Straight To You: A Novella (Taking Chances Series Book 1) (2 page)

Ashlynn straightened her posture. Hold on. How did Mr. I-Can-Melt-You-With-My-Eyes know her name? “Uh, yes, that’s right,” she replied with a trace of caution in her voice. “And you are...?”

“Jeremy Adams. From First Presbyterian in Sunnyvale,” he answered. “You were in the youth group-”

Ashlynn interrupted, “And you were one of our advisors! Wow, it’s been like what, eleven or twelve years?” Her eyes widened as she took in his muscular chest. He had been a lanky seventeen year old the last time she saw him. Back then, his boyish good looks and engaging personality had made him stand out, but now that his physique had developed, he was more than handsome. Eye candy was right! “I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you,” she continued. “You’ve, um, grown.”

“No problem,” he replied with an easy smile. “Yeah, I hit a growth spurt in my late teens. Woke up one day and it looked like my pajama pants had turned into shorts.” His eyes locked on hers and held them with intensity. “It’s great to see you, Ashlynn. You look the same as before, you haven’t changed a bit.”

She tried not to drop her jaw. The same? She was twelve the last time he saw her! She self-consciously twisted a lock of hair between her fingers.

“Minus the braces and glasses, that is,” Jeremy quickly added.

“Um, yeah,” Ashlynn mumbled before flashing a good-natured smile at him. “It’s good to see you, too. Are you back in the area? Last I heard, Pastor Rich said your family had moved to the east coast. We didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye.”

His eyes clouded for a moment. “Yeah, we went to Boston to be near my grandparents. I moved back about a year ago for a new job. I’m just taking a detour on my way to the office.” He looked around at the store, nodding in appreciation. “So, you work here?”

“I’m in grad school, but I work here part time. It’s a good break from studying. The owner also lets me sell my jewelry.” She felt lucky Zoe believed in her so much to have given her a chance to showcase her work.

“You design your own jewelry? Nice. Can I see something of yours? I’m looking for a gift for my mom’s birthday this Sunday.”

“Sure. Follow me.”

Ashlynn led him to the other side of the store. She stopped at a glass case which displayed a collection of elegant jewelry laid out on black velvet. She removed an amethyst set and placed it on the counter. The handmade earrings boasted vibrant Swarovski rivoli round crystals in an antiqued silver setting on sterling silver ear wires. The matching bracelet and necklace were each made of the same round crystals in their silver settings and joined together by toggle clasps.

“What do you think of these?” Ashlynn held up the earrings for Jeremy to inspect. The crystals shined several shades of purple as they dangled from her fingers. “I remember your mom wore purple often. Does she still like that color?”

“Wow, they’re amazing,” he remarked. “You’re very talented.”

Ashlynn flushed at his compliment. “Thanks.”

His eyes lingered a moment longer to take in her long, slender fingers. “I’m impressed you remember her favorite color, too.” He pointed to the matching necklace and bracelet. “This is perfect. I’ll take the whole set.”

“You will? Great. Let me find a box for you. Be right back.”

Jeremy’s eyes followed her as she walked to the back room. He shook his head in wonder and appreciation. The last time he had seen Ashlynn, she had been in junior high and barely a shadow of a woman. She had been cute before, but now she took his breath away. She exuded an air of femininity, from the wavy blonde locks that fell halfway down her back to her shapely legs.

Ashlynn strode back with a dark blue velvet case. She carefully laid the jewelry inside and placed the case in a silver gift bag. “Will that be all for you?” she asked with a bright smile. “I mean, there’s no pressure for you to buy anything else. It’s just a sales thing we’re supposed to say.” And possibly one way to find out if there was a Mrs. Adams in the picture.

“That’s all for now, thanks. The only other ladies in my life are my sister and her twins. My nieces do have a birthday coming up, but I’ll be picking up their presents at a toy store. Unless you happen to sell tiaras here?”

“Nope, sorry, we sold our last one yesterday along with a matching pair of glass slippers,” she joked. “Twins, huh? How old are they?”

“Four … going on fourteen,” he replied, the corners of his mouth quirking upward. “They have me schooled in all things Disney. I bet you didn’t know Rapunzel’s hair was seventy feet long and it changed colors from blonde-”

“To brown when she cut it,” Ashlynn interjected, flashing her dimple.

Jeremy’s eyebrows shot up in amusement. “I see you know your princesses.”

