“Oh, what about this one?” I ask him, pointing to a home on the website. It’s not a massive home, more of a moderate-sized three-bedroom, two-bathroom home, but what really has me interested in it is the backyard and the dock that comes with it. It’s on a small canal, and while there are a couple of neighbors, for the most part, it’s pretty secluded.
“I like that one. It’ll fit my boat nicely, too. I may have to invest in a boat lift to keep the barnacles off the bottom, though I could probably get some money taken off the top for that. I’ll have to look at other places to get a comparable for it,” Easton rambles.
“That’s something I would have no idea about,” I reply, this time looking into his eyes. He meets mine, and as we get closer, time stands still. At the last minute, I turn my head away. Something is holding me back.
“Fuck,” he hisses out.
“I’m sorry. I’m going to go ahead and go now.” I get up, pull my skirt down, and start making my way toward the elevator. Easton reaches for my hand, stopping me in my tracks. I turn toward him as he steps closer. The look on his face isn’t one I’ve seen from him before.
“Cam, you have nothing to apologize for. It’s killing me that I can’t pursue you the way I want to. Believe me, I get it. You need this job, but baby, did you ever think that I may need you, too?” he admits. My stomach is a jumbled mess of butterflies and nerves, so I do the only thing I can. I faceplant into his chest, letting his arms come around me, and he holds me.
“You make it really hard to leave, Easton,” I murmur into his chest.
“That’s because I don’t want you to leave. It sucks, quite frankly, but come on. I’ll walk you to your car. It’s dark out, and I don’t want you walking in the parking garage alone,” he grumbles.
“You don’t have to. I’ll be okay,” I tell him.
“Not happening. Let’s get you home. You have class tomorrow, remember?” he jokes. I nod as he hits the button to the elevator.
We’re both silent, but it’s comfortable just the same. When the elevator opens up to the lobby, I show Easton where the employee parking is. His hand never leaves the small of my back as if he’s displaying ownership for everyone surrounding us. “Why don’t you just pee in a circle around me and stake your claim?” I quip.
“How about I throw you over my shoulder and take you back upstairs?” Easton responds. I can see he means it, too.
“Geesh, I’m over there, the red Honda. I point to my car. It has well over three hundred thousand miles on it, and the paint is wearing thin. What I don’t understand is why it’s not sitting level.
“Baby, what’s wrong with your car?” Easton points out as we approach it.
“I’m not sure, but it wasn’t like that this morning.”
“Interesting.” He’s alluding to something, but I’m not sure what it is. We arrive, and I see it has a flat. This just goes right along with the strangest day of my life.
“That’s so weird. I just replaced these tires three months ago. I wonder if I ran over a nail or something?”
“Fuck,” he guffaws. His hands find the back of his neck.
“What’s wrong? I can have a tow company come out. You don’t have to stay with me,” I offer.
“That’s not it. There isn’t a nail in your tire, baby. Someone sliced the sidewall wide open.”
“What? Are you sure?” I’m in disbelief. I haven’t made any enemies. In fact, I don’t know anyone well enough.
“Yeah, it’s plain as day. Go ahead and call a tow company, but I’ll take you home and have this taken care of. You have another way to get to school tomorrow?” Easton asks with concern in his voice.
“Nope, not unless I want to take the bus, and even then, I’m not sure it runs that early.” I’m so screwed. I have a clinical tomorrow, which means a seven o’clock in the morning type of class.
“I’ll take you home tonight and pick you up for school tomorrow,” Easton states.
“I can take an Uber instead?”
“It’s not like I’m doing anything anyways. Plus, this will give me an excuse to see more of you.” He winks. I turn to my phone and call the roadside assistance I was smart enough to include in my car insurance policy every month. I get the operator as soon as I make the call. Something tells me that doesn’t always happen. I remember hearing people complain that they’re on hold forever, and that a tow truck will take no less than four hours to take care of your car.