Part 11 (2/2)
”What?” Darren yelled so loud Sarah was grateful she had shut her door. ”d.a.m.n, girl, what's the matter with you?”
He looked so righteously angry that Sarah couldn't help smiling. ”I'm a moron?”
”Yes, you are a moron. And I hope you get over that.”
”I just don't want to get hurt again.” Contemplating, Sarah bit the end of her thumb. ”And the way things are going, I think I could.”
”Could, shmould.” Darren sounded so much like Rivka, Sarah had to smile. ”You never get anywhere if you don't take risks.”
”Do I pay you to give me advice?” Sarah still felt horrible about the scene with Ned, but Darren was right. William had hurt her on purpose. It didn't make what happened with Ned right, but it did make seem less wrong.
”You know what I got to say to that.” Darren got up from his chair. ”I thought we were going to lunch.”
”Sure, let's go.” She would carry the scene at the mailroom with her for a long time. Knowing she hadn't meant to cause Ned pain didn't make her feel any better about it, but at least it had made her think.
CHAPTER 6.
Shoppers crammed the mall from one end to the next. Sarah began to regret her decision to come at all. She hated being forced to press up against people she didn't know, and long lines at the cash register made her crazy. If she hadn't already scoured every specialty shop in downtown Harrisburg for the perfect gift to give her sister as congratulations on the gallery opening, she'd just turn right around and go home.
”Let's make a break for it!” Alex pointed to a spot in the crowd that had magically cleared.
For such a large man, he moved with the grace of a dancer. Grabbing Sarah's hand, he wove them in and around the other shoppers until he had pulled her into the slightly less crowded food court. Spotting an empty table ahead, he dove for it and nearly knocked over a teenage couple more intent on seeing how many body parts they could press together than on watching where they were going.
”Sorry,” Alex told the young man, who merely shrugged. ”C'mon, Sarah, let's sit down and have something to eat. I'm starved.”
”My treat for putting you through all this.”
”All what?” Alex looked around the crowded mall with mock surprise. ”Being part of a stampede is my idea of a good time.”
She laughed. She laughed a lot when she was with him. It was just the way he made her feel.
”Thanks for coming with me. I really want to find Rivka something special.”
”Any reason to spend some time with you is good enough for me.” Alex leaned over and brushed a kiss against her lips.
Sarah knew she was grinning like an idiot, but couldn't help it. The past two weeks with Alex had been like something out of a movie. When work or other commitments prevented them from meeting for dinner, he invariably called her before going to bed. They'd spoken every day for two weeks and had never run out of things to talk about.
”What can I get you?” She wanted to kiss him again, but was well aware of the crowd around them. It wouldn't do to get carried away, and she knew herself too well. She didn't have a whole lot of self-control where Alex was concerned.
He wiggled his brows lasciviously. ”You know what I like, baby.”
Sarah rolled her eyes. ”Yeah, I know what you like. But what do you want me to buy you for lunch?”
”Cheeseburger, fries, soda. The heart-attack special.”
”Hold down the fort. I see a couple of mall crawlers over there eyeing this seat.”
”I'll guard it with my life.” Alex spread out his hands as though to cover the entire table. ”Hurry back. I'm so hungry I could eat a bowl of lard with a hair in it.”
Sarah screwed up her face in disgust. ”You have such a way with words, Alex.”
”Thanks.”
”Modest, too.”
Alex grinned an aw-shucks smile. ”You've got me pegged, Sarah.”
She was pretty hungry herself. Shopping did that to her. She made her way through the throng, heading toward Mr. Burger. Though she tried to stay away from junk food, Alex's order had suddenly got her mouth watering. She gave the order to the paper-capped teen behind the counter, adding a chocolate milkshake instead of a cola for herself.
”In for a penny, in for a pound,” she said wryly, mentally calculating the calorie load. ”Or more like four or five pounds.”
While she waited for the food, Sarah glanced back to where Alex sat. He was no longer alone. A tall, auburn-haired woman now sat across from him. As Sarah watched, the woman laughed, tossing back her head until her gorgeous hair flowed halfway down her back.
A tiny sense of unease crept into Sarah's stomach. She shook it off. She b.u.mped into people she knew all the time at the mall. Alex had obviously just met someone he knew.
And knew rather well. A sudden sick sensation flowed over her. The redhead leaned across the table to lay her hand across his. From Sarah's angle she couldn't see Alex's reaction, but the other woman's face was clear as spring water. The redhead was smiling and fluttering her eyes. She was flirting.
”Order's up,” the gangly youth in the Mr. Burger uniform announced.
”Thanks.” Sarah took the tray.
She didn't really want to walk back through the crowd. Not with the redhead still sitting in Sarah's seat. Sarah's mouth felt like sand, and the tray felt as heavy as stone. She forced a blank smile to her lips and made herself put one foot in front of the other until she had reached the table.
”Sarah!” Alex seemed glad to see her.
”Oh.” The word came out in exaggerated innocence. ”Am I sitting in your seat?”
”That's okay.” It was a lie, but she set the tray down on the table and made room for it by pus.h.i.+ng aside her own bag, though the redhead's purse was actually taking up more s.p.a.ce.
”I was just leaving anyway.” The other woman's tone clearly implied her haste to exit was mostly because of Sarah's arrival. ”I just saw Lex here and had to stop and say hi.”
Sarah nodded silently, a look of what she hoped was neutral interest upon her face. The redhead got up, obviously reluctant to leave Alex's side though she'd already said she was going. Sarah decided not to wait for the other woman to move away from the chair and instead made room for herself at the other end of the table.
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