To Dance With A Fetch (Excerpt 9) Crispin

“Don’t be Penny, be anybody but Penny.” murmurs Lyla to herself as she steps to the door and turns the knob. As she’s pulling the door open she is also looking down and tucking loose strands of hair behind her ear. She swings the door open wide and standing there with a bouquet of fresh white lilies is Crispin Duff. He is wearing an expensive black suit with a crisp white dress shirt and a dark tie. His shoes are very shiny and clean and the scent of the lilies is breathtaking.

“Oh, Mr. Duff, I wasn’t expecting you.” states Lyla as she takes a small step back from the shock of it being him and not Penny. With broad shoulders and a warm smile, he is far better looking in person than his internet picture even displayed. She feels flush as embarrassment sets in. Here is her new employer, a very handsome and wealthy world traveler that seems to think she is the perfect person to trust with his web design and she is a total mess. Her hair is pulled back in a floppy ponytail, she’s in a ragged sweatshirt with no structure at all to the choice of color for her sloppy attire and she hasn’t a single bit of makeup on. Come to think of it, now she doesn’t remember if she even brushed her teeth yet this morning!

“By the look of shock on your face, I can tell.” states Crispin with a wide smile as he motions for her to take the flowers. She reaches out and as they make the exchange, his fingers brush against hers slightly. He leans in close to her as if trying to conceal what he is about to say, “It’s Crispin, remember?” Now that he has reminded her not to be so formal, he leans back and smiles at her again. His green eyes are absolutely beautiful and she finds it hard not to stare at them.

“Yes, I’m sorry Crispin,” says Lyla as she nervously smiles and looks at the flowers in her hand. She breathes in their fresh sweet scent “Oh they smell wonderful. Thank you so much for the lovely flowers, please come in.” She motions for him to enter the house. As he walks past her she fiddles with her hair tucking the loose strands away behind her ears as best she can hoping he doesn’t catch her. Oh how she wishes she had fixed herself up a bit this morning. Lyla quietly closes the front door and turns toward Crispin who is looking up at the staircase and still has his back to her. Quivering slightly, she says “You’ll have to excuse me, I wasn’t expecting company today and have been buried in my work, and…”

Crispin cuts her short by saying, “You have a lovely home, Lyla,” his voice is very soothing and calm. “And don’t worry; one of the perks of working from you abode is that you can be comfortable and successful without all the fuss.” He turns to face her and continues with “It’s quite refreshing to see someone glowing in their own natural beauty.”