Page 18 of Wasted Memories
Maybe I was. It was probably the alcohol, combined with my agitation at Jett, and the fact that it was three in the morning.
“Thanks for the ride.” I turned to reach for the handle on the door when I felt his rough hand gently grab my arm.
“I didn’t mean to upset you if I did.” He was staring at me like he could see every confession I ever had written on my forehead. God, I hated how it made me shiver with awareness. I was used to men looking at me, ogling over what they couldn’t have, but Wesley was different. He had a thousand words behind those eyes but clearly kept them to himself, locking his lips and throwing away the key.
“You didn’t upset me,” I said quietly.
“Then what is it?” He had this concerned look on his face, his brows drawn together and his eyes boring into me like he could find the answers in my eyes if he looked hard enough.
My gaze dropped to his hand on my wrist and after a moment, I pulled my arm free, which took little effort considering he was barely holding me.
This was a mistake. I shouldn’t be sitting here in his truck.
Keeping my eyes downcast, I said, “I appreciate the ride, Wesley. Can we just leave it at that?”
I could tell he was conflicted between pressing further and letting it go. Without giving him a choice, I pulled off his jacket and set it on the stretch of leather between us. I got out of the truck and pulled my sweatshirt back on, the wet portion of the sweatshirt cold against my skin.
I hesitated with my hand on the truck door. A part of me didn’t want to go home to find Jett passed out on the couch with beer cans littering the living room. But I had to. There were no other choices, especially none that included staying in this truck for just a little longer.
“Goodnight, Wesley,” I said, not meeting his eyes.
“Night, Emerson.”
Closing the door, I walked the two blocks home.
Chapter Seven
Wesley
Duringmynextshift,Jim suggested we all go to lunch at the Tavern together. “We” meaning Ray, Jim, Sebastian, and myself. We walked there, taking advantage of the sun being out before the storm rolled in tonight.
Today was my first day working with Sebastian. He was short, a bit pudgy in the midsection, and always had a cigarette in his hand. So far, he was a decent guy to work with. He didn’t make too much small talk, which I liked, and got the jobs assigned to him done pretty quickly.
While Sebastian and I worked on the vehicles that came through the shop, Ray and Jim sat on their asses in the small office, typing away on their computers and talking to each other as if they were shouting across a football field.
I get that they took care of the business side of things, but would it kill them to work on a car or two themselves? Did they even know how? That was a pet peeve of mine - managers sitting by rather than participating in the hard labor part of their business.
I didn’t miss the hour and a half they spent laughing and talking about the game this week, either.
Sebastian had mentioned this wasn’t the only business they were running but didn’t elaborate further. Like I said, not much small talk out of him.
Jessica, one of the waitresses at the small restaurant, seated us at a booth, taking our orders right away. I guess they frequented here enough for her to know they were ready to order their usuals without a glance at the menu.
I ordered the burger as I honestly wasn’t sure what else was on the menu. I was completely distracted the other night while I was trying to read it.
Emerson was an off-limits distraction, and I wouldn’t let myself think otherwise.
I could understand why Emerson didn’t want to open herself up to me the other night in my truck. To her, I was just some stranger interrupting the perfect little life she’d built in this mopey town. Although, after getting a small peek into her personal life, it didn’t seem all that perfect.
If I had to be honest with myself, I wanted to keep running into her. The three times I’d interacted with her, she’d been so flustered - and I’ll admit - I liked it. I was attracted to her and I shouldn’t be. I didn’t want a relationship and I especially didn’t want to be involved in drama,especiallysmall town drama. Besides, she had a boyfriend, so it wasn’t a possibility. I doubted I’d even see her again. Up until now, all of our run-ins had been pure coincidence.
I wasn’t into girls like Emerson, who walked around practically begging for all eyes to be on her. I tried to keep a low profile myself, and having a girl like that? I’d practically be right there with her, begging for everyone to look my way.
I needed to focus on my own problems and deal with the issues at hand in my life, not get tied up in flirting with some girl who was in a relationship.
But damn, I really couldn’t help it. I liked the look she got on her face when she was taken off guard, opening and closing that pretty mouth of hers searching for words. Her cheeks would turn a deep shade of crimson, making those sky blue eyes pop.
I could still smell her on my jacket, hints of vanilla and mango body wash. When I’d gotten it back, I decided I was never going to wash it again.
