Between Boyfriends (Book 1 in the Between Boyfriends Series)

Chapter 5

The second thing Jan noticed was a sales guy leering at her. He looked about eighteen. She grimaced back. He started strutting toward her; walking was just not the right word.

"Hey there, wild thing," he began in a cocky, deep voice that Jan guessed was about two octaves lower than his normal speaking one.

Wild thing? Oh right, my hair. I need a new hat.

"What can I help you with, missy?" Jan wanted to tell him that he could help her best by getting lost, but remembered her dumb guys' theory and put on her happy, nonplussed smile.

"Actually, could you just tell me where the workout apparel is, please? It's my first time in the store."

"I know," he replied in an even deeper voice, leaning in a little like he was about to tell her a secret.

Jan's eyes tightened as she forced herself not to glare. Of course he knew where the clothes were. That was his job.

"I'd have remembered if a pretty girl like you had been in here before." Oh, Jan thought. That's even more annoying.

"Uh, thanks. So, can you tell me where to go and I'll just take it from there? Please?"

"The workout clothes are to the right. All the way in the back," said Mr. Helpful. Jan glanced at the back of the store. It was blocked by a giant shelf stacked with medicine balls and yoga mats.

Jan glanced at the boy's name tag. It said Ricky. Certainly Richard had other nicknames that suited him better.

"Thanks," Jan said and turned right. "I'm sure I'll be fine from here." Now go away.

"Oh, I'd better come with you in case you want to try something on. I'm one of the only two people here with a key to the dressing room." Ricky puffed out his chest with pride.

Hmm, so all I have to do is find whoever has the other key. "Really," Jan said in her best I'm-so-impressed-by-that voice, "and how many employees are here today?"

"Three."

Loser.

Jan finally saw an Adidas sign appear in front of her. There were four circular racks arranged in pairs of two, each one with a sign over them identifying a different brand. There was also a larger rack behind the four with apparel from companies she'd never heard of.

"The manager on duty has the other key, but she's busy training the new cashier."

Are you still here? Jan thought as she glanced up from a cute blue and gray T-shirt and shorts combination she was admiring.

"She's going to be training a new salesman soon because I'm moving on to bigger and better things."

Like a Big 6? Ha-ha.

Jan raised her eyes after a few seconds of silence. The wounded look on Ricky's face hinted that perhaps she'd said that out loud.

"Well, you could say that," he continued after regaining his cool. "My mother just got remarried to this real estate agent and my new stepdad said he'd hire me on to work in his office. Someday soon I'll be making six figures. Get it, big six?"

Jan rolled her eyes. She'd already blown her polite but indifferent cover with her sarcastic joke. She might as well tell this guy off.

"Is that so, Ricky?" said a well-dressed, no-nonsense twenty-something woman with a big assistant manager name tag. She had appeared across from them on the other side of the rack. "Well then, I'll be happy to send your notice up to corporate for you. It won't go out until tomorrow, but why don't you go on to the back office and start the paperwork. I'll finish helping your customer."

Ricky began to stammer. Jan caught something like "sorry" and "it's not definite." The woman had come around to stand between Jan and Ricky and was already talking about how to select the appropriate material for individual fitness needs. The different options for strength and breathability were much more interesting to Jan than a flustered salesman.

Once Jan had selected her fourth or fifth outfit, Ricky finally gave up and walked away, presumably to the back room. Jan felt more than saw him leave as her shoulders relaxed and her skin stopped crawling.

"Thanks a lot," Jan glanced at the woman's name tag, "Lorie. And not just for the clothing advice."

Lorie gave her a knowing look. "No problem. Let me show you where the dressing room is," Lorie took out a gigantic key ring and started flipping through the various options, "and you can try those on."

Jan followed her to the other side of the store where the dressing room was located. She realized that the store might not be large in square footage, but they spread everything out as much as possible to make it seem that way.

"I'll be up front at the register if you need anything else." Lorie opened the door for her and Jan walked in, arms laden with close to twenty items. "Just leave whatever you don't want on the bench, okay?"

Jan nodded agreement and dropped the clothes on the floor.

After fifteen minutes, Jan had rejected everything white—all see-through—and an all-pink Nike ensemble that looked cute on the rack but was painful to look at on a person. Separately, the tank top and shorts looked pretty cute, but together they overwhelmed the senses.

Jan ended up with three outfits, including three pairs of socks and a black Adidas workout bag that matched her running shoes. The three outfits comprised the original blue and gray outfit she'd first seen, plus two more Adidas T-shirts and matching shorts. One combination was gray with green stripes, and the other was black with a white logo. She took them up to the register and handed over her Amex card.

Once her purchases had been paid for and bagged up, Jan thanked the cashier and was about to leave when the Ricky Martin-wannabe showed up and offered to help her to her car. He snatched up her two bags before she could decline and walked outside.

Jan had no choice but to hurry after him. She could replace most of what he'd taken, but one of the outfits had been the last in her size. She couldn't let him get away.

"Hey," she called and jogged to catch up. "I got it, okay?" She tried to take her bags back but the boy had a death grip on them.

"It's the gentlemanly thing to do," he said as he stopped to let her lead him to the car. She considered giving him back the whole "after you" performance but instead searched her purse for her keys.

Her Jeep was straight ahead. Jan never parked far away. She unlocked the doors with her key ring remote and held her hands out for her bags.

Ricky gave her what he must have thought was a charming grin and gently placed her bags in her hands. "A gentleman also walks a lady to her car."

Jan gagged. Gross.

"So, what do you say to dinner Friday night? Now that I'm getting out of this hellhole, I'll be free to entertain anytime I want."

Jan wondered if he thought she was impressed by his possibly-rich stepdad or his smooth performance with Lorie. But then again, a dinner date would be more fun then what she had planned for Friday: nothing.

She couldn't believe that she'd just thought that. The guy was an idiot. Accepting a date just to have something to do Friday was sad.

Well, okay, maybe she could believe it.

"No, thanks," she replied. The words felt weird in her mouth. "I have a minimum age requirement for accepting a date. You're about ten years too young."

"I'm eighteen," he said in a high-pitched whine that revealed his true speaking voice.

"Right, but I was speaking in terms of maturity and I'm not sure you've even hit double digits." She jumped in her car and slammed the door shut before she could hear his witty comeback.

At least now she had some frustration to burn off at the gym. Maybe she should drive back over there and thank him. Or maybe just drive over him.

She lowered her eyes to the road. Ooh, Starbucks. Jan swerved into a parking lot. Starbucks never lets me down, she thought, envisioning the sweet and sour taste of green tea lemonade cascading over her tongue. Now I'll have some calories to burn off too.