Amy sighed and glanced at her watch. The bank was going to be closing soon, and if she didn’t get her paycheck deposited, she was going to have a hell of a time paying her utilities. She sighed impatiently and tapped her foot. It seemed like the line in front of her was creeping at a snail’s pace. Everybody got paid on Friday in these parts. Why didn’t she use a different bank?
“Amy!”
Amy nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard a deep, familiar voice from behind her.
“Carter?”
He beamed and waved at her. He was at the very tail end of the line and seemed to be completely at ease waiting on it. It had been about a week since they had last seen each other, and Amy was starting to feel herself getting fatigued again. Another bout of illness was sure to be plaguing her soon, whether she liked it or not. That made it even more important for her to make it to the counter before the bankers dismissed the rest of the customers in line. They were cruel bankers in this place. They had nothing to lose.
“Hi,” he said, his voice loud enough for everyone to hear. Was this customary for Europeans? Just speak as loud as they want in a crowded place like a bank? She found herself feeling embarrassed, and yet she was so relieved to see Carter again that she couldn’t help but smile at him and reply.
“Hi,” she said, trying to keep her voice hushed as an example to him.
“Is this your bank?” he asked, not quite getting the hint.
“Yes,” Amy replied, laughing despite herself. She could feel the line of people glaring at them, but for some reason, that didn’t bother her. Not when Carter was right there. The man somehow brought her a sense of joy and abandon she normally didn’t feel with anyone. Then again, she had always been sickly. Most men weren’t exactly tripping over themselves to date her or even say hello. Maybe she was just flattered by the attention? She was trying not to read too deeply into the man’s attention. He was probably just curious about her well-being. They had met under some pretty extreme circumstances, after all…
“It is the bank of my brothers as well,” Carter said.
Amy once again glanced around at the people in line and sighed heavily to herself.
“I’m just going to go stand back in line with you, is that all right with everybody?”
A collective sigh of relief seemed to surge through the bank as Amy lost her place in line and moved back with Carter. She probably wasn’t going to get served today anyway. The tellers could be real jerks sometimes. And she knew one of them from high school. Carol Hahn, who had always treated Amy like she was diseased or contagious or insane because of her illness. It was always painful to end up in her line. If it wasn’t the best bank in Brookside, she would have definitely switched by then. But Amy needed to be money-conscious, especially with her illness. Everything was always tight.
“Hi,” Carter said, smiling charmingly at her when she moved her place in line. “It’s funny to see you again.”
“Yeah,” Amy said, peering into Carter’s handsome face. “I didn’t know when I would see you, if at all.”
Amy was feeling a little bit embarrassed still, but glad that Carter was keeping his voice down. She smiled at him, her cheeks flushed a light red. He was even more handsome up close. How was that even possible?
“Are you all right?” Carter asked, suddenly frowning. “Is something the matter?”
Amy tried to shake off whatever strange expression she might be making and smiled pleasantly. “I’m fine, thank you.”
“Nobody has been bothering you?” Carter asked, his deep voice suddenly low and serious. He looked at her, his gorgeous eyes unwavering. Amy found herself lost in them for a moment before responding.
“No,” she finally said, brushing off thoughts of grumpy Eric and the potential issue with Carol. “Nobody has been bothering me.”
“Good.”
Carter straightened himself and suddenly looked as if he hadn’t spoken at all about anything that was even remotely negative. The line crept forward, and he nudged her gently so they could follow along. Maybe there would be time for everybody to be served after all.
“And what about you?” Amy asked, suddenly realizing that although she was pleased to see him, she knew virtually nothing about this man. “What have you been up to lately?”
She wished there was a way that she would be able to get to know him far better. But they were in the bank. Hardly time for casual conversation. And besides, why would he want to open up to her about himself? He couldn’t possibly be interested. He knew she couldn’t take care of herself. And it was no secret that she was a far cry from healthy. Nobody wanted to date a sick girl. Not even someone from out of town who may or may not know better.
“The usual. Running errands for my brothers. They’re always so busy doing this or that, I often get stuck with the little things like grocery shopping and going to the bank. Not that I mind. I just wish my time was devoted to more important tasks. I feel a little left out, sometimes.”
He spoke so candidly, as if it were no big deal to tell her exactly what he was thinking and feeling. It was strange, really. Most men would rather die than to let their feelings out. But Carter didn’t seem to view it as a weakness. Just as an unfortunate fact of his existence. It was something to respect about him, that much was clear.
“They don’t let you do things for the business?” Amy asked sympathetically.
Carter gazed at her as if he didn’t quite understand what she meant, and then his face lit up.
“Oh. Well, everyone has their jobs. But it can feel like I am less important than others. I should probably not worry too much about it. It’s just one of those days.”
Amy nodded and smiled, and the line crept forward.
“I get those days sometimes,” she said. “I often feel like I don’t do anything right. It’s discouraging.”
“Because you get sick?” Carter asked.
“Yes,” Amy said. “Because I get sick.”
He seemed to consider this, then smiled. “My kind rarely get sick. It is unfortunate you have to suffer.”
“Your kind?” Amy asked, furrowing her brow in confusion.
“Next!”
Before Carter had the chance to answer, Amy was beckoned to the teller. Carol. Of course.
“Carol,” Amy said, not even attempting to veil her displeasure. “Hi.”
Carol didn’t acknowledge her with a ‘hi.’ Instead, she quickly went into Amy’s account. It was as if she had memorized all of its information, which was a whole new level of invasive. But Amy said nothing; it would do no good anyway. She was just glad to have gotten a chance to speak to a teller.
When Amy and Carol were finally finished with the transaction, Amy gave Carol a friendly nod, which Carol ignored. Amy sighed and glanced over her shoulder and noticed that Carter was looking at them with a deep frown on his handsome face. She tried to look away and ignore it, but she couldn’t shake the fact that she was mildly upset. Not only because Carol was being bitchy, but because Carter saw it. He saw the way that she was treated like a social parasite. What if it changed his opinion of her? What if he didn’t want to speak with her because of it?
She already had a hard enough time socializing in this place. If she didn’t have a job secure, she would’ve left a long time ago. But Rich had always taken care of her, and that was the way it was going to be. Nobody else ever would, that much was clear. And if Carter deemed her as unworthy of his attention, she would be losing yet another person from her life because of things that were beyond her control. It was just too much, sometimes.
“Are you ready to leave now?” Carter asked, as Amy made her way toward the door. He had completely disregarded the bank teller that he had been working with to stop her from leaving the bank without saying goodbye to him. It brought a shy smile to Amy’s lips and she nodded.
“Yes, I’m done here. I don’t like staying any longer than I have to. Besides, they’re closing soon.”
Carter settled his gaze heavily upon her as the bank teller called for him to return and finish the transaction.
“We should go do something,” he said. It almost looked as if he regretted speaking as soon as the words were out of his mouth, but then again, Amy could have just been being paranoid. She was worried that he wouldn’t want anything to do with her because of her illness. Maybe that was all it was, and it didn’t reflect Carter’s own impression at all.
She nodded at him, dumbfounded, as the bank tellers cries for Carter became louder and more insistent. He smiled at her.
“Don’t go anywhere. Wait for me outside.”
He turned around and walked back to the counter as Amy stared at him. She tried not to acknowledge any of the dirty looks that they were receiving from the other customers in line, and headed out through the large heavy double doors, her mind spinning. Carter wanted to do something with her. But what?
Her heart fluttered involuntarily, and she leaned against the building with a deep sigh. Whatever it was, she hoped it didn’t involve men and wolves in an alleyway.