Chapter three

Tammy's POV

How did he manage to close the distance so quickly? I could have sworn he was at least six feet away when I reached my car, but now he's right beside me.

This just adds to the weirdness of everything about this man.

I look at his hand on mine, and then at his face. The unfamiliar feeling from earlier comes back to me, causing me to immediately pull my hand away from his and turn my body to face him. Only after turning, do I notice the close proximity of our bodies.

Instinctively, I move backwards to create some distance between us. My body makes contact with the cold metal of my car, the space between us still not sufficient enough.

Ignoring that, I choose to focus on the fact that he has been observing me without saying anything. It fills me with discomfort and I pull a strand of hair behind my ear and look at him, breaking the silence. "What?" I ask, a brow raised in question.

"I want to speak with you," he responds.

'what could he possibly want to speak to me about?'

I let out a light, tired breath slip from my mouth. Everything happening since yesterday has just seemed to be against me getting some rest. I'm low on sleep, and when that happens, I start getting cranky.

"Okay. But could you just," I motion to both of us, "shift back a bit? I don't think you need to be in my face before having a conversation with me, and you seriously didn't have to corner me like this because you wanted to speak to me," I tell him.

The corners of his mouth lift upwards slightly, then he takes a step back. "I wouldn't have cornered you like this," he mirrors my gesture and words, evoking an eye roll from me, "if you hadn't run off like that. If I were a good judge of character, I'd have said you were trying to escape me," he says, one side of his lips curled.

Heat rises to my face at the accuracy of his observation. I instantly chide myself for not being sleek enough.

I fold my arms across my chest and give him a defiant look. "I was not trying to escape you. Why would I do that?"

This time, a grin stretches across his face, that doesn't reach his eyes. He looks at me intently, his gaze pinning me in place. Heat rises in me at the intensity of his stare, one of the things this stranger is able to do to me so easily.

He leans in a bit. My eyes follow the movement of his lips as he speaks, "I don't know why you would. You tell me." If I were looking at the smile on his face from a farther distance, I would take his words lightly. But the look in his eyes tells me he knows something.

'could he have felt the same way I did?'

"I wasn't avoiding you," I state stubbornly. "If you don't have anything relevant to say to me, I'll take my leave now. I've got somewhere to be." I turn back to open my car, not wanting to give him a chance to say anymore. Hopefully he'll take the hint and leave me be.

His voice stops me, just as I am about to pull the handle. "I need your help."

The desperation in his voice stands out to me and I turn around to face him again. "What?"

His face takes a serious expression. "I need your help," he reiterates.

I fold my arms again, with a brow cocked up. "You don't even know me, so what could you possibly need my help with?" I ask him.

"If know your name, would that count as a reason to ask for your help?" he asks in return, a smirk plastered on his face, a contrast to the look he had mere seconds ago.

How this man is able to change expressions in a short amount of time, surpasses me. 'oh what I would give to wipe that cocky smirk off his beautiful face'

"It would. But you don't know it, so you don't get to need my help," I retort with a shrug, smiling to myself as I feel a sense of accomplishment.

"So tell me then."

"Tell you what?" I question, the smile wiping off my face.

"Your name. Tell me what your name is," the man urges.

He's funny, if he thinks I'd be willing to tell him my name just like that.

I lean in, my face inches away from his. In satisfaction, I observe the way his eyes darken as he watches me, and I try to stifle a smile. Good. Now I know he at least feels some sort of attraction towards me.

Putting a saccharine sweet smile on my face, I tell him, "no," and then move backwards to lean on my car.

He snaps out of his daze, looking taken aback by my refusal. "What do you mean no?" he probes.

I shrug, my expression nonchalant. "I'd rather not share my name. If what you need my help for is really that important, you'd find out my name yourself," I challenge him.

He takes a long, assessing look at me, then let's out a sigh. "Fine then. I'll find out your name, and you will hear me out," the man states, his tone resolute.

"I will," I affirm. I open my car door and sit inside, before turning to him. "Till then, I don't have to listen to you."

I know I should probably hear him out, as whatever he needs me for might be important. But like I said, if he is solely dependent on me for help, he would have found out my name first. And giving him time to do so means that this isn't going to be the last time we see each other, which is exactly what I want.

Meeting him again would give me a chance to understand the way I feel around him, and confirm if these feelings are real, not just as a result of my exhaustion.

I move to close the door but he swiftly inserts his leg, stopping me from going any further. I look at the leg and then at him, raising a brow in question.

"How am I supposed to see you again?" he inquires, moving his leg away from the door.

I could probably drive away from here without giving him an answer, now that his leg isn't stopping me. But I decide to toy with him instead. I smirk at him. "You'd have to find that out yourself too, honey." I say blowing him a playful kiss. I close the door, turning on the ignition and driving away before he gets the chance to respond.