Chapter 1

He just grabbed me.
Okay, maybe he really caught me. I shut the car door with my foot and turned while holding a stack of mail, trying to answer the ringing cell phone in my purse, and slurp up the last bit of my double chocolate chip frappuccino. I completely forgot about the curb. And the cement was ready to welcome me.
What I hadn’t counted on was a pair of very firm arms encircling me, and righting me, as my belongings went air borne. Great, knowing my luck I had probably just embedded his face with chocolate chips. I didn’t want to take my chances and glance up to find out. So I immediately bent to grab my phone, trying to keep down the heat I felt rising to my face. When he began to gather a few of the envelopes I was still apologizing and thanking him all at once. Stop! I must sound like a fool. I knew I looked like one. I stood and he returned the mail to my hands. Then I made the mistake of looking up.
And that’s when I wondered how I had ever made it this far in life without experiencing eyes like that.
He just smiled. There was amusement behind those deep hazel eyes that made me wonder what he was really thinking. The smile turned into a smirk as he and I both realized I was staring. That’s when I died. Of mortification. I couldn’t even manage to turn and make a run for it. I was just standing outside my apartment with a beat red face and not one word to say. Ohmygosh. I tried to speak. Anything would work at the moment.
“Th…uh… thanks.” Could this be any more humiliating? “I guess I got a bit sidetracked. But thank you for…um…helping me,” I was trying to avoid looking at his face knowing that I had just stared at him longer than I even looked at myself in the mirror every morning. Poor guy; he touched my elbow and I jolted.
“Are you sure you’re okay? You didn’t twist your ankle did you?” His concern removed the amusement in his eyes as he looked like he sincerely wanted to know if I was alright. “Does an abnormal heart rate constitute as a problem?”
“No, I’m fine. Really. See,” I said, taking a few steps back involuntarily trying to distance myself, “better than ever.” I smiled hoping he would see that I really just wanted to bolt. Anyplace that did not contain someone so… unsettling would be perfect.
He swept a look up and down me that sent my heart into its hazard zone, and then simply said, “Alright then. Watch out for that curb next time, I might not be here to save that pretty face from the ground.” He winked. I was frozen to the spot. Then he grinned, and with that, kept walking. I shook my head a little. Did he say “pretty face” to me? In that one moment of insanity I considered saying something outrageous like, “You can be here anytime you want!” Then I remembered to breathe, and nixed that idea on the exhale. I took a few more deep breaths while watching his retreating back, and then turned and decided to find a hole I could crawl into for a very long time.