He'd dreaded kissing a stranger in an elevator for months. He never dreamed he'd get trapped with a woman who was as mysterious as she was beautiful, and that kissing her would feel so incredibly right. So much so the bottom dropped out of his world, and he was falling.
Grace jerked away with a shriek. She gripped the front of his shirt in her fist.
Then it hit him. The lights were on, and the elevator was going down.
"We're moving," Grace squealed.
They were still scrambling to their feet when the doors opened. Damon took in the harried middle-aged maintenance worker, who wore a surprised look as he watched Grace blow out the candle and shove everything into her massive basket.
"It looks like I finally found you. It took me forever to figure out which elevator you were stuck in, then I had a devil of a time trying to override the elevator's back-up battery and get it to accept power from the generator."
"Thank you for not giving up." Damon shook the man's hand. Although he wouldn't have minded spending another hour trapped with Grace.
"Yes, thank you." Clutching her over-sized bag and her basket, Grace looked over her shoulder at Damon as she headed down the dimly lit hall toward the entrance of the hospital. "It was nice meeting you, Damon. Thanks for keeping me calm."
"Grace, wait." Damon hurried after her. He couldn't let her just walk away. Not after that amazing kiss. "Can I carry your basket to your car for you?"
She didn't slow her pace. "That's sweet, but I'm not as fragile as I'm sure I appeared in the elevator."
"No, that's not what I meant. I just thought I could walk you to your car."
"That's not necessary." She kept moving as though she couldn't wait to get away from him.
The wail of a distant siren added to Damon's urgency.
"You should add Kiss a Stranger in an Elevator to your bucket list, so you can check it off." He joked as he kept pace with her.
Her face reddened as she shot him a quick glance and quickened her pace even more. "I checked that box years ago."
"Seriously? I've got to hear this story." The woman was an intriguing mystery he desperately wanted to solve.
"I don't think so. I don't share that story, just like I won't share our story."
Our story.
Their story was about to come to an abrupt end, if he couldn't get her to stop and talk to him.
"Can I...can I buy you dinner?" Desperation laced his words.
Finally, she stopped walking. Her eyes widened as indecision registered on her face. "Uh...I don't think that's a good idea."
"Will you at least give me your phone number. I'm going to be in Washington for the next two weeks, and I'd like to see you again."
"Um...I'm not sure I?—"
Her phone buzzed in her purse. Again, and again. She nearly dropped the basket as she fished it out.
They must both have service now, because his chimed too. He ignored it. He didn't dare take his eyes off Grace for fear she would disappear, and he would never see her again.
"Shoot, I have a dozen missed texts and six missed calls." She scanned her phone. "Gabe is fit to be tied. And my mom is worried sick."
"Gabe?" The name rang a loud bell with Damon. His cousin, whose wedding he'd flown home for, was marrying a Latino guy named Gabe. And Gabe had a sister, although he couldn't recall his cousin Paige ever mentioning the sister's name.
Could it be the same Gabe?
"My brother." Grace didn't lift her head from her phone as she started walking again. "Just like I feared; Paige told Gabe I didn't show for my dress fitting, and everyone has been blowing up my phone ever since."
Paige. Bingo!
