looking at more pictures. He picks up a picture of me, Daddy and
Momma that was taken shortly before she died, and I see a similar expression
cloud his eyes briefly. I can’t put my finger on exactly what that emotion may
have been. Surprisingly, I feel at ease having Connor in my space, it feels like
he belongs here with me.
I hear chuckling when Connor stops at my coffee table. “What
on earth is this? Who needs this much candy?” he asks pointing to my candy
bowl. It has probably about two pounds worth of gummy bears in it. Like I said,
I’m seriously addicted to them.
“What does it look like? That is only the best candy ever
invented! Besides, if Gabbi and Michelle hadn’t brought those to me at work
yesterday to bribe me, I wouldn’t have been at the club, which means you
wouldn’t be here. So, don’t judge!” I cross my arms over my chest, which is a
bad move on my part. When you are as busty as I am, crossing your arms only
makes your chest rise and stick out more, and Connor obviously notices this.
With his attention no longer on my large supply of candy and
now only focused on me, mostly on the girls, he stalks across the living room
towards me. “Ah, Lynae, is this what makes you so sweet? Bribing you with
sugar? It seems the most words I get out of your mouth are when I’m insulting
your sweet tooth or trying to steal your dessert?”
How can he make my name sound so much different than when
others say it. They way my name rolls off his tongue makes me feel like I could
melt. “I’m far from sweet. Now, are you going to feed me? After all, you sort
of told me you were taking me to dinner instead of asking.” I try to sound
forceful, but I’m sure he can hear my voice shaking.
Connor shakes his head and reaches out for my hand. I don’t
flinch or pull away. I let him take my hand willingly. It feels right. His hands
are large and rough, and I feel jolts of electricity race up my arm much like
last night when he grasped my shoulders to keep me from falling. “Let’s go,
Sweetness, I don’t want to get on your bad side. I recall you saying something
about having my ass earlier.” He says as he leads me back towards the front
door. And there go the flutters in my heart again.
I grab my keys and purse on the way out. He still hasn’t let
go of my hand. We walk down the hallway towards the elevator, and it is then
that I really see how big he is. Connor must be at least a foot taller than me.
I guess I didn’t notice the height difference with my heels on last night, even
though I knew he was tall. He looks down at me and smiles a heart-stopping
smile. “I was thinking we could go out for sushi if that’s ok with you. There’s
this great place not far from Silver and we could just park and walk straight
there.”
“Sure, that sounds like a plan.” I nod my head as we make
our way to the elevator. I have got to get my heart to stop pounding like it
is. I’m sure he can see it beating through my shirt. He’s only holding my hand
and I feel as if my heart is going to beat right out of my chest.
Luckily, there are a few other people on the elevator when
the doors open, so I’m not trapped in the enclosed space by myself with Connor
for the ride down the five floors. One of the couples riding with us is the
Richardsons. I’ve taken care of Mr. Richardson a few times at the hospital.
He’s one of my “frequent flyers.” “Hey there sugar, how’s my favorite nurse
doing tonight?” he asks me coming in for a hug.
I smile, letting go of Connor and let Mr. Richardson engulf
me in one of his signature bear hugs, “I’m great, Mr. Richardson. You doing
alright?” I hug him back just as tightly
He still has his arm around my shoulders when he scolds me
for calling him Mr. Richardson. I know he prefers me to just call him Bill or
Pops, I like hearing him get ruffled. “I know, Pops.” My parents taught me
manners are very important, so I do as my elders ask of me. Mrs.
Cassandra Zara, Lucinda Lane