“I know a thing or two. But hey, you’re not bad yourself. Not many grown men could say they have the same expertise as a four year old girl.”

“Or a grown woman,” he added. Like the one standing before him with curves in all the right places and the confidence to go with them.

Something about Jeremy’s tone or the sparkle in his blue eyes left Ashlynn tongue tied. “I, uh … let me go ahead and ring you up.” She busied herself with punching buttons on the register. “That’ll be $59.95.”

“Well worth it,” he said, handing her his credit card. He flashed a wide grin in her direction. “I’m very glad I came in here today.”

Ashlynn beamed as she completed the transaction. She held her head high and a burst of energy coursed through her body. Every sale she made boosted her confidence, but today’s exchange seemed even more rewarding. She handed Jeremy the receipt, her hand brushing his in the process. Her cheeks reddened at the tingle she felt in his warm touch. The butterflies in her stomach made her feel like a giddy junior high school girl again. “I really hope your mom likes the gift.”

“I’m sure she will. Thanks, Ashlynn.”

They broke their eye contact when the jingling bell of the door signaled another customer’s arrival. Jeremy started to speak but hesitated. “I’ll let you go. I’m glad we ran into each other today. Now I know where to find you.” He waved and exited the store.

Zoe rushed up to Ashlynn from the other side of the store, her hands in the air. “Who was that? And how do you know him?!”

Ashlynn felt the air returning to her lungs. She hadn’t realized how quickly her heart was beating. “His name is Jeremy. We grew up together in the same church, but his family moved away years ago. I can’t believe he’s back!” she exclaimed. “He was such a good guy, really friendly and accepting of everyone. Gosh, all the girls had a crush on him. You could say he was a major reason the youth group doubled in size while he was there.” She rolled her eyes in amusement.

“You liked him too, didn’t you? I saw how he had you turning all shades of red.”

“Oh my goodness, do you think he noticed?”

“Girl, we could have put you outside on the street corner and you would’ve stopped traffic.”

“How embarrassing,” she moaned. “Of course I liked him. He was the one guy I always hoped I’d marry whenever I played MASH. I didn’t even mind living in a shack with four kids as long as I ended up with him.”

“That’s true love right there.”

“Ha ha. It was such a silly crush. I mean, I was twelve and he was seventeen. There was no way anything would have happened.”

“But you guys aren’t teenagers anymore,” she said with a cunning look in her eyes. “So, did you give him your number?”

“What? No, he didn’t ask for it.” She sighed as she remembered his comment about her teenage appearance. He had to bring up the braces and glasses, didn’t he?

“Girl, you should’ve just given it to him.” Zoe shook her head incredulously at Ashlynn’s lack of initiative. “I would have asked him out on the spot!”

“I was having a hard enough time remembering to breathe. Guys like Jeremy never pay attention to me, much less smile at me.” And what an amazing smile he had. The memory of his upturned lips sent a warm feeling throughout her body. She turned to Zoe with wide eyes. “What if I never see him again?”

“Don’t worry,” she replied with a wink. “I could practically see the molecules and atoms bouncing around all the way from the other side of the room.”

“The what?”

“The
chemistry
between you two.”

“Uh, I’m pretty sure that was due to the extra blood flow in my cheeks.”

“Very funny.” Zoe had the smug look of a Cheshire cat. “Trust me, he’ll be back.”

“I hope so...” Ashlynn doubted he saw her as anything more than an awkward adolescent girl. But a glimmer of hope buoyed her heart, lifting her out of the self-pity that consumed her earlier.

Surprisingly, for the first time that day, Derrick was the furthest thing on her mind. Seeing Jeremy again had her thinking that maybe not all guys were bad. Who said knights in shining armor didn’t exist anymore?

TWO

“Hey man, did you eat lunch yet?”

The baritone voice behind Jeremy woke him from his daydreaming. He had been staring at the computer monitor so long, the document on the screen had turned into a blur of black letters. “Lunch?” He turned around to face a freckle-faced man patting his stomach which bulged out from beneath a black polo shirt. “Oh, hey Bobby.”

“Yeah, the meal between breakfast and dinner,” Bobby replied. “I think I finally digested that extra helping of turkey lasagna. I’m ready to go pump some iron.”

Jeremy checked his watch and exhaled. “It’s a quarter past one already.” The entire morning had passed, yet he had accomplished next to nothing. “Where did the time go?”

