Page 5 of Snap

"What?" She blinked and shook her head. "No. I mean yes." She frowned.

She didn't seem like she was the kind of woman who was used to being flustered.

"Um." Great, I wasn't the best with words, but I could usually put a sentence together. Apparently she wasn't the only one who was flustered. I glanced down at the floor and tried to gather my thoughts.

When I looked up again she was still watching me. Her cheeks were slightly pink.

"I can't decide which of these to get." She held up two blouses on hangers, one a soft green, the other black.

"Right," I said. "I can see why that would be a conundrum." Shit, where did that word come from? I must have spent too much time with Bam.

She smiled, but it wasn't in the way that people did when they thought someone was an idiot. It was… Warm, encouraging, like maybe she found me charming.

I supposed it was possible. I like to think I was reasonably nice. My mother certainly seemed to think so.

"So, what do you think?" She cocked her head at me.

My heart flipped. Part of me desperately wanted to give her an answer, to be helpful.

The other half realised that the longer I took to respond, the more time I'd have to be around her. It was silly, I'd known her for all of two minutes. I didn't care, I didn't want her to leave.

"You could—try them on?" I suggested. Any one of the guys on the team would have offered to help her, but I blushed. I mentally facepalmed myself. Could I be more fucking awkward?

"Right," she said. "Could you show me where the change rooms are? And maybe… Stick around and give me your opinion?"

She must have assumed I worked for Lacey's. I had offered her my help after all.

I thought quickly. If I left my coat and scarf and went to help her, I may never see them again. On the other hand, and more importantly, if I didn't go with her I may never see her again. I could buy another coat and scarf.

"Of course. Please, come this way miss—" I looked at her expectantly, hoping she'd give me her name.

"Rubie," she said.

"That's pretty," I said. Yeah, any of the other guys would have said something about her being a precious gem. There was a reason most of them were single.

"I'm Ollie." I didn't give her my full name. I had a feeling she had no idea who I was. I liked it that way. It was refreshing.

"That's cute," she said with a smile. "Does anyone call you Oliver?"

"Only my grandmother," I replied. "My mother used to until she realised that, when she yelled at me, Ollie sounds so much worse." I grinned.

I cupped my hand around my mouth and pretended to shout, "Ollieee!"

She laughed, a husky sound that went right to my groin. "That explains my name."

I chuckled. "The fitting room is just here." The women's fitting room, of course. I only knew where to find it because I've been shopping with my mum too many times. They even had a chair outside for long-suffering men to sit on. I didn't sit on it now. I couldn't have sat still if I wanted to.

"I'll wait outside," I said.

"Oh, you don't want to come in too?" she asked lightly.

Before I could do anything more than blush and stammer she disappeared inside and let the curtain swing closed behind her.

I've never been so aware of having a flimsy piece of fabric between me and any woman before. I wanted to peel back one side and peer inside.

I didn't.

I stood outside with heavy balls and listened for sounds of her zipping and unzipping, buttoning and unbuttoning. I couldn't hear anything over the music that came out of the shop's loudspeakers.

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