busy worrying about work and whether or not the talent scout was going to show up at their performance last night to even track her down on Facebook.
If his phone’s battery wasn’t in the red zone, he could’ve done a search while he waited. Hopefully, it would hold out long enough for a text message—otherwise he’d be holding up the girly-looking poster board. He glanced back by his seat and saw it was still tucked in between the chair. His phone better not die.
As soon as the luggage started circulating, the passengers crowded around the conveyer belt. They were all crammed in so close together it made it difficult for anyone to remove their bag once they spotted it.
Chase watched the process over and over, but noticed one girl was having a hard time getting close enough to reach her bag. She was cute, at least from what he could tell. She sure looked good in her jeans and a turquoise colored top that hugged her generous curves. Under the airport lights, her long hair looked thick and shiny. The color was similar to his sister’s chestnut mare Roxie.
He squinted, wondering if he could call the hair red. To him it looked more brown than red, so he doubted it was Janie’s niece. Her hair color was something he could never forget. Whenever she’d teased him about being taller than him, he’d made some wisecrack about her fire engine red hair. She hadn’t liked that very much.
Another surge of passengers flooded the already crowded space. Chase knew it was futile but he still scanned the newcomers, hoping to spot Janie’s niece. So far the only woman he’d found with red hair was very pregnant and holding the hand of a little boy.
Deciding he better let Miss Heywood know he was here, he pulled out his phone and quickly typed in a message that he’d wait for her at the base of the escalator. He sent the message and was frustrated when a second later the screen went blank and his phone powered off. He couldn’t believe he’d forgotten to pack a charger. It was stupid to not have an extra one in his truck.
Hoping the message had actually been sent, he continued to people watch. Once again, he spotted the girl in the turquoise shirt. She’d made progress, and Chase watched as she inched forward and squeezed between two men, reaching out to grab a large roll-on duffle bag with a bright pink ribbon tied to it.
She struggled to get the piece of luggage off of the carousel, but was unsuccessful as she lost her hold and stepped away. A big linebacker-looking guy moved in, and Chase thought he was going to help her. Instead, he about knocked her over as he snatched up a mammoth boarding case.
Shooting the man an annoyed glance, the girl held her position as she watched her bag slowly circle around. Figuring he had some time to find Miss Heywood, and since his mama raised him to be a gentleman, Chase made his way over to the girl and hovered directly behind her.
As they waited for the bag to come full circle, she slowly glanced around, like she was looking for someone. Chase swallowed and tried not to stare. She was more than cute. She was beautiful.
Her gaze briefly passed over his face, and his mouth lifted up at the corner when her light brown eyes came back and took a second look at him. He noted a spark of awareness flicker in her eyes before she returned her attention to the revolving bags.
With her back to him, the duffle bag moved into view. Hopefully Chase would be able to offer his assistance. He might even be able to find out where she was visiting, and, if he was lucky, get her phone number too.
* * *
Addie could feel the handsome stranger’s eyes on her, and she desperately wanted to steal another peek at him. She might have sworn off men, but she hadn’t sworn off looking at them. And this one was very nice to look at.
She fidgeted with her purse strap, forcing herself not to look back over her shoulder. His medium blond hair, with natural highlights women pay big money for, was cut for that