‘It’s fine.’ I could see his smile was forced. Even so, it was a lovely smile. The sort that makes you smile back. He met my eyes and the smile grew wider. ‘Luckily for me, I have another foot. Or would you like to step on that one too, just to round off the day?’
I laughed, although somewhat nervously. ‘Let me buy you another coffee. I mean tea. Let me buy you a tea. Please.’
‘There’s really no need.’
‘There is. I … I owe you that much. And maybe a cake? Or a pack of painkillers?’
His laugh made me sigh ever so slightly but I don’t think he heard me. It reminded me of Midwinter Brook this morning. And of those swans, necking. I wouldn’t mind necking with this guy.
‘Thanks. Maybe another time? I … I’m late for an appointment so unfortunately I must run.’
‘Can you run? Are you sure you can even walk?’
‘I can limp,’ he joked, doing so to prove he could. ‘I’m fine. You’re as light as a feather.’
‘Marry me!’ I blurted out. ‘Erm. That was a joke. No one has ever compared me to a feather before.’
‘An angel? With that beautiful hair and those eyes, I bet you get that a lot.’
‘Yeah. Frequently. Oh. But it sounded so much better coming from you.’
He held my look for a second and his eyes felt like lasers boring into my thoughts. I could hear a horn honking from somewhere up the road, and also, from inside the café, a female voice calling out my name.
‘Erin?’ A woman in her forties was waving at me from behind the counter, and now she was coming towards me. ‘Is that you?’
The handsome stranger seemed to tense, although I might’ve imagined that. He shot a quick look over his shoulder, and then he gave a little shrug and an odd sort of smile.
‘See you later … Erin,’ he said, and then he was gone.
I saw him leap into the passenger seat of a van that had pulled up outside but it sped off so fast I didn’t get a chance to see the signage on the side. Or even get a good look at the number plate, which could’ve been run through the ANPR system.
Not that any police officer should, or would, use the system for their personal benefit, of course.
