May went shopping with Riley for his clothes.
"This would look good on you," May said as she picked another outfit for Riley. Riley tried on everything that May had chosen for him. When they were about to pay at the cas.h.i.+er, he stopped May"s hand from getting her card from her purse.
"Please… I will pay for my own things May. I"m grateful enough that you already accompanied me here and help me pick up some nice clothes since my sense of fas.h.i.+on is not that good," Riley said, smiling, and May could only nod.
Riley had a beautiful set of white teeth that enhanced his appeal even more whenever he smiled brightly like that, May would often get mesmerized by it.
Then they proceeded to buy a mobile phone for Riley. "Put my number on speed dial one, okay? And I will do the same with your number." Riley agreed, and he also instructed the clerk to put a tracking application on May"s mobile phone.
Riley had taken the opportunity to get a bodyguard training during his stay in the safe house. Even though he was not a licensed expert, he was well aware of how he could execute his duties like a professional.
Furthermore, John had helped him by a.s.signing one of his men to personally train him. John"s reason was so Riley could protect May better and without fail.
While they were waiting for the clerk to install the tracking application on May"s phone, Riley"s gaze unknowingly landed on May"s face. She was in the middle of choosing a case for his mobile phone. He had never met a woman like her before. And for some inexplicable reason, being around May would often make him feel timid and shy.
As soon as they were done, May grabbed his arm to pull him toward a nearby cafe for lunch. Riley"s body stiffened, and he abruptly stopped. "What"s wrong?" May asked with a worried look.
Riley"s gaze automatically went down to her hand that was on his arm. May smiled and asked, "Oh, does this make you feel uncomfortable? Do you prefer holding hands? Well, I actually do too… Grabbing your arm like this feels a bit awkward."
To his surprise, instead of removing her grip completely from him, it moved to his hand, and she immediately clasped and locked it with hers. Then she continued to pull him toward the cafe.
Riley was flabbergasted. He had not expected anything like this. "Had I been in isolation for too long?" he wondered as he tried to soothe the loud drumming of his heart.
He wondered if this was a typical behavior of the new generation nowadays. Because he was not used to it. It was not that he did not like it. Because he actually did. May"s hand was so soft, and touching it with his hand felt nice. He just felt that she trusted him a little bit too much. Was she also this trusting toward other men? He somehow disliked that thought.
"I really need to adapt well…" He reminded himself. That was also what Cobra told him. Both of them would need to rea.s.similate into the current society after having been held captive in that s.h.i.+p for many years. It wasn"t easy, but he had to do his best if he wanted to live a normal life.
But calming his heart was not easy. He wondered if May would do something like this often. Because if she did, then he would need to practice his breathing to calm himself down.
"Uhm… May? It feels awkward to call you by your name. So is it okay to call you "Boss" instead?" Riley asked randomly just to s.h.i.+ft his mind from the weird feeling he was having from May holding his hand tightly.
May stopped to look at him and asked, "Was it really hard? Hmmm, alright then, call me "Boss" if you want… But I"ll call you Boss too… If you call me by my name, then I"ll call you by your name too. I don"t like being called "Miss"… Eww… it"s too formal..."
Then she added with a frown, "Besides, you"re just four years older than me…"
"But you are still my employer. I must show some respect…" Riley insisted.
May sighed and said, "Okay… Call me, "Boss" then. Okay, Boss? Now let"s have lunch."
Riley scratched his head. Something felt off with that name. She was his employer, and he was her employee, so why would she call him "Boss"? But at the same time, he also liked it.
Meanwhile, May was giggling inside. She wondered how Riley would react if she kissed him. "Geez, my naughty mind… When did it become so corrupt like this?" She mused and quickly brushed off the thought.
She felt really secure having Riley around her. She also loved the feeling of his warm hand in hers, and she was pleasantly surprised that Riley did not try to retract his hand from hers.
"What if he thought you"re a pervert?" her subconscious asked, so May immediately tried to explain herself, "I hope you won"t mind me holding your hand? I"m a touchy person, especially to my friends. Like Drey, Keira, and Lana. And even though you"re my bodyguard, I also consider you a friend because you saved my life. So don"t get startled if I suddenly grab your arm or hand, okay?"
"Oh, it"s okay, Boss. I mean, I will get used to it soon. It"s just that I"ve been in seclusion for years, so, yeah, I felt a bit startled at first. But it"s okay… I guess I can also protect you better if you are closer to me," said Riley, who was not sure himself if what he was saying made any sense at all.
May smiled and said, "Indeed. The closer you are to me, the better it is…"
As they ate, May would steal glances at Riley every once in a while. She actually still could not believe that there would be a time when she would finally be interested in a man…
"I"m such a weirdo…" She commented to herself.