Page 27 of And Then There Was Us
She rolled her eyes. “I am happy. Layla and I are both happy.”
Claude put his hands up. “Okay, okay. But I’m telling you, a little love in your life might just do wonders for both you and Layla. Life is about more than making it through each day, and I think Mr. Braden might be just the thing you need. Did you see how he looked at you?”
Unfortunately, yes. That’s why I can’t think straight.He picked up another camera. “Speak of the devil,” he said much too loudly. He shook Hugh’s hand. “I’ll be in touch with your office in the next day or two. Bree, I’ll be up in my studio. Can you lock up, please?”
Hugh came to her side carrying all his stuff under his arm. “How are you holding up?”
“Fine.” Her stomach twisted and her pulse raced. She grabbed a large shopping bag from beneath the table. “Here. We can put your stuff in here.” She folded his suit and placed it in the bag, then set his helmet and gloves on top before she went to work putting away the lenses and moving the lights to the back of the studio. Hugh walked along beside her.
“You sure? I tried not to look at you, but, Bree, it wasn’t that easy.” He helped her move the equipment.
She loved having him help her, not that she needed help with the equipment, much less anything else in life. She could manage just fine. She grabbed her purse.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Ready to go?” she asked.
He held the door open for her, and as she walked past him, he touched her lower back, sending a shiver through her. He was so darn nice and considerate that he made her crazy—and even if it was a good crazy, it made her all sorts of confused.
“Have you thought about things?” he asked.
“You’re kidding, right? Do you know what it’s like to see you in that racing outfit? You know what they say about guys in uniforms, right? And then everything you said pummels my mind and confuses me.”Oh, I sound like a witch.“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but yes, I want to go shopping with you. I can’t allow you to meet Layla, and this whole thing scares the heck out of me, but…” She tucked her hair behind her ear and looked at the car, then drew her eyes back to Hugh. “But I like you. And if I’m making a mistake, at least Layla won’t know about it.”
Hugh reached for her, then quickly dropped his hands, glancing back at the building. “Sorry. I forgot.”
Brianna wished she’d never told him not to kiss her in front of her work.
“I have a feeling this is anything but a mistake,” he said with a serious tone.
That’s kind of what I’m afraid of.
Chapter Fourteen
HUGH HELD THE door open as Brianna walked into the mall. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been to a shopping mall. He bought most of his family’s gifts online, and the few things he purchased in person were bought from specialty stores.
“So, where are we headed?” Hugh wanted to put his arm around Brianna, but she’d been so pensive earlier that he worried about pushing himself on her.
“Penny’s. Did your friend say how much I owe for the work on my car?”
He noticed the way she avoided his eyes. He’d spoken to Art, and her car had needed a new starter. A few hundred bucks’ worth of work. He knew from what Brianna had said that she couldn’t afford to pay for it, and a few hundred bucks was a spit in the wind for him. What would it hurt if he took care of it for her?
“Yeah, it just needed to be jumped after all. So there’s no charge.”
“Are you kidding me? So we could have just jumped it?” She shook her head. “I’m sorry. And here you’ve been stuck with me.”
That’s it.Hugh wasn’t going to restrain himself any longer. He reached for her hand, and after a moment of rigidity, her hand relaxed against his. “I’m not stuck with you, Bree, and it’s my fault. I should have thought of the battery, but I was so wrapped up in you that my brain wasn’t working right.”
“Well, I feel bad. Shouldn’t I pay for the tow truck or something?”
“He owns the equipment, and he’s a friend. I do things for him all the time. There’s no charge.” He looked up at the JC Penney sign. “Shall we?”
They headed inside the store and up the escalator to the children’s section. “I want to get her a winter coat.”
He followed her to the children’s outdoor clothing section and watched her leaf through the coats, biting his tongue about his feelings on buying a little girl a coat for her birthday. She was turning six. Wouldn’t she prefer a game or something more fun? He had no experience at parenting, but he respected Brianna’s financial position, and he assumed that she was buying Layla something she needed instead of a frivolous gift.
“What do you think?” She held up a pretty little pink coat with fuzzy pockets and a fuzzy hood.
“I think it’s adorable. When’s her birthday?”
“That was easy,” she said. “Next Thursday.”
