Authors Note: All things Twilight belong to Stephenie Meyer, I just make them do foolish things. I am so, SO sorry that it has taken forever to get this chapter up!!! I don't even have a good reason, but I hope you haven't given up on me just yet. Thank you for all the reviews on the last chapter! You are an inspiration! I hope you like this one!
beta: Lacrema
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Chapter 3
Phin
I was more than just a little embarrassed about the blush, I never blush! And then I realized he still held me, although I clearly could stand for myself now. Not that I minded, his arm was warm and nice. Very nice, in fact. He looked concerned. Right, I should say something, he couldn't possibly know this happened all the time, admittedly on a lower scale, though.
"Oh my, how embarrassing."
"What?" He looked very confused. I explained why, and then tried to see if his eyes had sparkles in them (there's nothing that makes my tail tingle like a set of sparkling eyes) as he slowly let go of my waist. As he looked at me carefully before releasing my arm, I heard him calling me a lady. I tried my best to muffle the snort, at least I got my tongue on a leash before it blurted out too many bad things.
"Lady? Me?" I rolled my eyes at the thought. Wonder what the meanies would think of that! Me, a lady! "You're not from around here, are you?"
He began to tell me about how he had met some guys whose mission it was to go around by Greyhounds for a year, helping farmers with whatever they needed. He kept looking at me with glowing eyes as he spoke. I guess he must be involved in creating that on-line booking system the farmers used, to be that excited about it. I just shrugged, hmm'ing along to his words. No need to put him down by telling him how flawed that system was and how much trouble it would end up giving him... Not that I could create a system even if my life depended on it, but I sure had installed and done the troubleshooting for more than my fair share. This training people thing I was doing now was really below my capacity (according to my boss), but it was all they had outside of Salt Lake City at the time.
I was really freezing, too, but I didn't want to start to walk while he was still here. My real hair color might be dark blond, but my nanny didn't raise no fool. I wouldn't show him I walked alone, I'd just have to endure the cold until he got a cab. I guessed I could always go back in and wait, but I didn't really like the signs of mischief I had seen. If I went back inside, I would have to subject myself to it again. I'd just stay out here with the tall boy. He had to be almost 6'5, and with that very fluffy hair he was sure to be taller than both my dad and Mike.
I like tall boys-- in fact, Taylor's only flaw was that he was just 2 inches taller than me. But his butt sure made up for what he lacked in height! I loved the jeans he would wear to work, I was almost drooling the night he had lost his work belt and used his own studded one instead. That was the first time I had ever regretted taking a shift in the coat-check. It was a busy night and I got to see far too little of that sight. I shivered as my body reacted to the memory. This seemed to freak out my native friend, who started talking about frostbite. If only he knew I already had a few frostbites under my belt... I tried to avoid the question of how I would get home by asking him where he stayed.
"At the Silverthorne B&B, so I'll walk, it shouldn't take more than half an hour, maybe even less."
"Oh..." for crying out loud! Of all the places in this godforsaken town! Right next door? No way I'll be able to walk home unnoticed now. And I really don't want to go back inside. OK, so he's a big guy... really big... but coach always said, the bigger they are, the harder they fall. Yeah, I can take him. If it comes down to it, I can take him. If not by regular means, then I'll just fight dirty, his crotch isn't out of range for my knee. I made up my mind, I was walking home!
"What? Something wrong with that?" He looked worried. Aww, he actually looked kind of sweet. But half an hour? Come on, it took me ONE and a half on a regular night. Not that I minded, it was refreshing.
"No, it's just that... I was kind of waiting for you to catch a cab so I could walk home myself..." He looked more and more dumbfounded with every word I said. I wondered if he had never met a girl who could take care of herself before.
"OK, where do you live?" He just had to ask, didn't he? Well, it's not like I can keep it a secret anyhow, might as well tell him.
"Two houses from the B&B..."
