He stopped breaking down boxes and turned toward them. “You two are serious? You’re not going to bug us about dating?”
“That’s correct,” Paige said as she turned to him. “Unless you have something you want to talk to us about. Is there?” Excitement flashed in her eyes and Colton remembered why he wanted to be left alone. “Do you want to talk?”
Colton shook his head no.
If he did want to talk, he wasn’t going to chose Minnie or a kid to unleash his feelings about sex. He’d find someone else, a non-caring third party, who could give him some honest advice about what he should and shouldn’t do with Zoe. He watched his sister as she pushed herself to her feet and scooted the empty boxes off to the side. Paige hoisted her bag back to her shoulders and followed Minnie toward the front of the store. Colton followed, still a little shocked that they weren’t going to say anything about him and Zoe.
He followed them out onto the street.
“I’m going to call,” he told Paige. “I am.”
“Sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself more than anyone else, Colt,” Minnie stood on her toes and kissed his cheek. “Maybe start with—” she stopped suddenly and looked embarrassed. “Sorry, I’ll shut up… old habits die hard.”
“Start with what?” he asked quickly, maybe a little desperately. He needed help—he couldn’t figure this out on his own and Minnie was the best sounding voice he had right then, although her motives weren’t always pure.
“An email?” Minnie suggested. “Here,” she pulled a business card from her pocket—
Zoe’s business card. “Okay, see you later!”
Grasping Paige’s hand, Minnie pulled her down the sidewalk toward the subway station.
Colton stared at the card for a long time. It was curious that Minnie just happened to have Zoe’s business card in her pocket—convenient really. Colton could send her an email.
That might be easier than talking to Zoe on the phone. He slipped her card into his pocket and returned to the shop to talk business with Jamie.
Colton spent three more hours at the shop and by the time he left and locked up, the sun had set and his stomach was so ravenous he felt like he was going to be sick. As he drove around looking for a place to eat, he thought about Zoe’s business card in his front pocket and what he’d write to her about. The more he thought about it the more pathetic emailing her sounded. Why couldn’t he just be a man and call her up? They’d sorted out all the uncomfortable details about the contract on Friday; he shouldn’t have been worrying about it as much as he was. He could call and they could have a normal conversation, just like they had had at O’Shea’s.
Colton glanced out the window to see the very place he was thinking about and wondered if he had subconsciously driven to the pub. He stopped his truck in front of O’Shea’s and climbed out thinking that maybe some crab and a few beers would butter him up enough to stop being a pansy and call Zoe.
Ignoring the pain in his bones and joints that echoed each other with each step he took, he drew his cell phone out its holster and flipped it open, his fingers paused over the buttons.
As he began to dial Zoe’s number, he pulled the door to O’Shea’s open and stepped into the smoky, fish-smelling restaurant. He headed up to the bar to place an order to go. The waitress smiled at to him and held up a finger telling him to wait. Leaning against the bar, he dialed quickly and pressed talk.
His chest tightened as the phone rang once and then twice. The pauses between each ring seemed to stretch out indefinitely, and when it felt like it had been forever, her voicemail finally picked up. He was tempted to hang up right then and there, but he held strong and waited for her message to end so he could leave one of his own. When the recording beeped, Colton realized he had no idea what he wanted to say to her.
“Zoe… it’s Colton,” he said awkwardly. “Guess I missed you. Um… what I mean is that I guess I missed you on the phone—since you didn’t pick up. Which I guess is pointless to say since I’m leaving a message—of course you didn’t pick up. Um… I did sorta miss… shit. Nevermind. I was just calling to say hello. I’ll try you back later.” He snapped his phone shut with a moan and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
He’d never call her again—how embarrassing.
“Colton?”
He turned at the sound of his name and felt his stomach tighten so suddenly he nearly threw up. He was shocked to find Zoe standing in front of him. For a minute he assumed that this was some type of sneaky set up by Minnie and Paige, but they had no idea he was coming to O’Shea’s, hell he hadn’t known he was going to stop there for dinner until he glanced out the window and saw the place. As far as coincidences were concerned, this was a very pleasant one. Colton turned to face her fully and smiled.