Bobby scratched his head. “I’m guessing you forgot about lunch. Man, how can you pass up free food? That’s one of the reasons I wanted to work here.” He gestured towards the monitor. “You must be working on something big to forget to eat.”

“Uh, yeah, something big alright.” His friend from the legal department didn’t need to know he had been thinking about something other than costs and terms. “Come on, let’s hit the gym.” He picked up a protein bar from his desk. “I’ll eat this in the meantime.”

“You sure? If you want to skip working out today, I’ll all for it.”

“You’re not getting out of it that easily.”

They headed to the next building to access the company gym. They took turns using the bench press with Bobby spotting Jeremy first. After a couple of reps, they switched places.

“Come on, a little higher. Whoa there!” Jeremy reached over and grabbed the falling barbell before it made contact with Bobby’s neck. He raised it back onto the rack. “Nice try. You almost had it.”

“Now I know what a bowl of jelly feels like. Wiggly and wobbly.” Bobby sat up on the bench press and wiped his forehead on the sleeve of his T-shirt. “Good thing you have fast reflexes. I almost got flattened into a pancake!”

Jeremy chuckled and gestured at the mirror. “More like pureed tomatoes.”

Bobby laughed at the sight of his crimson cheeks. “I’m ready for a break.”

They grabbed their water bottles and sat down on some chairs lined up against the wall. Jeremy leaned back and took a swig of water. His mind drifted again to the image of a sweet dimpled smile, the one that had occupied his mind all morning. What kind of woman had Ashlynn become? He admitted his growing fondness for her had certainly crossed the bounds of being brotherly in nature. There was no denying the fact that he now viewed her with the curious eyes of a man.

Bobby waved his hand in front of Jeremy’s face. “Hey, did you hear a word I just said?”

“Sorry,” he replied. “What were you talking about?”

“I said I bumped into Tiffany again. She was in the break room when I went to grab a soda.”

“Is she the one who works in finance? Tall with short red hair?”

“No, that’s Margo. I’m talking about the new HR Manager. Short with long red hair. Looks just like Amy Adams.”

“You and your redheads. Have you ever been interested in a girl who didn’t have red hair?”

“Hey, we gingers need to stick together,” he said, pointing to his own bright copper crew cut. “Haven’t you heard of redhead extinction? We’re a dying breed.”

“You might want to make sure her hair color’s authentic before you make a move. You do know Amy Adams is naturally a blonde, right?”

“What?!”

“Sorry man, it’s true.” He laughed at the sight of Bobby’s gaping mouth. “My sister told me last week she had the same thing done to her own hair. But anyways, back to Tiffany. Sounds like you want to ask her out, assuming she’s a natural ginger?”

“Wanting and doing are two different things. If I knew she’d say yes, I’d have done it yesterday. I’m still feeling out the situation. That’s why I first asked her to help me out with my self-evaluation.”

“Ah, using the old Foot-in-the-Door technique. Smart move. Get her to agree to something small first, then go for the bigger request.”

“I’ve got my game plan down.” As Bobby finished his sentence, his head jerked up and his eyes locked on the gym door across from them. He raised his hand in an eager wave and lowered his voice. “Look who’s here.”

Jeremy turned to see two women in workout gear walk in. The redhead pulled her brunette friend toward the row of chairs near the bench press. Her lips turned up when she spotted her fellow ginger. “Hi Bobby, how’s it going?”

“Hey Tiffany, good to see you. We’re just taking a break. Oh yeah, meet my friend Jeremy.”

“Welcome Tiffany.” Jeremy extended his hand towards Tiffany. “I heard from Bobby that you just started. Hope you’re liking it here so far.”

The leggy brunette edged her way closer to shake Jeremy’s hand as well. Her eyes roamed with obvious interest over his toned torso and arms. “Jeremy Adams, right? I’m Monica. I’ve heard a lot about you. You’re the man who strikes all the big deals. Seems like you’ve got quite a way with words.”

“Just doing my job,” Jeremy replied with a polite smile. “You ladies interested in the treadmills? Those two just opened up.” He pointed to the opposite wall where several black machines stood. “I’m headed there myself after I finish my water, but I’m happy to offer you first dibs on it.”

“Cool, thanks,” Tiffany replied. “I’ve got a meeting to catch at three so I’ll take you up on that. Good to meet you, Jeremy. Bobby, let me know when you’re ready to work on your evaluation.”