Page 20 of Three Rules I'd Never Break

From the outside, the place looked almost finished. Inside, it still needed work. I walked through the master suite. The closets were huge. I’d designed them that way. It would be nice to have the rest of my clothes out of storage and accessible.

After a quick walkthrough, I trudged back out to my car. I’d avoided Tessa’s shop this morning, but skipping a stop at her place meant I now craved coffee in the worst way. Would I have time to run down the highway to the truck stop?

As much as I wanted to see him, my stomach soured when I remembered how he’d hurried out the door. Was kissing me really that bad? So much for my grand plan.

I walked out to the end of the driveway where I’d parked. Parking any closer to the house guaranteed nails in my tires.

A truck rumbled past, and I gasped. Eli? The brake lights flickered, but he didn’t stop. Did he live out here? Had he seen me?

Following him would be weird. I was already his bad luck charm. I didn’t need to add stalker and desperate to the list.

But since he was headed away from town, I was going to Tessa’s shop to get coffee. There was a bright side to everything.

One of the best things about my new house was that it was only five minutes from the strip mall. I parked and ran inside the doughnut shop.

The crowd had thinned a little, which was nice because that meant Tessa would have time to chat.

“Missed you this morning. Someone else did too. He sat at that corner table for almost an hour before finally trudging out of here.” She set a mug and a cream-filled doughnut in front of me. The woman knew what to give me when the world seemed like it was falling apart.

His actions didn’t make sense. Why would he wait for an hour, which made it seem like he wanted to see me, but then drive right on past? Maybe he hadn’t seen me after all.

I filled my coffee mug before biting into the doughnut.

Tessa rubbed my shoulder. “I wish I knew what to say.”

“Do you think it bothers him that I’m older than he is? He’s what... twenty-five?” If I could pinpoint the problem, I’d have a better chance of finding the solution. That was the way planning worked. If there was a problem in Plan A, Plan B was created to fix the problem.

“He’s twenty-six, and based on what I saw here the other morning, that’s not an issue for him.” She smiled. “All kidding aside, no. I don’t think that’s why he goes silent. It’s just the way he is. He’s a thinker, and attraction sends his brain into overdrive. A two-year age difference isn’t that big a deal.”

“Work and safety. I’ll focus on those things. Because I know next to nothing about cars, and I’m all thumbs when it comes to video games.” I finished my doughnut. “What if I don’t get a chance to talk to him?”

“I’m sure you’ll figure something out.” She glanced toward the door. “Customers. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Bye.” I hurried back to the store and made sure everything was in proper order before opening.

There had to be a way to talk to Eli.

The other option was to forget about Eli. This whole plan of trying to get his attention made me feel like I was back in high school. The difference was, in high school, I hadn’t chased anyone. The guys had chased me. Even back then, they weren’t the guys I wanted.

I turned on the lights in the store and flipped the sign to open. If Eli was interested, he could make a move. All my efforts to be around him had only ended up adding stains to my clothes.

One of my regulars walked into the shop. With her colorful track suit and mischievous grin, she looked like trouble. The fun kind.

“Good morning. Lovely day, isn’t it?” She walked around the racks, occasionally picking up bra and panty sets. “I always start here and look at all these cute ones before I end up buying an old-lady set.” She reached into her over-sized purse. “I brought you one of my new books.”

“Thank you. It’s Tandy, right?”

“You remembered. Don’t worry about me. I’ll holler if I need something.”

“Please do.” I set the book on the counter and smiled as a man walked in. “How may I help you?”

“I’m shopping for a friend. She’s built about like you are.”

A friend? Did she know that? Ugh. Maybe there were no good guys, only bad boys, married men, and silent ones. Now I was on high alert because the built-like-you comment almost always preceded the request to model the merchandise.

Monday was off to a great start.

“What type of lingerie are you wanting to get her?”

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