Filed to story: Watch Out, I’m The Lady Boss (Eleanor & Sebastian) Book PDF Free
“I’m starving.”
“Fine,” I said.
I turned around for one last look.
A girl with red braids waved her phone in the air.
“She wanted to know what lipstick shade I was wearing.”
He snorted.
“You don’t know what people like that are planning. You should stop posting selfies. Stick to your design sketches. Less chance of someone stealing your face for something dodgy.”
I stopped in the middle of the pavement.
The wind hit my cheeks.
I stared at him.
He never used to care about that sort of thing.
And he definitely didn’t used to sound that pissy.
I burst out laughing.
“Oh my God. You’re jealous. You’re actually mad.”
His ears flushed.
He grabbed my hand and charged ahead again.
“I’m not. I said we’re getting food.”
“Fine, fine,” I said, still laughing.
“We’re getting food.”
***
We’d just finished a late dinner and were walking through Midtown Crossing, hand in hand.
The square was packed-shoulders brushing, phones up, people shouting over each other.
Most were clustered under the giant screen in the center, waiting for the countdown.
I was fine until the crowd shifted.
Out of nowhere, people started sprinting towards the screen like there was money flying out of it.
One man elbowed past me, another shoved Sebastian from the side.
Someone slammed right between us and knocked our hands apart.
His palm disappeared from mine.
The air hit my skin where his hand had been.
I turned fast, heart hammering Sebastian was still nearby, just to my right, maybe three or four people away.
He spotted me instantly.
“Sebastian!” I shouted, trying to push through, but the mass between us refused to give.
He shoved forward.
I darted sideways.
Each time I moved, someone blocked me.
Every time I blinked, someone new was in the way We were so close I could see the crease in his brow, the way his jaw clenched when he looked at me.
The clock ticked 23:59.
I was sweating-not from heat, from trying not to panic.
“Stay there! I’m coming to you!” he yelled.
His voice cut through the screaming.
He started pushing people aside, arm after arm, like he didn’t care who complained.
His eyes locked on mine and didn’t move once.
I pushed forward, breath short, dodging arms and backs and hair.
Someone spilled beer on my shirt.
I didn’t stop.
Behind me, the screen flared white.
A booming voice shouted: “Ten! Nine! Eight!”
The crowd eased.
People stopped running.
Phones shot up.
I saw Sebastian.
“Seven! Six!”
Iran.
My boots hit the pavement hard.
One step, two, someone grabbed their kid and opened a gap.
“Five! Four! Three!”
I ducked between a couple snogging against a barrier.
-“Two!”
His hand reached out.
“One!”
I shoved past the last body between us and slammed into Sebastian’s chest just as the crowd screamed out the final second.
The square lit up in a burst of white.
Floodlights snapped on from every direction, blinding and sharp.
People shouted, jumped, hugged strangers.
Someone behind me yelled so loud my eardrums rang.
Sebastian locked his arms around me like he wasn’t letting go,
I grabbed the back of his shirt and held on.
The screen above us flashed red and gold,
Three massive words flickered on it, bold and glowing.
“Happy New Year.”
Dozens of voices shouted it from all sides, overlapping and echoing.
I heard Sebastian’s breath close to my car.
“Happy New Year,” he said.
I looked past his shoulder.
Fireworks shot into the sky and exploded behind hir Blue, green, white.
The smoke trailed in jagged lines that blurred into t Everything else fell away.
I couldn’t feel the cold or the weight of people shovi Just him.
I stood on my toes and pressed my mouth to his.
My lips touched the edge of his smile.
“Happy New Year.”
We left Midtown Crossing half an hour later.
Everything looked strange.
The streets were the same, but wrong.
My hands were numb from the cold.
My ears were still buzzing.
I couldn’t tell if it was the wind or my brain shorting out.
By the time we got back, my legs were cramping so badly I had to lean on the counter to get my boots off.
I nearly passed out in the shower.