Her words are cut off as my heel connects with a solid object behind me, sending my body backward and into a shelf of curtains. Metal rods poke my back, splintering my muscles with pain as I fall on my ass. My hands search out something to grab hold of but come up short when I connect with the bottom of the shelf behind me. Thanks to my broad frame, tripped-up racks collapse around me, and packaged curtains blanket me like a downpour of rain . . . but in the fabric sense.
“Oh my God.” With a hand to her mouth in shock, she kneels in front of me and searches my eyes. “Are you okay?”
“Fuck,” I mumble and try to get up, but I’m tangled in all the metal that’s fallen over me.
“Let me help.”
“I’ve got it,” I snap, more from embarrassment than anything.
“Clearly you don’t,” Ruby says, not caught off guard by my temper. Rather, she ignores me and pulls on my arm.
Reluctantly, I allow her to help me up. Packages of curtains tumble off me and onto the floor, as well as all the displays I ran into. It’s a lovely mixture of metal and tiled floors clashing together, ringing out, causing everyone around to stare in my direction. I’m fucking mortified.
“Hey, you’re bleeding,” Ruby points out, looking down at my arm.
Scanning my forearm, I see the scrape where a burning sensation started to develop the minute I crashed into the shelf—fucking idiot. “It’s nothing.”
“You need to get it cleaned out,” she insists.
“I’m fine. I just need to get out of here.”
Panic rises in my chest, everything around me seems to be heightened in my senses. The lights are brighter, shoppers’ voices are louder, the smells of fresh fabric seem overwhelming. Everything is so fucking overwhelming.
“Hey,” Ruby places her hand on my chest. She must be able to feel my rapid heartbeat. “Bodi, take a deep breath.” Concerned eyes stare at me, those big pools of chocolate catch my attention as her hand gently rubs the spot right above my heart. “Can I clean up your arm quickly before you leave? I would like to help you, if that’s okay.”
Her voice is calm, sweet, fucking hypnotizing. Glancing around, my big disturbance doesn’t seem to be as big as it is in my head, because no one is around, it’s just the two of us.
All she wants to do is make sure you’re okay. Give her that for not running the minute you freaked the fuck out.
I nod, letting her lead me to her cart where she opens her purse and pulls out a first aid kit. I can’t help the smirk that graces my face. She carries around a first aid kit?
“Do you always have that with you?”
Looking at me, she notices my smirk, which sets off her smile like a giant bright light bulb. She issofucking beautiful.
“I do. You never know when you will need a Band-Aid. Target can be a hot bed for accidents.”
“Sure,” I respond, my smile fading.
My forearm is twisted in all different directions as she examines the abrasion. “Hmm, looks like you are going to need stitches. Is that going to affect your swimming?”
“What?” I practically shout, turning my arm to look at it. Stitches? No fucking way.
I’m examining the cut when Ruby starts laughing next to me, slapping her knee as if she just told the funniest joke ever. “Oh man, the look on your face was priceless.” Imitating me with a deep voice, she replays my movements and says, “What? Nooooo! Olympics!” Dramatically, she raises her fist in the air and crumbles to the floor, still holding up her arm. As if I acted like that.
I might be a freak, but she’s fucking weird too.
“That’s not how I reacted.”
Using the cart to hoist herself up, she stands tall and straightens out her dress. “Pretty sure that was a very accurate reenactment. Spot on, actually.”
“Not even close.”
“Debatable.”
I shake my head at her, as the tension in my body starts to dissipate. Funny how she can so easily do that to me.
“But seriously, let me get this cleaned up. Can’t have your arm fall off from infection. Can you imagine saying you got an infection from picking out curtains? Not your best day.”
