It had started out as a temptation and a way to prove to myself I had willpower. I always wanted ways to push my self-discipline and Leah, from the first minute I’d laid eyes on her, had become a serious test. I was supposed to be gaining ground on the distraction. That was the point of subjecting myself to Leah’s presence every week.
I don’t even like breakfast food.
But instead of my lust dissipating by the strength of my will, Leah had gradually gone from the cute girl I was attracted to, to a full-blown obsession.
I couldn’t stop thinking about her. I ate and listened to every word that crossed her lips. I watched her wait on her tables with a cheerful smile. I heard her laugh no matter where she was in the restaurant. I knew the sway of her hips and the swing of her ponytail. I had dreams about her singing voice.
Shit had gotten out of control. I had failed. Lost the battle against my cock. I was raising the flag.
There were only two options available to me at that point—either do something about the lust or stop exposing myself to temptation.
It wasn’t even a question what I wanted to do.
I wanted to take Leah home and hear her hit a high note with me inside her.
But. Damn it. The “but.”
Reality. I didn’t do relationships. Not even dating. It would be different if I’d met her out at a bar or on a dating app and she was down for some fun. But Leah flirted with me in a way that was so goofy I didn’t think that she had any desire in a hookup, so I’d decided it was time to remove myself from the situation. Even if I was wrong and she would happily get naked with me, Leah made me feel way out of control. I wasn’t sure one night in bed with her would do anything more than stoke my desire.
Then where the hell would I be? Stoked was not the answer.
Screwed was the correct answer.
The tip was meant to be something of a thank-you for inadvertently fueling my fantasies for six months because I was never setting foot in that diner ever again.
In hindsight, I could see why she would think the excessive tip was a mistake given I usually left her ten bucks.
And why, if I told her the truth, it would come off as more than a little creepy. A lot fucking creepy.
As I held her by the shoulders, I told her the truth, if not the full truth.
“Then you’re an excellent waitress and a very honest person,” I told her. “Because chasing anyone down in New York is next to impossible and dangerous as hell.” I pulled back and eyed her. Her ponytail was askew and she had dirt on her skirt and arm, but there were no obvious injuries. She wasn’t bleeding anywhere that I could see. “Are you actually okay or are you just saying you’re fine? Do you want to go to the ER?”
I had a business meeting at ten but I owed her a ride to the hospital at the very least.
“I’m fine,” she insisted.
But then she took a step and almost crumpled to the sidewalk. She let out an involuntary cry of pain.
Horrified, I glanced down and saw her right ankle had already swollen to double the size of the left. Her little white sock was squeezing tightly into her pale flesh. “Your ankle is sprained,” I said. “You are not going back to work. You need an X-ray to make sure it’s not fractured.”
“But my shift…” She glanced back at the diner, catty-corner from where we were standing.
We both saw her co-worker in the doorway gesturing frantically for her to come back. I made a quick decision. I reached down and swept Leah off her feet into my arms.
She let out a shriek of protest. “Oh my God, you don’t have to carry me!”
“This is easier than you hobbling.” She was average height, but very waifish. Her voluminous skirt might have weighed more than her, and I had her back to the diner in only a couple dozen steps.
Leah gripped the lapels of my suit and said, “I should demand you put me down.”
“Why would you do that?” I asked.
“Oh, I’m not going to. I just said I should. Because I’m supposed to be an independent woman and you’re practically a stranger. But I actually really love the drama of this.”
That made me glance down at her in amusement. “You like drama?”
“I like an entrance. I am an actress, you know. When I’m not serving chocolate chip pancakes to businessmen.” She gave me a smile that instantly disintegrated into a wince when a woman walking down the sidewalk accidentally bumped her leg.