“I-I’ll show you where they are,” I said and tried to shake myself out of my daze.
I led the way, taking him two aisles over and pulling the box off the shelf before handing it over to him.
“Thanks,” he said as he took the box and warmth flooded my body as his fingers brushed against mine.
The last few months flashed in my mind. He’d been perfect. He’d been there for me and had respectfully kept his distance while still being a true friend.
The girls had put things in my mind when we were shopping and I couldn’t seem to get them out.
Only I wasn’t sure how to take the next step with him. I wasn’t sure how to tell him that I was ready. Sure there was a part of me that worried that he might have changed his mind about me. That maybe he didn’t feel this thing between us anymore.
It was hard for me to put myself out there. I could admit that much.
“Hey, Ingram,” Donnie, my manager, said from behind me. I jumped and turned to face him. “Is this guy bothering you?”
“Oh, no,” I said and I felt that Mouse was suddenly closer. Like right behind me. I could feel the heat radiating off of his body and seeping into my back.
Donnie’s eyes weren’t on mine, they were looking over my head at Mouse.
“This is my Mouse— I mean, my friend Mouse.” Though, I kind of felt like I had it right the first time.
“Those snacks are a big seller for kids. You have a kid?” Donnie asked Mouse.
I was picking up on some strangeness right now.
“Something like that,” Mouse answered and there was something is his tone that was on the verge of being deadly.
“Well, is there anything else I can help you find? If not, they will be able to ring you up in the front,” Donnie said with a tight smile.
“Donnie,” I cut in. “It’s time for me to clock out. Do you need me to do anything else?”
“No,” he replied, his eyes moving down to look into mine. “You’ve done real good today, Ingram. I knew you’d fit in here.”
“Thank you. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I gave him a smile.
I don’t know why I did it, but I grabbed Mouse’s hand to lead him away with me. He reached out and grabbed another box before letting me drag him away.
Mouse muttered something under his breath but I couldn’t make out what it was.
“Well, you can check out there. It was nice to see you,” I said as I pointed to one of the registers that were open.
I maybe wasn’t ready for him to go but I wasn’t sure how to let him know that. Sure, he’d come in to get more snacks, but maybe he’d come in to see me too. I had no clue and it made me feel a little shaky inside.
“Go get your stuff,” he told me. “I’ll wait for you.”
I gave him a nod and darted off to the back. Once I clocked out and hung my green apron in my locker, I grabbed my stuff and headed back to the front. There was Mouse standing next to the front doors with a bag hanging from his fingers. He was waiting for me like he’d said.
Yes, there were butterflies in my stomach right now.
“Oh,” he said once we started to walk out side-by-side. “Laurel said that she was taking Chry to the park. So, she wanted me to tell you that she’s keeping him for a little bit longer in case you needed to do anything… or something.”
“Oh, um, okay,” I said wondering what I was going to do with the free time.
“Have you eaten?”
“No.”
“Would you like to…” He scratched the back of his neck with his free hand. “Get something with me?”