“Zoe, hi!”
Colton’s eyes quickly swept over her and, as it was becoming the norm, his body responded so quickly it was painful. She wore jeans, tennis shoes and a t-shirt that was far too big on her. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail and she wasn’t wearing any make up. A small canvas purse hung from her right shoulder and in her hands she held a takeout bag. She looked so comfortable and natural in that big t-shirt and he liked it. He liked that it hid her full breasts from his view.
“I… thought that was you,” she smiled and stepped forward. “I was just picking up dinner,” she held up the bag he’d already noticed.
“I just left you a voice mail,” he stammered. “I didn’t really know what to say, so I came off sounding like a high-schooler. So, if you’d just delete it without listening, that would be great.”
Zoe’s whole face lit up when she laughed. Colton smiled and crossed his arms lightly across his chest. She shifted, glanced down at herself and suddenly looked very uncomfortable. She gestured behind her to the door.
“Well… I guess I should go… I just wanted to say hi.” Colton stepped toward her, “Would you like to join me for dinner? Or do you have plans?”
“Um… no plans,” Zoe answered. “I just walked Paige and Minnie to the subway and decided to walk over here for a quick meal. I was just going to go home and watch the news. Do you want to join me? I have plenty—I bought extra to make crab salad. Dinner can be my treat.”
“You sure you have enough?” Colton asked after surveying her take out bag again. It didn’t look very big at all, but Zoe said that she was certain, so he took her up on the offer and followed her out of O’Shea’s.
After only a few steps back toward his truck he stopped. What was he thinking? He couldn’t go to her apartment. He was filthy from working all day; he could smell the stink of the sweat and dirt radiating off his skin, which was covered with streaks of mud.
He didn’t reek of B.O., but he wasn’t clean at all.
“I’m a mess.” Zoe stopped and looked him over, her eyes drifting slowly—too slowly—
over his entire body. Suddenly he had a growing problem that would probably plague him the entire time he was with her. “Do you mind if we do this another—”
“I don’t mind,” Zoe interrupted.
“Great—why don’t we have dinner on—”
“What I mean,” Zoe interrupted again, “is you’re not that dirty. I don’t mind having dinner with you just as you are.”
Colton smiled feeling very humbled by just a few little words out of her mouth.
“Yeah, but…” he shifted back and forth.
“But I’ll understand though if you want have dinner another night,” Zoe added. She smiled warmly; an inviting smile that pulled him a step closer to her. “It was impromptu invitation, I’m sure you’d just like to get home and relax.”
“Yeah,” Colton nodded. “It’s been a long day.”
“Well… maybe we could have dinner soon. Are you busy on Thursday?” She seemed a little uncomfortable setting a date, but her uncertainty passed quickly as she waited for him to respond.
“No, I’m not busy.”
“Really? Great!” The pleas
ure on her face warmed him and he stepped closer to her.
Gesturing to his truck, he told her that he’d give her a ride home.
On the short trip to her apartment they began to talk about the long days they’d each had.
Zoe had to deal with a demanding firm partner who was never pleased with anything anyone did, and Colton was just drained from hard physical labor. Self inflicted physical labor, but he didn’t tell her that part. He also told her about his run in with Minnie and Paige and Zoe filled him in on the girls’ visit to her apartment an hour ago. She told him all about Paige’s new flat-ironed hair style and how she’d spent two hours getting it ramrod straight the night before. When he pulled in front of her building and parked, Zoe asked him to share her dinner again. This time he accepted. He could have gone home and had a few beers and maybe ordered a pizza to relax, but in the short ride from O’Shea’s to Zoe’s Colton realized that her company was all he needed to unwind after a long day. He didn’t want to leave her yet.
