Chapter 2

Alex handed her a paint color card and, emboldened by her slight praise, he was now able to speak without stammering. “We even have a color named ‘Sunflower Sunrise.’ It’s the middle one.”

“Oh! I like this color.” She looked up at him. “Let’s go with this one.”

“Okay. We need to figure out how much paint you need. How big is your bedroom?”

“Small. Like ten feet by twelve feet or something.”

“That is small.”

“I like to think of it as cozy,” Cyn replied with a sly wink bringing the blush back to Alex’s cheeks.

He shuffled his feet then asked her, “Do you have rollers and brushes?”

“No. I’m afraid that I’m going to need everything.” Cyn shrugged. “Actually, I don’t even know what I’m going to need.”

“I can help you with that stuff.”

“You seem to be pretty knowledgeable about all of this. Cute and smart!”

Alex nervously chuckled. “Well, I work here, so...”

He was cut off when Cyn asked him, “Hey. When are you off work today?”

“What?”

“When are you done working today? You should come over and help me paint.”

A little shocked at her boldness, but also intrigued, Alex told her, “I’m working until closing. Nine.”

“Bummer. Are you working tomorrow?”

“Yes.”

Unfazed, Cyn continued. “How about the day after? Sunday?”

“I have it off.”

“Awesome!” Cyn leaned towards Alex and plucked the pen out of his shirt pocket. She wrote her phone number and address across the “Sunflower Sunrise” sample and handed it to him. She popped the pen back into his shirt pocket. “I hope I don’t have to write my name down, do I?”

Alex looked up from the paint card and smiled. “You do not, Cyn.”

“Good. Come by whenever you can. My mom and dad are away, so I’ll be home all day.” Then she added, “Just waiting for you.”

Holding the card in his hand, Alex asked, “Are you always this forward?”

“Hey, life is short and summer is for exciting adventures.”

“‘Life is short?’” Alex replied. “You’re young. You have your whole life ahead of you.” Alex studied her and then suddenly had a slightly concerning thought. “How old are you?”

“Oh, don’t worry. There’s no jailbait here.” Cyn did a quick little shimmy showing off her curvaceous body. She did notice – as she noticed with most men, and even some women – his eyes were riveted to her jiggling breasts. “Eighteen.”

She looked him up and down. “And what are you? Twenty-seven?”

“I’m twenty-two.”

“You look older.”

“Yeah. Everyone says that.”

“Cool. I like older men, anyway.”

“Let me pay for all of this and I’ll see you on Sunday.” As they were walking to the front of the store, Cyn looked over her shoulder to say something, but stopped short, completely forgetting what she had turned around for. “Were you staring at my ass?”