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Clock’s Tickin’, Dude
If he could have squeezed his steering wheel any harder, it might have snapped in Ian’s hands. Every red light was an eternity.
Fortunately, he was still waiting for the light to turn green when his phone buzzed.
Are you there yet?
“Aw, come on, Nancy.” He glanced at the time and wondered if the light would ever turn green. “Don’t you think I’m stressed enough about this? I said I’d tell you when I got there.”
The light was now green, but nobody was moving.
“What’s the matter? Wrong shade of green? C’mon, people! It’s the pedal on the right. Let’s go!”
Finally, the cars ahead of him reacted to the change and began moving.
“Good thing she’s not here. She wouldn’t approve of me talking to myself.” He observed as he turned onto a less traveled route. While not technically a shortcut, it would save him some time being stuck behind holiday dawdlers. “And who the heck is she to approve or disapprove of anything I do, anyway?”
He pulled up behind a big delivery truck that was parked in the middle of the street. No sign of the driver.
“Just great. Do I wait or swing a uey?”
There wasn’t room on either side to get around the truck and the ramp was still extended.
Stuck behind a delivery truck
Ian turned the radio up a bit. He’d give it until Santa Baby was over before he turned around and took another route.
“It’s not even four yet. She won’t even be there. This clown ought to be out of the way in a moment. Right?”
Ian spent the time checking his appearance in the rear-view mirror. No point in giving her anything else to criticize him about.
“What the heck am I doing?” He massaged his temples. “I’m going to go apologize to someone who has been treating me like an escaped mental patient. Why do I have to apologize? She and her sister are the ones who barged in on my private conversation.”
The phone buzzed again. “Now what?”
She wants your number
What for?
IDK
Okay, tell her
“I wonder why.” He looked back and forth for any sign of the delivery driver. “Alright, this is ridiculous.”
Ian put it in reverse and began working on a u-turn. The street was both narrow and crowded with parked cars. He was eight points into an eleven point turn when the phone buzzed again.
Hi, it’s Ivy
“Well, give me a minute to finish what I’m doing here.” He said, trying not to back into anyone’s car.
Hi
He hoped that would tide her over until he could get out of this ridiculous situation. He was on the tenth point of eleven when he saw the delivery driver moseying down the driveway with a clipboard tucked under one arm and a hand truck trailing behind him. “Just great, pal. Perfect timing.”
I asked Nancy for your nbr
Hope you don’t mind
He found an open spot to pull into.
That’s fine
Is everything OK?
That certainly made her wonder. She’d been sitting here since 3:30, nursing a Triple-Whipped Gingerbread Macchiato and a Cranberry Almond Spice Cake Biscotto. ‘Well, genius, what are you going to say to that?’
Just getting a time check
‘Brilliant, Ivy. Now he’s going to think you’re crazy and demanding.’
Should be there in a few
She tapped her biscotto on the table, scattering crumbs all over the table. ‘Should have just waited. Now he’s going to think you’re a demanding jerk. No wonder he always runs away from you.’
Wanted to let you know I’m already here
Clock’s tickin’, dude
‘Oh, my God! What is wrong with me?’ She sat there reading the message. ’Is Holly controlling my fingers? Why did I say that?’
LOL
BRT
She put her hand over her mouth to cover up the huge, geeky smile that had stolen onto her face. ‘At least he’s got a sense of humor.’ She looked down at the mess she’d made with her snack.
She was on her way to the trash can with a large handful of crumbs when she spotted him walking down the street.
‘What in the world is going on right now?’ She swept the mess from her hands, watching him get closer. The urge to run over, grab her coat, and skedaddle before Ian arrived was threatening to take over any sense of reason. ‘Calm down. He’s just a guy.’
She took a deep breath and returned to her table. She switched seats so she could watch him come in.
She had been sitting with her back to the door, so she’d be surprised when he came in. Now that she’d seen him approaching, she wanted to see the look on his face when he walked in.
She had been studying him at church. She was looking for something that would let her dismiss the ridiculous notion of being interested in him, some fatal flaw. Unfortunately, that just made him more interesting.
He was certainly easy on the eyes, but she wanted to discern something about the mind behind the endearingly rugged face. Was there really any charm behind those slate-gray eyes? Did she actually care as long as she could spend some quality time staring into them?
‘Whoa! Have you flipped your wig? You don’t even know this guy. He’s here to apologize for saying you’re nuts. Let him grovel first.’
He came in through the door and looked around. Then he saw her.
‘Okay, he found you. Now what?’
There was a flash of a smile and then, gone. He was trying to look contrite.
‘Isn’t that adorable?’
She sipped at her macchiato as nonchalantly as she could manage. Her heart was pounding. Her hands were shaking.
‘Oh, my God. Get a grip. He can’t see you like this.’
He walked right up. “Hi, Ivy. Mind if I sit?”
“Don’t you want to get a drink first?”
He looked at the line, shook his head, and sat down. “No, that can wait.”
“Okay.” Ivy said, sliding her cup aside.
“Ivy, I-”
“Ian, I’m sorry.”