Then he smiles. “Look at you riding the elevator.”
Okay, I guess he doesn’t suspect me of spying on him. I need to get out of here, but he’s blocking my path. I pull the collar of my shirt away from my neck. It feels like it’s choking me. “Just trying to conquer my fears.”
He steps in next to me and hits the button for his floor. I’m too panicked to appreciate how close he’s standing to me, or how good he smells. I look down at the bag he’s holding. It’s his own bag of takeout, which reminds me about mine. As the doors start to close, I stick my hand out to stop them. “Actually, I’m getting off. My food was just delivered.”
I step out of the elevator and head for the security desk where my bag of food is waiting for me. When I turn back around, I see that he’s holding the doors open for me. I think about getting back in, but I just can’t bring myself to do it. I gesture to the stairwell. “I’m heading this way.”
He rolls his eyes at me, a smile teasing the corner of his mouth. “I’ll race you up there.”
He lets go of the elevator door, and it closes, leaving me alone in the lobby. I take in a deep breath, release it, then head for the stairs. I scold myself on the way up to my floor. I should have just taken the elevator and conquered my fear like I said I was doing. It wouldn’t have been so bad if I got trapped in there with him again. Plus, we both have takeout, so it’s not like we would have gone hungry while we waited for the fire department to come rescue us.
The smell of my food drifts up to my nose, making my stomach growl. The elevator opens just as I come out of the stairwell.
“Looks like it’s a tie,” he says.
“I gave you an advantage. I took the stairs very slowly.”
“Uh-huh. Sure.” He gestures to my bag. “Eating alone?”
I smile. “Want to join me?” I don’t want him to see the mess I left in my living room, so I lower myself to the floor. I pull the plastic box of food out of the paper bag and set it in front of me. “Picnic?”
The side of his mouth quirks up a little higher.
“My place is a mess,” I explain. “I’m packing for another trip with Anne. I can’t have you see my living room in the state that it’s in.”
“I wouldn’t mind,” he says. He lowers himself to the floor so that he’s sitting across from me. He opens his own takeout container. I look over at his food. He has Chinese. It smells so good that it makes me regret my own choice of Italian.
“I was surprised I didn’t see you at the café today,” I tell him.
“You were there?”
I nod.
“Of course,” he says. “The one day that I skip lunch.”
“Why did you skip lunch?”
“I had to perform an emergency surgery on a walrus,” he says.
“A walrus? Really? Poor thing. What happened?”
“His flipper was injured in an accident at a zoo. The zoo didn’t have adequate vet staff or enough money to pay for his care, so they signed him over to us. He’ll be fine, though. He’s doing better already.”
“Wow. You’re a real hero to the walrus community.”
“Thank you. Maybe you can come by the aquarium again and see him.”
I smile. “I’d like that.”
“Where are you going with Anne?”
I’m caught off guard by the abrupt change in subject. My mouth is full of pasta, so I take a minute to answer. “We’re flying out to Georgia.”
He frowns. “Really? Why Georgia? Don’t tell me you’re trying to compare their beaches too.” His tone doesn’t sound quite as teasing as I expect. I can’t quite put my finger on it. He almost seems annoyed. I shrug it off, reminding myself that he must have had a stressful day with the walrus.
“We won’t be anywhere near the beach.” I consider explaining the reason for the trip, but I can’t find the right words. “It’s just a girls’ trip. Anne has always wanted to go to Albany.”
“Albany’s not really all that special.” His tone is still flat and unamused.
