Allie stepped up on the next shelf.She could hear the groan of the shelf under her foot.Standing up, she could see the can now.She had managed to push it all the way against the back wall.Of course, she did.
Allie reached for it, and only her fingertips could touch it.She rose on her tiptoes, not wanting to go up another shelf.If she still couldn’t reach it after this, she’d have to find an associate with a ladder.
Allie leaned forward and rose on tippy toes, jutting her arm forward, and she managed to bounce the can off the wall, roll it toward her, and catch it.Allie stepped down but misjudged how far down the next shelf was and slipped.
She hadn’t been prepared for the sudden lack of gravity, so her grip was loose as she went down.She prepared for the jarring impact when she’d hit the linoleum floor, but two strong arms caught her before she fell completely.
They held onto her until she had both feet on the ground before relinquishing her.“Thank you,” she said, turning around to thank her rescuer properly, and froze when she recognized her rescuer.It was Carson.Out of all the people for her to see today.
It was her off day, her hair was up in a messy bun because she hadn’t wanted to deal with styling it, and she wore a plain tank top, cut-up jeans, and her grey converse sneakers.Not her most glamorous look.Not that meeting him in a business suit would have been any better.
He wore a black long-sleeved shirt today, black jeans, and combat boots.He’d forgone the jacket this time, so she could see all of his muscles.And oh my, there were many of them.All stacked upon each other.He had a physique one usually saw on body builders.It wasn’t an attribute she was normally drawn to, but it was hard to look away.
“You’re welcome.You should be more careful.”If he recognized her, he didn’t let on.That was just as fine with her.It had been an unremarkable date for her too.
“Thanks,” she said in an even tone while inside she was cursing him.Ass.It wasn’t like she had planned on slipping.Normally, she was a lot more sure-footed.She just hadn’t looked down before blindly stepping down.
His gaze looked her over as if he was studying her then opened wide in recognition.“Annie, right?”
Asshole.Still couldn’t get her name right.“No, that is not my name,” she hissed between gritted teeth.If she was a woman prone to antics, she’d slap him for continuing to get her name wrong, but her mother had raised her better than that.
Besides, he wasn’t worth the energy.He’d obviously already forgotten about her.What was the point of correcting him when by the time she left the store, she’d be a nothing but a memory again.
“I have to go.”She shook her head at him as she placed the olives in her cart and walked past him.How Sandy had ever thought they would get along was a mystery to her.
“Allie!”He snapped his fingers as he suddenly recalled it.“Wait,” he called after her, but she didn’t.They didn’t have anything to say to each other.She’d prefer they never saw each other again.
“Allie,” he repeated, jogging to catch up to her as she got in line to check out.He had a basket slung over his forearm.He had a few groceries in his basket.Was that all he was buying?That didn’t look like enough food to feed someone for more than a few days.Apparently, he was not a weekly shopper but more frequently.No thanks, she hated going to the store more than necessary.
“What?”She almost felt like calling him the wrong name to see how he liked it but bit back the retort.She would not lower herself to his level.
“I want to talk to you about our date.”
“You call that a date?”she asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Sir, you can check out in this lane.You have fifteen items or less,” a female cashier called out to him.
“I’m good, thanks,” he responded, though he didn’t even look at her.His focus was on Allie.She was not going to give him kudos for that.Though it was an improvement from the last time, it didn’t mean he was off the hook for his behavior.“It was a bad date, I admit that.Like I told you, I was dealing with a work emergency, and I couldn’t give our date my full attention.”
“So why not just reschedule instead of being glued to your phone the whole time?”She didn’t know why it mattered.She should just chalk it up as another failed date in the long line of them and move on.It wasn’t like the few sentences they’d shared together had been riveting.She should have just accepted his excuse—lame as it was—and let it go, but the question was already out before she could rethink it.
She must be a glutton for punishment.That was the only excuse she could think of for asking.
He opened his mouth, but no excuse came out, not that she was expecting a good one.She’d heard them all before.She’d been on more bad dates than good over the years.She didn’t know why she kept going on them.Maybe some stupid hope one would turn out good.
She wondered if there really had been an emergency or if that was just his excuse to get out of the date.Not that the reason mattered anymore.
“I’m sorry, ma’am, but your card has been declined,” the cashier told the woman in front of her checking out.
The woman looked to be in her early twenties and couldn’t be any taller than five feet.“Oh dear,” the woman said, her hands shaking as she checked her wallet.There were a few dollar bills in it, but not enough to cover the groceries.The woman looked down on her luck.She had a small boy with her, looking up at his mom.“Can you try again?”
The cashier didn’t look happy about it and even looked back at the line growing behind them.
“Come on,” someone grumbled behind Allie.
The cashier ran it again.“I’m sorry, it’s still declined.”
The woman looked crestfallen as she rechecked her wallet.“I’m sorry, buddy,” she said to her son.