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Walking along the road, side by side, we were giggling ourselves to tears. I had no idea why, or what had set us off, but now I just couldn't make myself stop. He was telling me this hilarious story about one of the older guys back at the reservation where he was born, how he had kept following this girl around like a puppy. Dropping everything to be with her, fixing a couple of dirt bikes for her, and forgetting everyone else in the world when she was around. I guess it wasn't a funny story, not really, but it sure seemed like it at the time. When he told me how the girl had gone cliff diving without thinking about the current and an ongoing storm, I laughed so hard my throat shut again.
I dropped down, sitting on my heels again, and an expression of fear scored his handsome face. I waved off his concern, holding up my hand in the 'wait' gesture. I took a few deep breaths before hiccuping out my answer. "Nothin' o worry 'bout. Jus' asthm 'gain."
He seated himself next to me, once again draping his burning arm around me. Seriously, this guy had to run a fever or something, he felt hot through my padded jacket! He slowly traced my cheek with the tip of his finger, leaving a scalding trail. "Did you just giggle yourself into an asthma attack?" He sounded incredulous, but at the same time his voice was filled with laughter.
"M-hm..." All I did was nod. No reason to try to speak, I'd just end up giggling again. And there was only so much my body could take if I was going to make the walk home without wheezing all the way. Or make the walk home at all. That would be nice, to have to ask my new friend to carry me. I giggled at the thought and mentally slapped my fingers. No funny thoughts!
"What's so funny? You know, if you just giggled yourself into an attack, maybe it would be a good idea to not do it anymore..." He was laughing as he spoke and I sent him a dirty glare under my bangs. I shook my head and bunched my knees a few times, then I stretched out my legs, leaving one hand on his shoulder for support as I stood up. The world stayed fairly still, which was more than I had been hoping for, so I took a few trial steps. Before I had completed the second one he was at my side again, clearing his throat.
"So, lets talk about something completely un-funny. I'll begin." He took a deep breath and then let out a sigh. "My dad is dead, my mom just started dating his best friend and my sister has turned into a complete bitch since her boyfriend left her for our cousin."
"Oh." That was all I could say. I mean, how do you respond to that? I could tell him about all the misery in my life... or I could just let him have it out first. Since I had no desire to even remember all the bad things in my life, I kept quiet.
"Well, my sister is better off now, I think. It's been a while and she's gotten some perspective, but still, Emily was her best friend."
"That sucks!" Gush, I hated people who stole each others' boyfriends. I mean, there were a few things you didn't do, and going after a friend's partner was one of them! I must have sounded really hostile because he held up his hands, like he was defending himself.
"No, it's not like that. Or, yes, it is. It's all really complicated, OK? Anyway, Leah is getting better about it, at least she was when I left." For some reason he looked really, really guilty as he said that. I wondered why he left. But I didn't wanna pry. I almost started giggling again at the thought that I knew the name of his sister and cousin, but I still didn't know his. I stifled it before it broke out.
He kept talking about his dad, how he had been and how he died. Then he came to the subject of his mom dating Charlie (another name, small giggle) and how he felt about that. Just as he seemed to run out of serious things to talk about, the road vanished under my feet and I fell, face first, down into a cold and crusty pile of half-melted and refrozen snow. Go figure...
I heard him laughing and it took me some time to find the guts to look up. He was sitting next to me on the pavement, probably soaking the back of his jeans since there was frost on the ground. Tears were streaming from his eyes as he laughed.
"Seriously... I haven't seen a piece of snow for the hour we've been walking." He had to force the words out between his laughter.
"Well, if there is a patch of ice on the road, you can count on me to slip on it." It was the truth, maybe I should have told him earlier what an incredible klutz I was.
"So, you're saying you're quite the danger magnet?" He seemed to find something about that highly amusing.
