On My Own

Milkshake

The ride was quiet. Not that the dude sitting next to me didn't have much to say because he kept opening his mouth and shutting it. Like he had a whole lot of opinions but apparently the cord from his brain to his mouth was malfunctioning and the words were too jumbled to voice.

I decided to give the guy a break, since after all he really hadn't been too bad.

"I'm Sang."

The dark haired guy choked a little bit and gripped the steering wheel tighter, "I'm. I'm North."

I smiled a tiny bit, "People ever make fun of your name?"

There was a pause and then he blew out a breath, "Not generally but sometimes, I guess, yeah."

North took a turn and pulled into a drive through for some fast food place called Nips. I was about to ask him what we were doing when he turned in my direction and stared me down.

"What kind of potatoes did you want again?"

And that's how I ended up slapping my driver. I'm just kidding.

"Uh, fries work," I murmured.

Sure I was surprised a guy being paid to pick me up was buying me food but maybe he was hoping for like big tip, or trying to apologize for his weirdness. Which I obviously wasn't about to complain about free fries. I was so distracted watching North order that I didn't notice he'd ordered a whole lot more than fries until the speaker box thing announced how much his order would cost.

North didn't bat an eyelash, which to my utmost displeasure I couldn't help but notice framed extremely gorgeous eyes. We pulled up to the first window and the guy paid with a bunch of cash, handing it over too quickly for me to mentally count it all.

I wrinkled my nose and sat back in my seat. I need a nap. "Or a milkshake." I thought quietly.

North looked over at me with a pained expression, "Milkshakes are extremely unhealthy, especially if you really mean milkshake and not smoothie."

I gave him a look. He seemed to flinch at some internal voice in his head and then turned back to the first window, "Can I add your largest chocolate shake to that order?"

****

Okay I don't know about North but even as a pregnant woman with fast food needs I don't think I'll be able to eat all...1...7...12..... sixteen bags of take out we just ordered. North didn't say anything about it, he just drove with that pained expression.

He kept glancing at me and my fries that I was eating with some sort of internal battle.

Maybe he's a vampire and I just smell really good and he doesn't know how much normal people eat so he bought me everything they had. I laughed quietly, which North must have heard because he shot a glance my way. A softer one, one that I didn't have the energy to pick apart and analyze anymore.

"We're almost there, just down this drive," North murmured, turning into what I assumed was a gated community.

Doctor Roberts is dumping me off with some old rich cat lady man named Mr. Blackbourne? What did I ever do to deserve this? Okay, I admit to egging a car one time but that guy was a jerk and he totally deserved the flour I sprinkled overtop the eggs.

I was so distracted in my own thoughts, trying to conjure up what a Mr. Blackbourne would look like that I hardly noticed the beautiful driveway, or the trees, and I definitely didn't notice that it was just one property and not a gated community.

Not until the trees gave way to display a huge house, with a second smaller but no less magnificent house off to the side and a garage with ten areas. This didn't even count the shed I could see off to the side or the things that were behind the house, though I did catch a glimpse of a glittering swimming pool.