The Mocked Miss’s Hidden Crowns novel Chapter 1653

“Are you alright?” Shirley asked, her hands still gripping Andrew’s arms, eyes darting to where the motorcycle had disappeared. “It didn’t hit you, did it?”

Andrew looked at her, surprised by the weight of her concern. He stayed rooted to the spot, a shy smile spreading on his lips. “Are you worried about me?”

That look in her eyes, there was no sign of dislike. Maybe she just hadn’t learned to really like him yet. As long as she didn’t hate him, he figured he still had hope.

“Thank you,” he murmured.

Shirley checked him over from head to toe, only relaxing once she saw he was perfectly fine. As her nerves slowly settled, she tried to pull her hands away, but Andrew was quicker. He gently wrapped his hand around her wrist, keeping the fabric of her sleeve between them, making sure he didn’t actually touch her skin.

“It’s rush hour and there are cars everywhere. Let’s get across first.”

He grabbed her backpack with one hand and, with the other, led her forward, putting himself between her and the busy street, guarding her from the passing vehicles.

Shirley shifted uncomfortably, wanting to pull away, but when she saw the mess of traffic around them, she decided not to make things worse. They moved carefully through the cars and, once they reached the sidewalk, Andrew let go of her right away. “I wasn’t trying to take advantage,” he said, looking a little sheepish. “I just didn’t want you to get hurt.”

“Thanks.” Shirley threw him a quick glance, then silently walked ahead.

“What’s with all this thanking?” Andrew grumbled, trailing after her with tiny steps, still holding her bag. “You never used to be this polite to me.”

Shirley heard him and bit back a smile, the corners of her mouth turning up against her will. Back then, things really had felt easy between them.

It took a mix of good-natured coaxing and just plain persistence, but Andrew somehow managed to walk Shirley right up to her front door.

“Thanks for walking me home.” Shirley reached out for her bag and met his eyes, her voice low and serious. “Just think about what I said today. There’s no point in chasing a dead end.”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify