Page 65 of Forbidden Hearts
The connection changes, and I realize I am still lying on top of him. I go to move, but his hand is on my back.
“Oh my heavens!” Mrs. Cooke says louder than anyone would ever need to be inside. “Are you two all right? Jimmy! Your cans are everywhere, and Phoebe is lying on top of Sheriff Whitlock!”
I drop my head to his chest as she announces that bit of gossip. “Kill me now.”
“Huh? She fell?” Jimmy yells.
“Yes!”
This time, Asher doesn’t stop me from rolling off to the side. “It’s all right, Mrs. Cooke, we’ll clean it up,” Asher says as he sits up. “I just fell back and—”
Mr. Cooke calls again from the front register. “Where did she fall?”
She turns her head, yelling even louder this time. “I said she was ontopof him!”
Mr. Cooke yells back equally as loud. “Why was she on top of him?”
“I don’t know! Maybe she tried to save him and fell!”
I can do nothing at this point but laugh, which I do, hysterically. My eyes begin to water, and Asher is laughing as well. It’s just too ridiculous that the two of us are on the floor with cans of olives rolling around us while Mr. and Mrs. Cooke have a screaming conversation about how we got here.
“Are you all right, dear? Did you hit your head?” Mrs. Cooke asks. “Maybe Asher was too hard for you?”
I force myself to stop for a second, but then I laugh so hard I make a choking sound, which causes me to snort, and that sets off another round of hysterics.
“Jim! I think Asher was too big and hard for Phoebe!”
“Oh, stop. I can’t breathe!” I say between my fit of giggles.
Asher stands and turns his back to me, but his shoulders are still bouncing. Finally, he stops and rests his hand on Mrs. Cooke’s shoulder. “Thank you for checking on us. I am going to help Phoebe clean up this mess. You and Jim just take care of the other customers.”
“Okay!” she says quickly before walking off.
My laughter finally stops. The two of us start picking up the cans, and he chuckles. “Well, now the town knows you were on top of me.”
“And you were hard,” I say, giggling again.
“You know this will go around.”
I nod. “It’s fine, most people think I’m ridiculous anyway, so I’ll be able to explain it.”
“I don’t think you’re ridiculous, Phoebe. Anyone who believes that, doesn’t know you.”
“Thank you for saying that.”
“I mean it.”
I tuck my hair behind my ear and focus on stacking so I don’t fall on top of him again.
sixteen
ASHER
“You’re really sure you want to move back here, Grady?” I look out the back window, watching Olivia, Rowan, and Brynn. They’re playing some sort of dodgeball, but it looks more like peg Rowan in the head.
Hopefully, the game is still going when I am done with this call. That looks like fun.
“Sure? No. But my commission is over, my in-laws want to move back to Arizona, and it would be good for Jett to meet our family.”
