it. It was fun, and if you ever want to do it again I am all in, but I get it.”
He winks at me and walks away just as Corbin walks through the door. My eyes connect with his immediately and his shoulders tense, looking from me to Garett.
Leave it to me to be in this situation. I suck in a deep breath and tell myself not to think too much about it. I can’t afford to panic at work. Not when I’m on my own for the first time.
“You alright, kid?” Brenda asks from down the bar next to Richard the regular. I nod.
“Just going to go get a couple cases from the walk in if you can keep watch for a second.” I speed walk out from behind the bar and rip open the door to the huge walk in cooler. I’m surrounded by stacks of beer cases and big round silver kegs. The air is amazingly cold, and I lean over to suck it into my lungs.
“Need help with anything?” I hear his voice and spin around violently. My foot slips, my ankle rolls over in the high heels I’m not used to wearing, and I’m falling before I know what’s happening. Corbin takes a step toward me, and as I grab his shoulders, his hands hold my waist.
“Easy,” he says, pressing my body to his, and I can’t help but think this is how all terrible movies begin. I try to step back, but the pain in my ankle shoots up my leg, and I stumble again. Corbin’s arm is back around me. He scoops me up like I weigh nothing, without a single word, and carries me to the office.
I’m not usually the type to swoon over a knight in shining armor, mostly because I’m not the anything type, but I involuntarily gasp as he sets me on the desk and sits on the spinning chair in front of me.
“Corbin, I’m fine.” I try to protest as he rolls up the leg of my jeans but as soon as his fingers touch my skin, my mouth shuts.
“I’m sure you are. But I’d feel guilty if you broke something.” He slowly pulls the bright red pump from my foot, and the pain is dull, already dissipating. Just rolled it. But as he holds my calf with one hand and runs the other over every part of my ankle and foot I don’t argue. I couldn’t even if I wanted to. The effects of his fingertips grazing along my skin travel up my calf to my thigh, pulsing up my entire body. I clear my throat so that I don’t make any more unexpected sounds.
“Would you even know what to do if I broke it? And I’m the biggest wimp to ever live, so we’d know if I broke it.”
Corbin laughs, and the sound makes me smile. It’s a full laugh that catches me off guard with its genuine tone. It’s not the dismissive laugh of my father or the mistrusting laugh of my mother. It’s real.
“I work with heavy machinery that spins at seventeen hundred RPMs… We are required to have first aid training. I could bring you back to life-” he starts before his eyes go blank and my breath catches. “Sorry, I didn’t mean-”
I wave my hand and I scoot to the edge of the desk, lowering my feet to the floor. He’s so close he could kiss my stomach if I moved just a little bit which makes me hold my breath. Finally, I put my hands on his shoulders.
“Thanks, doc. I think I’m all fixed up.” I twirl my foot, rotating my ankle to show him it’s fine and slip my shoe back on. All the while my heart thunders with this entire encounter. Him. How his presence affects me. The mention of how I told him something I avoid talking about at all costs. Our close proximity. Everything.
“Have lunch with me.” It’s half a question, half a command, and it’s all insecure. He stares at my stomach.
I look away as soon as he angles his head to meet my gaze. “You have a girlfriend, Corbin.”
“No, I don’t.”
The thundering in my chest gets louder, and my head swims with all the reasons this is a terrible idea. But half of me wants it. Someone I can talk to. I just wish he didn’t come with all these other feelings.
“I’m not sure Kayla would agree with you.” I still stare at the floor, but I hear him get
He winks at me and walks away just as Corbin walks through the door. My eyes connect with his immediately and his shoulders tense, looking from me to Garett.
Leave it to me to be in this situation. I suck in a deep breath and tell myself not to think too much about it. I can’t afford to panic at work. Not when I’m on my own for the first time.
“You alright, kid?” Brenda asks from down the bar next to Richard the regular. I nod.
“Just going to go get a couple cases from the walk in if you can keep watch for a second.” I speed walk out from behind the bar and rip open the door to the huge walk in cooler. I’m surrounded by stacks of beer cases and big round silver kegs. The air is amazingly cold, and I lean over to suck it into my lungs.
“Need help with anything?” I hear his voice and spin around violently. My foot slips, my ankle rolls over in the high heels I’m not used to wearing, and I’m falling before I know what’s happening. Corbin takes a step toward me, and as I grab his shoulders, his hands hold my waist.
“Easy,” he says, pressing my body to his, and I can’t help but think this is how all terrible movies begin. I try to step back, but the pain in my ankle shoots up my leg, and I stumble again. Corbin’s arm is back around me. He scoops me up like I weigh nothing, without a single word, and carries me to the office.
I’m not usually the type to swoon over a knight in shining armor, mostly because I’m not the anything type, but I involuntarily gasp as he sets me on the desk and sits on the spinning chair in front of me.
“Corbin, I’m fine.” I try to protest as he rolls up the leg of my jeans but as soon as his fingers touch my skin, my mouth shuts.
“I’m sure you are. But I’d feel guilty if you broke something.” He slowly pulls the bright red pump from my foot, and the pain is dull, already dissipating. Just rolled it. But as he holds my calf with one hand and runs the other over every part of my ankle and foot I don’t argue. I couldn’t even if I wanted to. The effects of his fingertips grazing along my skin travel up my calf to my thigh, pulsing up my entire body. I clear my throat so that I don’t make any more unexpected sounds.
“Would you even know what to do if I broke it? And I’m the biggest wimp to ever live, so we’d know if I broke it.”
Corbin laughs, and the sound makes me smile. It’s a full laugh that catches me off guard with its genuine tone. It’s not the dismissive laugh of my father or the mistrusting laugh of my mother. It’s real.
“I work with heavy machinery that spins at seventeen hundred RPMs… We are required to have first aid training. I could bring you back to life-” he starts before his eyes go blank and my breath catches. “Sorry, I didn’t mean-”
I wave my hand and I scoot to the edge of the desk, lowering my feet to the floor. He’s so close he could kiss my stomach if I moved just a little bit which makes me hold my breath. Finally, I put my hands on his shoulders.
“Thanks, doc. I think I’m all fixed up.” I twirl my foot, rotating my ankle to show him it’s fine and slip my shoe back on. All the while my heart thunders with this entire encounter. Him. How his presence affects me. The mention of how I told him something I avoid talking about at all costs. Our close proximity. Everything.
“Have lunch with me.” It’s half a question, half a command, and it’s all insecure. He stares at my stomach.
I look away as soon as he angles his head to meet my gaze. “You have a girlfriend, Corbin.”
“No, I don’t.”
The thundering in my chest gets louder, and my head swims with all the reasons this is a terrible idea. But half of me wants it. Someone I can talk to. I just wish he didn’t come with all these other feelings.
“I’m not sure Kayla would agree with you.” I still stare at the floor, but I hear him get
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