Free Fair Catch by Cindy Roland Anderson Page B

Disneyland.
    The door opened and she stepped outside. She’d pulled her long hair into a ponytail, with a few curly tendrils framing her face. Her shorts were modest, but showed off enough leg to let him know she was a seasoned runner. Her T-shirt wasn’t anything special. He liked the idea that she didn’t go to any real trouble for him. Most women he knew would be decked out in the latest Nike fashions.
    “What?” She glanced down at her clothing. “Don’t I match?”
    The fact that she thought his staring had nothing to do with her looks made him smile. “No. I, uh, just haven’t seen you with your hair pulled back.”
    She squinted, her eyes a little suspicious. “I usually wear it this way when I run.”
    He better back off with the compliments. She looked like she was going to bolt on him again. Glancing away, he stretched out his other leg. “I’m ready to go whenever you are.”
     There was a lengthy pause and then she let out a long breath. “I don’t want to be gone very long, especially after just eating. Plus, I’m going to take it slow.”
    He straightened up and slanted her a glance. Somehow he got the feeling that running wasn’t the only thing she wanted to take slow. “Slow is good.” He would take whatever time was necessary in order to get to know her.
    She looked as if she wanted to say more, but she just nodded her head. “Okay. Let’s go.” She strode past him and then broke into an easy tempo.
    It took him a second before he caught her. After that, they fell into a matched rhythm, their feet hitting the pavement, her long legs keeping up with his strides.
    After they circled the path three times, she slowed her pace and Nick followed, wiping the back of his hand across his forehead. Finally, she changed the tempo down to a brisk walk, her breath coming in short gasps. She gave him a dubious look. “That’s not fair. You’re not even winded.”
    He laughed. “Maybe it’s the altitude change?”
    “Yeah, except I’m pretty sure our altitude here is supposed to make breathing harder, not easier.” She stopped walking and looked at him through narrowed eyes. “But thanks for trying to make me feel better.”
    They stood close together, nearly touching. Their eyes met and Nick fought the intense attraction. He wanted to reach out and touch her, maybe take her hand. The damp hair around her face made the tiny ringlets glisten. Her skin glowed, flushed from the exertion. Her lips seemed to almost be in a perpetual pout and he had to force himself to look away from her mouth.
    She drew in a deep breath and turned away from him. “Your offer to help me with Cade. I guess if it’s not a problem…if you were serious, then your help would be nice.”
    She kept her gaze averted and he knew the admission for help cost her. He wanted to reach out to her, stroke his hand along her arm in an attempt to give her reassurance. He knew her skin would be smooth and warm under his fingers.
    Restraining himself, he tightened his hands into a fist. “I’d be happy to help in any way I can. I need to check my schedule, but I think I have to be in L.A. on Thursday. If we planned to go two days before, it would give us plenty of time to see all the attractions.”
    Ellie whirled around, a look of confusion clouded her features. “You…don’t have to go with us.”
    He felt like he’d just been sucker punched and flinched as the rejection of her words hit him. “Oh. Okay.” He swallowed and took a step back. “I didn’t mean…uh, if you don’t want me…” He didn’t finish the sentence. She really didn’t want anything to do with him. All these years of having women fall at his feet had obviously made him overconfident.
    Not wanting to make the situation even more uncomfortable, he did something he hadn’t done since high school. He faked a leg cramp. “Hey, my calf muscle is really bothering me.” He turned away from her and started to jog slowly backward. “I’m just going to