Page 13 of Love on the Line

“I managed to get here okay.” Anne shrugged.

Wyatt shook his head. “That wouldn’t have mattered to my mother.”

“You’re persistent, I’ll give you that. Okay.” She made her way to the elevators and pushed the button.

As she stared at the lit-up floor numbers above the door, he couldn’t help but stare at her. Freaking adorable. She had a cute, perky nose and straight blond hair tucked behind her tiny ears. At least for now. The wisps tended to slip out, and for some crazy reason he wanted to be the one to brush them back the next time.

When they got in the elevator, Anne stood in front of the control panel and pressed the parking floor button. Wyatt balanced on his crutches. The doors shut, and a flowery, soft scent filled the space. Amazing. The woman smelled as sweet as she looked.

She gave him a quick, polite smile, and then looked up at the descending numbers.

Awkward silence. Shit. He needed to say something. Anything. Sweat tickled under his ears. He could talk to a wall, for God’s sake, but apparently not to Anne.

Ding.

The doors opened, and he held a crutch out, gesturing for her to exit.

“You first,” she said. “I’ll hold the door button.”

“Nope. After you.” He shook his head.

“I’m already holding the button, go ahead.”

“Nope. Remember what I said about my mama? Same thing with the elevator.” And he meant it. Chivalry wasn’t dead.

“Oh my God. It’s not the dark ages. I—”

“You’re holding the elevator hostage. What about all the people upstairs waiting for it?”

She pursed her lips and huffed. “Fine. I’ll go.”

The look she shot him on the way out meant he hadn’t scored any points, but she still held an arm out to block the door from closing.

“You know you’re stubborn, right?” she asked, a hand on her hip.

“And you don’t like to let people do things for you, right?”

“Why would you say that?” She thrust her chin up.

His gaze dropped to the base of her throat, where her pulse beat a rapid rhythm. He’d love to press his lips against the spot. And her sweet scent floating in the air didn’t help. Focus, he had to focus. “It’s a hunch. There are givers and takers, and you’re a giver. At least from what I’ve seen. And for the record, I appreciated the help today.”

She blinked and swallowed, dropping the hand from her hip.

There. That did it. Now she was speechless. And not looking so ready to go to battle. But he’d only spoken the truth.

“I really need to get going.” She adjusted her purse on her shoulder.

“Which way is your car?”

“It’s over there.” She pointed across the parking garage to the far end. “But I’m fine, thank you.”

“Eh, that’s not far from where I parked. Lead the way.” He gestured with the crutch again.

Her hand went back on her hip. Shit. Now what? Everything he did seemed to get under her skin. And he didn’t have the slightest clue what to do about it. No woman had ever challenged him.

“You’re used to getting your way, aren’t you?”

He kind of was. Not that he thought about it much. “Well, I’m not right now.”

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