Mall You Need is Love: At the Mall Holiday Standalone Novella by Sarah Robinson

Author:Sarah Robinson [Robinson, Sarah]
Language: eng
Format: epub

Chapter Seven

Amara

Tears stung at the edges of her eyes as Amara walked quickly back to the arcade and made a beeline for the back room. It was still open and full of customers, so she wasn't about to have an emotional breakdown on the arcade floor. Jean waved at her from a distance where she was helping a customer on the Skee-Ball machines, but Amara ignored her and pressed on.

When she got to the safety of the private back office in back, she closed the door behind her and let out a long, fast exhale that was promptly followed by a stream of small tears down both cheeks. What the heck was wrong with her right now? She looked down at the bracelet on her wrist, this beautiful new gift Val had just given her. Never in her life had she given two flying beeps about getting a gift from a guy, let alone jewelry. On Valentine's Day. It was beyond cliché. Gross, even.

But when he'd explained why he'd picked it, and what it meant to him…what he saw in her. Maybe there actually was something to gifts as an expression of love.

The word stuck in her throat—did she say (or think, technically) love? Absolutely not. That's not at all where they were, or even remotely on the table. And yet, the word stayed lodged in her head and maybe a little further south in her heart.

Amara stood up straight and shook out her shoulders. She was being ridiculous. None of this was like her. None. She wasn't someone who went gooey-eyed over a handsome neighbor or tongue-tied over a beautiful trinket. But her mind went back to what she'd seen earlier with Harold, or how Val had helped her with the raccoon and finding estimates for security systems, or just the way that she felt lighter and happier when she was around him. She didn't feel nervous or like she had to put on a front, which was normally how she felt when she was dating someone.

But they weren't dating.

Why weren't they dating? He'd given her the sweetest gift she'd ever gotten in her life. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and glanced at her notifications—one missed call. It was his phone number that she'd called herself from. She clicked on it and saved it under his name, already planning what she'd text him when she got home.

Made it safely, thanks for the fun day! No, that was too lame.

I love the bracelet. You're incredible. Way too desperate.

Happy Valentine's Day, Valentino! I'm home. Oh, God, she should just not text him at all at this point.

I'm home. Want to come join me? Zero chance she'd have the courage to send that.

Amara sighed and pushed her phone back in her pocket before grabbing her keys and heading back out onto the arcade floor. She had at least a ten-minute drive to practice something better, but in reality, she was probably just going to text home and be done with it.

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