other hand he caressed her arm.
“Franco, I told you already. Don’t expect anything from me. I’m busy. I’m no good as a girlfriend. Once you got to know me, you wouldn’t like me. Besides I just failed my chemistry midterm.”
She stopped at her stoop and sat on her front step. Franco sat next to her, his leg touching hers. He sat with his profile toward her, and she shoved her hands beneath her knees to keep from stroking a wayward bit of hair that fell over his high cheekbone.
“Shit, that’s terrible. I’m sorry about your test. Chemistry was tough enough in high school. I can’t imagine how hard it is in college.”
“Yeah, and I have a second chance at the test on Saturday morning.” Franco’s face fell and so did the lump in her stomach. “But of course, I’ll go to see the restaurant. I said I would.”
“Great.” When he smiled, she tried to ignore the fluttering in her chest.
“I’d better go in.” Wendy stood and lifted her bag. When she straightened up, Franco came face to face with her. He didn’t hesitate. His lips brushed hers, and her mouth opened, gladly receiving his tongue. Her heart pounded, crushed against his strong chest. Held by his arms, she never felt so safe, so cared for.
“Goodnight,” he whispered in her ear.
Her eyes barely opened to watch him fold his lean body into his car.
When her breath returned, she let herself into the silent house. She couldn’t be falling for Franco. She shouldn’t be falling for Franco. A man like that would be more than a distraction. He could be an obsession.
****
Wendy cleaned the last suite with the efficiency of someone who had done the same task day after day for years. It was Friday, her last day to study before tomorrow’s make up test. She careened down the hall with her cleaning cart and repeatedly pushed the button for the service elevator until it arrived. Her supervisor had agreed to let her off early once she finished her rooms. If she aced the test, it would be worth the dock of an hour’s wage.
In the locker room, she threw on her clothes, bolted out the service door, and ran to the bus stop. An added benefit to leaving early, she wouldn’t run into Susan, who would beg her to go out tonight. And even better, she wouldn’t run into Franco. Although, disappointment welled inside her to see his car in the employee parking lot without his body resting against it, tanned arms crossed over his chest.
She jogged faster to clear that image from her mind. As she approached the bus stop, she spotted that crazy woman who sold macadamia nuts and had foisted that stupid tiki idol on her.
“Hey!” Wendy slowed down, panting, gripping the stitch in her side. “What’s with that gross thing you put in my bag of nuts?”
The old woman’s contented smile didn’t alter. She kept her black eyes trained on Wendy and nodded. “It is what you think it is. It can do what you need it to do.”
“Listen, I don’t buy any of that magic mojo stuff. But I think that idol made me…made me…. Did you put some drug on it? You can’t go putting foreign objects into people’s food. I should get the health department out here. You should be ashamed.”
The woman’s teeth, what there was of them, clicked together. “Tsk.” Stray hairs from beneath the bright pink head scarf blew in the wind. “It’s you who should be ashamed. Running away from yourself. You’ll learn to use it.”
At that moment the bus arrived. Wendy debated between arguing with the woman in the floral muumuu and getting home to study. Chemistry won out. Wendy shot the old woman one last angry glower and boarded the bus.
Wendy shut out the woman’s words. She would throw her energy into studying.
When she got home, she grabbed a banana from the bowl in the kitchen and locked herself in her room.
The words on the page refused to make sense. For hours, she worked and reworked the problems. She took another practice test and bombed. Her mother came home.
“Franco, I told you already. Don’t expect anything from me. I’m busy. I’m no good as a girlfriend. Once you got to know me, you wouldn’t like me. Besides I just failed my chemistry midterm.”
She stopped at her stoop and sat on her front step. Franco sat next to her, his leg touching hers. He sat with his profile toward her, and she shoved her hands beneath her knees to keep from stroking a wayward bit of hair that fell over his high cheekbone.
“Shit, that’s terrible. I’m sorry about your test. Chemistry was tough enough in high school. I can’t imagine how hard it is in college.”
“Yeah, and I have a second chance at the test on Saturday morning.” Franco’s face fell and so did the lump in her stomach. “But of course, I’ll go to see the restaurant. I said I would.”
“Great.” When he smiled, she tried to ignore the fluttering in her chest.
“I’d better go in.” Wendy stood and lifted her bag. When she straightened up, Franco came face to face with her. He didn’t hesitate. His lips brushed hers, and her mouth opened, gladly receiving his tongue. Her heart pounded, crushed against his strong chest. Held by his arms, she never felt so safe, so cared for.
“Goodnight,” he whispered in her ear.
Her eyes barely opened to watch him fold his lean body into his car.
When her breath returned, she let herself into the silent house. She couldn’t be falling for Franco. She shouldn’t be falling for Franco. A man like that would be more than a distraction. He could be an obsession.
****
Wendy cleaned the last suite with the efficiency of someone who had done the same task day after day for years. It was Friday, her last day to study before tomorrow’s make up test. She careened down the hall with her cleaning cart and repeatedly pushed the button for the service elevator until it arrived. Her supervisor had agreed to let her off early once she finished her rooms. If she aced the test, it would be worth the dock of an hour’s wage.
In the locker room, she threw on her clothes, bolted out the service door, and ran to the bus stop. An added benefit to leaving early, she wouldn’t run into Susan, who would beg her to go out tonight. And even better, she wouldn’t run into Franco. Although, disappointment welled inside her to see his car in the employee parking lot without his body resting against it, tanned arms crossed over his chest.
She jogged faster to clear that image from her mind. As she approached the bus stop, she spotted that crazy woman who sold macadamia nuts and had foisted that stupid tiki idol on her.
“Hey!” Wendy slowed down, panting, gripping the stitch in her side. “What’s with that gross thing you put in my bag of nuts?”
The old woman’s contented smile didn’t alter. She kept her black eyes trained on Wendy and nodded. “It is what you think it is. It can do what you need it to do.”
“Listen, I don’t buy any of that magic mojo stuff. But I think that idol made me…made me…. Did you put some drug on it? You can’t go putting foreign objects into people’s food. I should get the health department out here. You should be ashamed.”
The woman’s teeth, what there was of them, clicked together. “Tsk.” Stray hairs from beneath the bright pink head scarf blew in the wind. “It’s you who should be ashamed. Running away from yourself. You’ll learn to use it.”
At that moment the bus arrived. Wendy debated between arguing with the woman in the floral muumuu and getting home to study. Chemistry won out. Wendy shot the old woman one last angry glower and boarded the bus.
Wendy shut out the woman’s words. She would throw her energy into studying.
When she got home, she grabbed a banana from the bowl in the kitchen and locked herself in her room.
The words on the page refused to make sense. For hours, she worked and reworked the problems. She took another practice test and bombed. Her mother came home.
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