Book 1: Echoes Of The Past

Chapter 4 - The Offer

It had just started raining and Ivy could feel that the temperature had dropped. She wrapped her arms around herself and had just reached the end of the street, when she suddenly felt someone reach out a grab her hand. Once again, she instinctively jumped.

"Sorry. I have a habit of doing that to you."

Ivy spun on her heels and once again found Shannon standing there before her.

"What do you want Shannon?" She replied coldly to him.

"You're not planning on walking home, are you?"

"Well, I don't have money for a cab. A-and besides, I-I don't live that way anyway." She jutted her chin out at him, trying to look defiant. "It's fine. Don't worry about it."

"Are you stupid? It's raining, and look at what you're wearing?" He looked her up and down with his hands in his jeans pockets. "You'll get soaked."

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" Ivy snapped back at him, slightly hurt at what his words implied.

"Well..." Shannon's eyes seemed to hover around her boob area, but she put it down to him being a typical guy until she looked down herself and her eyes landed on one of the hook and eye clasps on the bustier and that come undone, exposing some of her breasts to him.

She quickly did it up and made to spin around again coldly telling him, 'Really. I'm fine."

"No. You're not. Look. Let me call and pay for a cab." He pulled his phone out of his jean pocket and scrolled around on it.

She made to shrug his grip on her arm off, but he reached out an grabbed her hand hard to prevent her from letting go.

"Hi. Yeah. Can I have a cab from erm...Bossy's on...what street are we on?" He questioned Ivy.

By now Ivy had just given up and let Shannon call her a cab.

"108th Block, Main Street. I live at Ivy Park."

He couldn't help but chuckle slightly at the fact that she lived at Ivy Park, considering her name, before telling the cab company the details. As he did so, Ivy thought she faintly felt him brush his thumb over her knuckles, so she snapped her gaze down to her hand nestled in his bear-like paw. She quickly yanked her hand free from his, earning a questioning look from Shannon whilst he was still on the phone to the cab company.

Wrapping her arms around herself she tried to keep warm whilst jiggling around on the spot to try and prevent her teeth from chattering. Shannon hung up and slipped his phone back in his jeans pocket.

"OK. Cabs on its way. Here, put this on." He moved his hands to the top of his leather biker jacket.

Ivy's eyes widened.

"Relax will you. I'm not going to give you a striptease." He proceeded to unzip it and as he shrugged it off his shoulders. He added as an afterthought, grinning, "unless you want me to."

She scowled at him.

It was starting to rain hard by now, which for LA was unusual. Shannon held out his black biker jacket for her to take, but she didn't.

"Ivy, why are you being an ass to me? I'm trying to keep you warm and dry, because let's face it; what your wearing isn't exactly covering much. Take it." He gestured to her again with the jacket.

Ivy slowly turned to face him. Damp strands of her blonde hair were plastered to her face and her teeth were starting to chatter as the temperature started to drop.

"N-no. Shannon. W-why are you being like this with me? You've hated my guts for as long as I could tell during all the y-years you've k-known me." She glared at him.