Page 49 of Single Girl in the City
“I’ll get down, ma’am. And I’m sorry for making your night harder.”
“Thank you for that.” Abi outstretched her hand for a shake and Cindy looked at it like it could bite. “Friends.” It took a moment, but Cindy took the olive branch. And when they both got to the floor, Abi said, “Why don’t you let me call you an Uber. On me.”
“Why?” Cindy asked.
Abi shrugged. “Why not?”
She reached down for her phone, but it was gone. Thinking she left it behind the counter, she backed up and bumped into something solid that smelled amazing. Then two hands settled on her hips.
Oh boy.
“Am I on your list?” Owen whispered into her ear.
She looked up at him and,bam, her heart dropped to her toes. “Not that list.” She turned but he didn’t let go of her hips. “What are you doing here? Tonight is Owen Time.”
“How Owen spends Owen Time is decided by Owen,ma’am.”
She smiled.
“And Owen wanted to come and see how you were doing,” he continued.
“I’m managing.”
“I can see that.” One hand still on her hips, he took her wrist and ran his thumb over the lingering bruise. She cringed, thinking it still looked all kinds of disgusting. “Is it sore?”
She considered lying, then remembered just how bad she was at it. “A little.”
“A little like annoying or a little like aching?”
She looked at his chest. “Both. And before you bench me, I’m not doing anything that the doctor didn’t clear.” He did say light lifting was acceptable and she was holding the pitchers with her good hand. Pouring a glass of wine wasn’t heavy lifting, right?
As if seeing right through her, he said, “I still have to finish inventory, do you think you can help me?”
She tugged her hands away, surprised when it moved to his chest. “Absolutely. Tomorrow, when Nora doesn’t need me and Owen Time is over, I’d be happy to help.”
He didn’t seem to like the answer but wisely didn’t argue. “Is there anything I can get you?”
She looked from his hand still cupping her hip, then to hers on his pec. “What’s on the menu?”
She watched a mirage of emotions cross his face, from desire to horny, ending with honorable. She took a step back and their hands fell to their sides.
“I need to call Cindy an Uber.”
“You’d have to actually use your phone to do that,” he said, and she gave him a blank look. “I’ve called you at least a handful of times and all I got was voicemail.”
“I must have left it …” She closed her eyes. “I left it in the hands of my niece. She probably called a fascist dictator to plot world domination. That or Elsa fromFrozento set up a playdate. Can I use your phone to call Dotti in case she tried to call me? I don’t want her to worry.”
Owen handed over his phone and Abi texted Dotti that she’d forgotten her phone and if she could bring it to the bar. A manager needed to be available, and that meant making it easy for the owner to get a hold of her.
“Why did you call?” she asked.
“I guess to hear your voice.”
Chapter Seventeen
Happy Things:
Puppies.
