| Taylor found himself outside a smaller shopping center, located next to a couple of business hotels, the kind people attending corporate events or meetings use. He looked up, moving his soaked hair out of his eyes, scanning the lighted signs for a place he thought he'd want to go into. There was a sporting goods store, tanning salon, couple of discount clothing retailers with a couple of card shops and a dollar store thrown in for good measure and, thank goodness, a very large bookstore complete with cafe. He ducked under the awning, wanting to get through the sheet of water pouring from the ledge as quickly as possible. Not that it would help, he already looked as if he'd taken a plunge clothes and all into a lake. He reached for the door without looking, and collided with another body. "Sorry..." both muttered simultaneously. Taylor looked up into a pair of clear brown eyes, maybe a shade lighter than Zac's he thought, and a pretty female face as soaking wet as his own. He stepped back and held the door for her, grinning, though he thought she looked as if she'd been crying. "Thanks." Jacy said and moved through the door quickly, keeping her head down. She moved as far into the entryway as she could get, making room for his equally soaked person to get out of the rain. She wondered where he'd gotten a pair of eyes so blue as she grabbed her long hair and wrung it out over the commercial grade mat, twisting it like a wet washcloth. "Criminy..." she muttered as the water she squeezed out of it dripped on to the mat, sounding like someone was pouring water out of a glass. Taylor chuckled behind her as she shook his own wet hair out and pulled his soaked denim jacket off. "Nice day for a walk, huh?" he told her since they were both obviously there only to get out of the weather. "Shyeah. Fantastic." she rolled her eyes and listened to her toes squish in her shoes. She sniffled and wiped her face, then looked up to get a closer look at the chivalrous guy who was nice enough to hold the door for her after he almost plowed her (or did she almost plow him?) down. Her eyes widened as she realized who she was standing face to face with, then she quickly got herself under control. "Thanks again." she said, not even a crack in her voice. "How'd you get stuck out in this garbage?" she asked. Taylor tried hard not to laugh, and was completely impressed with her ability to control her expression. He knew she knew who he was, though she didn't say so, and waited for him to introduce himself. "I dunno. Needed to get out of the house I guess." he told her, reaching to open the next set of doors. "Yeah, me too." she said, looking at her feet. "Ladies first." He motioned her inside ahead of him. "Glad to see chivalry is not dead. Thank you. I'm Jacy." she told him as she entered the building. "Hello, Jacy." He beamed a winning smile at her as he followed her inside. "I'm Taylor." "Nice to meet you." she said and could not help returning his genuine smile. "You and your brothers make great music." "Thanks." he answered and felt himself become a little disappointed as she moved away from him, obviously ready to let him get back to the life he did not feel like leading right now. Suddenly he wanted to talk to her. She knew who he was and yet, she was treating him as a normal human being. Willing to thank him for holding the door and go on her way without demanding more of his attention that he was willing to give and that made him want to give her more of it. "Hey, Jacy?" he blurted as she stepped away. She turned back to him and waited, a slight smile on her face, though her eyes were definitely red-rimmed and little puffy. "Umm... would you?" he hesitated and her smile widened. She combed her fingers through the ends of her hair and wiggled her toes in her soaked shoes. "I mean...we're both obviously in here to wait out the weather. I'm cold and I need some coffee. You have to be freezing. Would you join me, please?" he asked. Jacy stared at Taylor for just a moment, then smiled reassuringly as he shifted his feet underneath him. "I think I'd like that. Thank you, Taylor." she said, looking up into his clear blue gaze as he motioned her into the cafe part of the bookshop ahead of him. They stayed through at least four refills, talking animatedly, thoroughly enjoying each other's company as they dried out. Taylor forgot about any demands on him for a while, and Jacy left thoughts of being oppressed and imprisoned behind. Taylor seemed truly interested in her writing and pored over her notebook after he practically begged her to see it, and her heart soared with each compliment he paid her. Taylor was impressed with her intelligence and her ability to put her feelings on paper, and thoroughly pleased that she cared more about what made him tick, his own thoughts and feelings, rather than the customary gushing most women did in his presence. When both realized how long they'd been sitting there, and the rain had lightened to a mere drizzle, the conversation reluctantly ended. Each dreaded the necessity of going back into the real world, to the responsibilities and pressures that sent them into the storm in the first place. Taylor held the door for her as they stepped outside and Jacy thanked him again for his company and the coffee, though she knew the company was what warmed her the most. She'd treasure this day forever, knowing most likely she would not see him again. "My pleasure, Jacy Moreau." he grinned and reached in his pocket. "E-mail me when you get published. I'll be first in line to buy your novel." he said handing her a card. She looked up, brown eyes wide and smiled. "Thank you again, Taylor. But you really don't have to..." He cut her off by taking her hand. Jacy hoped he could not tell she was holding her breath, as she waited for whatever he was about to say. "I am serious, Jacy. You WILL get that novel published, and I wanna know as soon as it is. Thank you for keeping me company." "I was glad to, Taylor. Maybe we'll bump into each other again sometime." she said, tilting her head. " I hope so." he said, watching as she looked at her feet, said goodbye and strode away from him. He continued to watch her move farther and farther away, noticing her carefully tucking the card he'd given her in an inside pocket in her bag. She tossed her now only damp hair back and strode confidently down the street, maybe completely out of his life, until her book got published anyway. |