“Fuck my life! Seriously!” she cried, stamping her foot which I think was her way of getting her frustrations out but just made her look fucking adorable.
“Let me help you,” I offered.
“It’s fine.” She tried to wave me away, but I wasn’t going anywhere.
“No, it’s not. I made the mess. Please, Claire, let me at least help clean it up.”
I don’t think there was an instance in my life where I’d ever begged to clean before. I’m pretty sure, if anything, Bryce and I had had more than a million arguments about who made the mess or whose turn it was to take the bin out.
While Claire tried to clean herself up, I grabbed handfuls of trash and chucked it in the bin. It was disgusting. When I’d run into her, one of the plastic garbage bags she’d been carrying had split and the food scraps and waste had gone everywhere. Ignoring the grossness of it all, I hurriedly cleaned up the mess.
Take away the white goo, which I was hoping was mayonnaise running down her leg, she was gorgeous. With her short black shorts, the apron wrapped around her slim waist, and her bright pink shirt she was the perfect summer girl. Those legs were tanned, and I couldn’t stop thinking about what it’d feel like to have them wrapped around me. And her hair. Shit! The way her long blonde ponytail swayed with her every movement, I couldn’t stop envisioning it wrapped around my fist as I ploughed into her from behind. The completely wrong ideas to be having right about now.
It didn’t take long and everything was cleaned up, well as well as it could be anyway, and it was time to say goodbye. Something I was surprisingly not ready to do.
Claire must’ve sensed it too because when she lifted her eyes to meet mine, she looked tired, defeated, and completely over everything. A look I hated. “I should get inside. I’ve got tables to clear.”
“So, you’re working here now?” I commented, not realising how stupid I sounded until it was too late.
“Yeah. I got the job yesterday.”
“Congrats!”
“Thanks.”
“I’ll see you later, Seth,” she murmured before, dropping her head, hunching her shoulders, and turning to walk away from me. Something I did not like. I did not fucking like it at all.
“Claire!” I called out to her retreating arse.
“What?” she sighed, spinning around to face me.
“What time do you finish?”
“Three. Why?”
“I’ll pick you up at five. Does that give you enough time?”
“Huh?”
Claire looked dumbfounded, and I couldn’t blame her. I was confused as fuck at what I was doing. I hadn’t thought this through very well, but that didn’t mean I was backing down either. “If I pick you up at five, does that give you enough time to do whatever you need to do?”
“What do I need to do?”
“I just thought you might want a shower,” I suggested, looking at her legs.
“Well, ah yeah. Look we don’t have to. Surely you’ve got…”
“Claire!” I cut off her rambling and stalked toward her, brushing some of her hair off her face before cupping her cheeks with my palms. “I’m picking you up at your place at five. Be ready.” I kissed her forehead, turned, and walked away, leaving her standing there, looking completely startled. The last thing I was about to do was give her the opportunity to object. Walking away was my best and my smartest option.
I made it halfway home before I let my anxieties get the better of me. I might’ve talked a big game. I might’ve projected a cool, calm, and collected appearance. I might’ve acted like I had the answers, but I had nothing. It was all bullshit. I had no idea what the fuck we were going to do this afternoon but after making such a big deal about it, I felt like I didn’t have an option. I had to go big or go home. Anything less wouldn’t be acceptable, and after seeing Claire looking like someone had stolen her puppy, I knew whatever it was, it had to put a smile on her face.
And I knew just the person to help me.
