Well Built
Page 14

If he had a girlfriend, he wouldn’t have asked you to dinner, Claire swiftly responded. And now I’m going to give you some woman-to-woman advice. If Kyle is feeling the same vibe, there is nothing wrong with having a good time, if you know what I mean. You haven’t had sex since Tucker, and let’s face it, you admitted that sex with him was lackluster anyway. Kyle might just be what you need to jump-start your sex life again.
Ella let out a soft laugh and typed back. Are you serious right now? Stupid question. Of course her friend was serious. Hadn’t they just had this lack-of-sex conversation that afternoon before Ella had left for the city?
Absolutely. And knowing you, here’s another piece of advice. Don’t overthink things, Ella. If it feels right, just go with it.
He only asked me out to dinner, for crying out loud! Not back to his apartment for the night. She shook her head ruefully. I need to go. I’ll talk to you later, she typed just as a knock sounded at the door, seconds before Kyle popped his head inside, a slight smile on his lips.
“Everything good?” he asked.
“Yes.” She dropped her cell phone into her purse so she wouldn’t be distracted by any more “advice” from Claire. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to take so long. I’m ready to go.” She headed toward the door, which he opened wide so she could pass through.
“How’s your father doing these days?” he asked as they exited the reception area and he pressed the button for the elevator. “My mom tells me that he comes into the Family Diner for breakfast occasionally with the woman who cares for him and that he seems to be doing pretty well.”
Ella appreciated that Kyle wasn’t skirting around the personal stuff, that he genuinely seemed to care about her dad’s health. “He is, though he does have difficulty with his fine motor skills and he has to use a cane to get around,” she said as they stepped into the elevator and started their descent to the ground level. “And of course that makes him ornery, but for the most part, he’s good . . . except for being a little—okay, a lot—upset that you bought the building next to the market when I’d intended to buy it.” And now that her plans had fallen through, she wasn’t sure what her next move was going to be. She just knew there would be an alternative strategy soon, because she wasn’t giving up on her goal to expand the market and bring in the artisans.
Kyle grimaced. “Yeah, I can’t imagine that your father thinks too fondly of me, considering everything that happened back then.”
“He suffered a lot that night, Kyle,” she said, her voice soft. “He watched his daughter miscarry a baby and had a stroke himself. A lot changed after that night, for all of us.”
“I know,” he said quietly.
He’d already apologized for his part in it all, and honestly, Ella was ready to move beyond that tragic night and just enjoy the next few hours with him as friends.
She smiled up at him. “I’m sorry I brought that up again. No more rehashing that part of our past, okay?”
“That works for me,” he replied with a grateful smile.
The steel doors slid open, and they walked out of the elevator to the main lobby that led to the streets of downtown Chicago. When she’d arrived, she’d entered through the quiet parking garage, but as soon as Kyle pushed open the door for her, her senses were assaulted with the loud, anxiety-inducing sounds of the city and the heavy foot traffic on the sidewalk as people hustled to their Friday evening destinations.
She tried not to panic as Kyle placed his hand at the small of her back to ease her into the overwhelming flow of bodies and to keep her close so they didn’t get separated, which she appreciated. Between the crowd of people and the towering buildings looming all around her, she felt confined and boxed in. Her heart started to race in anxiety, and in an attempt to keep calm, she inhaled a deep breath—and coughed repeatedly at the polluted air that filled her lungs. Ugh.
“Are you okay?” Kyle asked in concern, while he seemed totally at ease with the fast-paced and incredibly noisy city life. He was completely in his element.
All she could manage was a jerky nod, and he frowned at her as they stopped at a red traffic light where they needed to cross the street, clearly not believing her.
The light turned green, and they walked with the rest of the pedestrians through the designated crosswalk. A young kid on a bike flew by them, then swerved out into traffic to avoid running into a woman in a business suit. A car laid on the horn as it drove by, fraying her nerves to the breaking point.
She flinched, and without thinking, she clutched on to Kyle’s arm with both of hers, one hand clamping tight around his bicep and the other around his forearm as she clung to him, certain she looked like a frightened monkey. As if he sensed something was majorly wrong, he anchored her closer to his side and pulled her into the first alcove they came across, which was a boutique that was closed for the evening. She gulped in a breath, feeling as though she couldn’t inhale enough oxygen into her lungs.
“Jesus Christ, Ella. You’re not okay,” he said, his voice gruff as he framed her face in his hands, his brows furrowed in worry. “You’re shaking and on the verge of hyperventilating.”
On top of everything else, she felt her cheeks heat with embarrassment that he had to see her like this. “It’s the city,” she wheezed out. “I hate everything about it. The noises, the people, the traffic.” She was starting to pant, which only increased her light-headedness and her panic. “Everything feels like it’s closing in on me.”
He immediately pulled her against his chest, and she went willingly. Wrapping one arm securely around her waist to hold her tight against his body, he pushed his other hand through her hair until his fingers were curved around the back of her head, which he guided down to his chest with her face turned away from the congested street. She desperately gripped his T-shirt like a lifeline.
“Close your eyes and concentrate on slow, deep breaths,” he ordered huskily. “Just relax. I’ve got you, Ella, and you’re going to be fine.”
She swallowed hard and concentrated on each inhale and exhale while he stroked his big hand up and down her back and gently massaged her skull with his fingers. Her cheek was pressed against his warm, solid chest, and she couldn’t remember ever feeling so safe and protected. For so long, she’d been the responsible one taking care of everyone else and putting their needs above her own. It had been that way for so many years that it had become second nature to her and a part of her daily life taking care of the market, her father, her sister . . .