, the work part of this trip was fully forgotten.
“You need homemade peach ice cream. It’s a delicacy in these parts,” I said, my Texan accent heavy. I reached for his hand and dragged him toward an ice cream booth I had seen earlier.
We both got big scoops of peach ice cream. It was so hot the ice cream was melting off our spoons. I brushed a sweaty curl off my face. “How are you liking your new job?”
“It’s been nice, except for this new coworker who fights me every step of the way. From trying to steal my job to little things like carousel rides,” he teased.
I playfully bumped my shoulder into his after the faux dig. He pushed back into me.
“Sounds to me like the job has just gotten better since she came around,” I said before I took a big bite of ice cream, sugary and sweet.
“Definitely the most exciting I’ve ever found work,” he said, the corners of his mouth perked up with a hint of a smile.
“You said you jump around jobs a lot.” I tapped my spoon against my mouth and his eyes landed there. “Do you think you’ll stick around here for a while?”
“I don’t know. For someone who likes to-do lists and plans, I actually kind of take the job thing as it comes.” He shrugged. “So, we’ll see how it plays out.”
“Do you think you’ll always bounce around or one day you’ll be done with that transient, bachelor life and stay put somewhere?” I asked in a joking tone, but his eyes were intent as he listened to me.
“I think if I ever found a place that feels like mine, I’d probably stay put,” he answered.
“What would make a place feel like yours?” I couldn’t resist asking the questions I hadn’t realized were in the back of my mind.
“I’m waiting to find that out myself.” He licked the back of his spoon.
The air between us felt electrified. My skin was buzzing like there was a secret current running under everything. Something combustive was underlyingallour interactions since I first walked into his office.
