Oops, I've Fallen
Taking my cell phone out of the back pocket of my jeans, I pull up the one person I know will help me get my store manager off that damn stepladder and out the door.
Me: Hey, girl. Do me a favor? Call your man and tell him it’s time to come home. But I need you to really sell it, okay? I’m talking pull an Olive Garden and offer unlimited blow jobs with dinner kind of convincing sell. Please and thank you.
Her response comes in a minute later.
Nina: LOL. Big plans tonight, or he’s just being a workaholic pain in the ass?
Me: Definitely the second. Save me.
Nina is one of my closest girlfriends in Vail and one of the awesome ski instructors on my team. She and Brody actually met through working for me. Which is pretty fucking cool, in my humble opinion.
Nina: I’m on it.
Yas, girl. I can always count on her. Even when I’m asking her to slurp Brody’s schlong like it’s a never-ending pasta bowl.
Thirty seconds later, I locate Brody’s phone on the sacred do-not-fucking-touch counter by the register, pick it up, and eye the three text notifications I summoned from Nina sitting above the adorable picture of them he uses for his background.
The two of them are an insanely good-looking couple.
Like, the kind of pretty people you’d see on those Instagram travel blogs.
“Uh, Brody?” I say, grabbing his attention. “I think Nina is trying to get ahold of you.”
“Oh shit,” he mutters and hops down off the ladder, taking his cell from my hands.
He scrolls through her texts, his eyes widening slightly on one that I suspect has bribery in the form of naked body parts, and I stand there patiently, waiting for him to ask my favorite question of the day.
“So…” He pauses, glancing up at me. “I guess we should call it a day, huh?”
Hallelujah!
I swallow down the urge to break into a dance and force myself to nod calmly. “That’s probably a good plan.”
He bursts into laughter. “You are so full of shit right now.”
“What?”
“You’re practically a character from My Little Pony. Do me a favor, don’t lift your sparkly tail and shoot rainbows out of your ass, okay?” he teases, and I reach out to punch him in the shoulder.
“Shut up. And then, get the fuck out of my shop so I can close down for the night.”
“I’ll help you.”
“Nope.” I point one stern index finger in his direction. “No way. You are leaving. Right now. Your girlfriend is waiting at home for you.”
“My girlfriend whom you probably coerced.”
“Do the details really matter?” I retort, and he flashes a knowing, annoyed look in my direction. “All that matters is it’s quitting time, B.” I reach behind the counter and grab his backpack. “So, while I love you like a brother, if you don’t leave in the next thirty seconds, I’m going to pull out my best Cobra Kai moves and go ninja on your ass.”
“All right.” He shakes his head on a chuckle, shrugging his backpack over his shoulders and holding both hands in the air. “I can tell when I’m not wanted.”
“I guess your perception just takes a couple hours to kick in?” I ask smartly.
He grins. “See you tomorrow?”
“You know it.” I nod and follow him to the front door of the store. “I’ll even try to be here on time.”
With the entrance propped open by my Converse-covered foot, I watch on as Brody offers a wave over his shoulder and heads toward his car in the parking lot behind the shop. I shut the door and lock it to the sounds of his Jeep’s engine coming to life and his tires rolling over the gravel on his way out of the lot.
Looking out toward the horizon, I see the sun has just set behind the Rocky Mountains, and my mind instantly starts fantasizing about the first snowfall of the year.
The itch to glide across white-powdered mountains with blistery air skating across my cheeks is strong, but Mother Nature is stubborn, whispering into the warm, early September breeze, Not yet, Carly.
On a sigh, I head back into my shop and start the process of shutting everything down for the day. Turning off lights. Making sure the register is locked. Tossing the rest of the discarded boxes from our earlier stocking in the back.
It’s not long before I’m ready to head out, but I’m stopped in my tracks when my phone vibrates in the back pocket of my jeans. I pull it out to find Incoming Call Josh flashing across the screen.
Oh great. Just what I need—a douchebag distraction from my ex.
I consider ignoring it, but then again, I know how much Josh loves a challenge. He won’t go away with the power of suggestion. He needs his denials shoved straight into the back of his throat to get the picture.