Of course once he stepped into her apartment and was reminded at how small and intimate it was, he started to wish they’d stayed at O’Shea’s where they were surrounded with other people. He followed her into the kitchen to help where he could. He stood near the stove and watched as she stood on her tiptoes to take a few plates down from the cupboards. She turned and smiled shyly as she set the plates down. He didn’t know what to do with himself in such a small space.
“Can I help?”
“Um, grab some beers from the refrigerator?”
Colton turned and pulled open the door of the fridge. He was shocked at how sparse the contents were. There was a six pack of Miller Lights, some bags of produce, a Tupperware container full of loose leaf lettuce, and little else. He stared at the barren contents and drew two bottles from the carton. He closed the door and turned only to bump into Zoe. She laughed and easily stepped around him, her fingers lightly grazing his arm. He stared at the goose bumps that flared pushing the hairs on his arms up on end.
His hair wasn’t the only thing on his body standing up on end—he felt suddenly very exposed standing so close to her.
He extended a beer to Zoe and accidently grazed her breast with the bottle. Her face turned red as she laughed; Colton apologized. His condition grew worse.
“Mind if I use your bathroom?”
“Sure—it’s right here,” she took two steps out of the kitchen and opened a narrow door in the miniscule hallway. “There are fresh towels under the sink.” Colton squeezed into the small, tidy room and closed the door. Away from her, he felt his body calm only slightly. He knew from experience that he’d never really relax around Zoe—he’d just have to tolerate the agony. He glanced around the small bathroom and was shocked by how small it was—like an airplane toilet almost. He could never live there comfortably, but she managed to make it work somehow and he had to give her credit for that. Turning on the hot water tap, Colton stared at himself in the mirror while he waited for the water to warm up and instantly wished he hadn’t. He looked like walking death and was covered in dirt and grime. Worse than that first time she’d seen him after the Preston mix up.
He pumped some of her hand soap into his palm and began scrubbing his arms. He shouldn’t have come up into her apartment looking like he’d just rolled around on the streets. He watched muddy suds drip off his arms into the white basin of the sink. He and Zoe should have stayed at O’Shea’s where he probably wouldn’t have accidently grazed her boob, and where it was dimmer so she couldn’t see just how dirty he was—or how aroused. He washed his face next and dried off on the towel he found under the sink.
With a quick sniff of his armpits, and a few hesitating moments deciding whether he should help himself to some of her deodorant, he stepped out of the bathroom—without borrowing any deodorant—and into the living room. Zoe was sitting on the small sofa with a plate on her lap.
“Here you go,” she extended a beer bottle to him. As he took it, his fingers grazing hers and her cheeks reddened. She smiled hesitantly and patted the cushion beside her. “Have a seat.”
Colton sat down beside her. His additional weight caused the cushion under her to sag and she slid against his side. Struggling to right herself Zoe pushed her hand against his thigh and it slipped causing her hand to move directly into his crotch. She gasped and jerked back as he rose to his feet quickly.
“I’m sorry!”
“It’s my fault,” Colton laughed as he walked around the small coffee table. “I’m going to sit on the floor, I don’t want to get your couch dirty,” he slowly lowered himself to the ground and moaned. “That was probably a bad idea—I might never get up I’m so exhausted.”
“I’m so sorry,” Zoe whispered. He watched as she quickly dug into the takeout bag and pulled out two cartons. With trembling fingers, she opened one of the cartons to reveal gooey cheese fries. Colton smiled and raised his eyes to hers.
“I thought you stopped eating these—that’s what you said,” he murmured as he took a few.
“I had a bad day,” she said with a shrug. “Moment of weakness.”
“We all have them—besides, nothing like fries on a bad day,” Colton said as she put a claw of crab legs onto her plate and then offered him the carton. He realized that there wasn’t enough food for two people and he felt guilty taking anything that she offered him, but she was adamant about sharing everything.
For thirty minutes Colton watched Zoe eat a handful of cheese fries and the meat from one crab claw. He paced himself to make sure that she’d eaten her fill and when she had, he happily polished everything off. Full and feeling a little tired; Colton stretched out on the floor and casually finished his second beer. After the news was over, Zoe brought them both another beer and joined him on the floor, sitting a few feet away. Having her suddenly so close was absolute hell. All he could think about was the swell of her hips, the soft curve of her breast, and the fact that there were plenty of silky floor pillows to lay her out on.
