Him & Her
By: Shelby MitchellHer standing here, looking so hot and all alone in this unsafe location immediately makes my protective senses tingle. I’ve done more to set her back with my callous behavior than I first realized and now I’m itching with want to protect her. It’s my fault she’s here with no prospect of what to do for a job. And still I can’t help but drink in this new side of her. Now, I’ve become a horny jerk bastard. The mix of confident fragility she giving off is a heady one playing havoc with my dick.
The air between us shifts to an awkward energy as I continue to stand here—staring. It’s now or never. Please let my voice be normal, please oh please; I mentally intone and hope for the best.
“Yeah, I wanted to come by and say I’m sorry for what happened. And make another sincere plea for you to reconsider my offer. I’m prepared to triple my previous offer,” I say determined to hide the effect she’s having on me from my voice.
“Oh, so now that you’ve managed to give that troll a reason to fire me, you think I’m going to work for you?”
Yeah, a guy can hope, right? I love it. The sass is back, creating a fire in her eyes that’s just as attractive as the rest of her.
“Why are you here anyway? You following me now?”
Eyes don’t fail me again, I silently plead as I will them to not betray the truth or ogle her body. Who am I kidding, she’s eyeing me like an eagle. Nothing is going to get past her. I might as well fess up. “I waited for you to leave the store so I could apologize and make sure you were all right. When you didn’t go to a car in the parking lot, I decided to follow you—to make sure you’d be safe.”
“Ha! I’m all right. And I’ll be all right. There’s no need for you to worry about that. You’ve done enough helping for today. With your kind of help, who needs saboteurs? Thanks, but no thanks.” Her acerbic truth cuts a little. But she’s not done with me yet, “You’re nothing more than a spoiled, delusional guy with a savior complex. In case you didn’t get the memo, I’m not a maid, Mammy or moron.”
I smile; I just can’t help it. She does have a way with words. I try for a more serious look when I notice her eyes narrow again at my reaction to her humorous statement.
“I would never say or think that,” I insist, meaning it. “I just wanted to present a win-win for both of us and thought I could help now since you—”
She cuts me off which is a good thing. I don’t like the whine creeping into my plea anyway. “News flash. Earth to coo-coo white boy, this isn’t Pandora. I’m not a Na’vi princess and you’re not the great white hope coming to save me and my planet.”
I'm impressed with both her knowledge of Avatar and quick wit. It's amazing how different she sees that movie. I thought it was great, never thought of it in those terms. Hmm… an insightful mind too. She definitely doesn’t belong locked behind the closed-minded, rigid doors at that grocery store.
“Avatar, nice reference. Look Nori, I'm not here to throw anything in your face. I really do need a chef and I love your cooking. Just give me a chance to plead my case.” This time I try my most soulful face and ask softly, “Will you?”
“How do you know my name?” Her entire body tenses and shields as she scrutinizes me. “You show up at my home and now you know my name? Are you a stalker or something?”
“No, not a stalker,” I protest and throw my hands up in surrender. “The guy at the store called you by your first and last name. Nori Blackmon, right?”
“Oh…” That takes a little bit of bluster out of her, but her stance never eases from its protective posture. I can tell she isn’t going to ask me in. Damn, my internal charm app could use an upgrade.
It's hard to get a woman to talk with me, especially when she's pissed and unaware of who I am. I've never had to work this hard with a chick before. Well, she's not a chick now is she. She can’t be.
A chick is someone I pick up at the club or when I’m out with the guys—temporary low mental input companionship. Nope, she’s a potential employee with an amazing intellect—just a person I’m interested in—as my chef. She doesn't count when it comes to my ability to charm anyway. She’s off limits but this Nori lady is bringing my ego down a few pegs tonight.