"No, I'm just downright clumsy, that's all. In other aspects of my life, I can take care of myself. As much as I fall, I've never broken a bone, or been in the ER for that matter." His eyes brightened as I spoke and he let out a relieved laugh. What was that about? Then I lost track of my thoughts as a little sparkle lit in the corner of his eye. I am a sucker for glittering eyes, now and forever. I sighed deeply, and when he looked questioningly at me, I made an attempt to get up to conceal my wandering thoughts. He grabbed my hand and pulled me to my feet. Then he wrapped his arm around my waist, holding me close to his side.
"Since you obviously cannot be trusted to stay on your own two feet, I'm going to hold onto you until you're safely home. OK?" He was warm, he was cute, I felt fuzzy inside. I was more than OK.
"OK..." He smiled down at me, and there were that little, tiny sparkle again.
We walked on in silence, not speaking of anything really, just commenting occasionally on things we passed. It gave me time to think. Really think. I knew they had seen me leave with him. I was fairly sure they had set something up with Taylor for me, whether he was in on it or not. There was no other reason for all the ladies and the staff to be so mischievous otherwise. Now, leaving with this native guy, even though that's not really how it happened, would really mess up my plans with Tay. Jeez, of all nights to forget my phone at home. I couldn't even text him to let him know what was going on. If I had known what was going on, that is. I wasn't even sure I wanted to explain myself to him. I was pretty happy where I was, wrapped in this hot guy's embrace.
JOSEPHINE WILLIAMS! Are you really that fickle at heart? You don't even know this guy! All you know is that he has a hot body and a really nice ass. Even though Tay may not have that much on him when it comes to looks, he is the sweetest guy you've ever known (Mike excluded since he's more of a brother than anything else). Come on, are you really going to ruin all that you and Tay got going? The boy just needs time, he's very shy. It's beginning to roll and you know it. Remember that evening last week, when you and him watched NCIS and played boardgames? It wasn't very romantic, I'll give you that, but it was a start! Do not ruin it just for a fling with someone who will leave when the farm work is done.
I heard myself ranting, shouting at myself in the back of my mind, but I didn't really pay any attention. We were getting close to home, and I didn't want this evening to end just yet. This guy was nice, he hadn't done anything out of place and he seemed genuinely concerned for my well-being without pampering me too much.
As we turned the last corner and came up on the post office, I felt him stiffen beside me and reluctantly pull his arm back from around me. I missed the cozy warm den it had created for me. He looked oddly uncomfortable, searching up and down the dark street. "Do you know if there's any place open that sells food?"
I couldn't keep a giggle from slipping out. "No, there's not. Nothing is open past seven here. There was a place by the nightclub, but I'd say that would be a bit of a drag to walk back there, you'd just be hungry again when you came back."
His shoulders sank down and he looked like a sad little puppy. "Crap. Well, I guess it isn't that many hours until breakfast's being served..."
I suddenly thought of all the leftover food in my (well, the post office's) kitchen. Oh, I hope the ladies don't mind. "You know what, we had our Christmas party tonight," he lifted a brow, smirking at me. "I know, but we can't have it during Christmas, it's too hectic in the post office then," I continued.
He interrupted, "You work in the post office?"
"Yeah, right in here," I tilted my head towards the big window right beside us. "So as I was trying to say, there are a lot of leftovers, too much for me to eat alone before it goes bad."
He looked at me, incredulous again. "Do you mean... like..." Well, at least his verbal skills matched mine.
I rolled my eyes at him, "Yes, I mean, would you like to help me get rid of them?"
His face brightened again, and I couldn't help but feeling a bit giddy as I saw that little star reappearing in his eyes. I opened the front door to the office, pressed the code into the alarm panel and showed him in. He looked a bit unsure of himself; I guess the post office after dark can be a bit spooky. He looked at me curiously as I jumped up on the high desk that divided the room and slid down on the other side to unhook the the chain and open it for him. He followed me, after I had shut the gate and locked it in place again, to the door in the back, leading to the kitchen. I felt a whole swarm of butterflies in my stomach as he stood closely enough behind that I felt his breath on the back of my neck.
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AN: please, let me know what you thought, pretty please!