“So, what are we going to do on Thursday night?”
“I don’t know,” Zoe said as she pulled her knees to her chest, hiding her breasts from him. “I suppose we could—” her voice trailed off and she moaned with disappointment.
“Oh crap, I forgot I have something to do on Thursday! My advertising firm hosts an annual benefit for the children’s hospital—it’s this Thursday night.”
“No problem, what are you doing Friday?”
“I don’t really have plans, but…” her voice trailed off as she studied him, “maybe you could come to the benefit with me? It’s a formal thing—would you mind being my date?”
“Of course not,” Colton smiled. He was pleased that she’d asked him out—it was almost as if some of the pressure had been taken off his shoulders. “What time should I pick you up?”
“Um… six thirty?”
“Sounds like a plan.”
They sat quietly staring at anything but one another and not paying much attention to Anderson Cooper’s report on CNN. Zoe stretched her legs out and tilted her bottle back to finish off the last of her beer. Colton stared at the bottom of her little foot and then glanced down at his own. He should have taken his work boots off the minute he entered her apartment. He glanced around the wooden floors and noticed clumps of dirt that he’d tracked all over the place.
“I should have taken off my shoes,” he said. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine,” Zoe smiled reassuringly. “I don’t mind—I’m not some uptight do-gooder that’s going to freak out over a little dirt, Colton.” He smiled. She was nothing like Cara. Curious about the differences in the size of her foot to his, Colton carefully pressed the bottom of his boot against Zoe’s foot. He had about six inches on her.
“Wow, Zoe… your feet….”
“I know,” she laughed. “I have little feet and hands.” She started to pull back when he reached forward and grabbed her ankle. He lifted her foot up a bit and pressed the heel of his palm to her
heel and stretched his fingers out. Her foot was as big as his entire hand.
Curious, he scooted closer to her and took her hand in his. He pressed their palms together and started laughing as his fingers curled over the top of hers. Zoe pulled her hand away and swatted at him when he reached back for it.
“Stop, I know my hands are small,” she laughed as he caught her hand and pulled her toward him. With their palms together again, Colton stared at her little slender fingers and then interlaced his fingers with hers. The insides of her fingers were smooth and warm. Colton felt his pulse speed up.
“I like how small they are,” he said as he cradled her hand in both of his. He turned his attention to her mouth, only a few feet from his. All he needed to do was lean in and he could kiss her. He knew that she was thinking the same thing as her eyes flickered from his down to his mouth. She blushed and looked away for only a moment before she glanced back at him with uncertainty and perhaps a little hope. He lifted her hand to his mouth and gently kissed her knuckles; he rubbed the kiss into her skin and then let her go.
“I should probably be going—can I help you clean up?”
“Oh, no, it’s okay,” Zoe slowly got to her feet. “I can handle it.”
“I insist,” Colton began gathering up the trash and empty bottles. Zoe followed him into the kitchen and threw out what she was holding. As she turned, she bumped directly into him. Colton laughed as he squeezed around her. “Do you like living here?”
“Yes,” she said. “The size takes some time to get used to—I’m sure it doesn’t help that you’re so big, everything seems smaller to you I’m sure.”
“Yeah,” he said as he stared down at her for several minutes—he liked how she was so much smaller than him. “It’s cozy though—I could get used to it for sure.” Zoe nodded and turned to leave the increasingly warm kitchen. Colton didn’t understand what possessed him to reach out and catch her arm, but he did. He pulled her toward him, blaming his amorous behavior on the beers he’d had. Although, he hadn’t had enough to even feel remotely buzzed. He was fully aware of his actions but decided to blame them on temporary insanity brought on by acute sun exposure and physical exhaustion. He could blame grabbing her on overactive hormones. He could blame it on a lot of things.
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