Check Out Girl Ch. 01

I struggled for some time thinking about which category to post this story in before finally deciding on Romance. It contains several darker threads that could have led to it being posted elsewhere but I think it fits in Romance better.

As always constructive criticism is welcome however, I will moderate and delete spiteful comments that are made simply because the story doesn't match your views.

Please enjoy.

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CHECK-OUT GIRL

He was on his way to see his mother and running late so he could have just as easily passed by and gone to one of the shops near her.

But he didn't.

Needing to buy a few beers and some food to take to the BBQ that he was going to later that afternoon, it was pure chance that Liam Cooper chose that particular store to do his shopping.

If he hadn't gone into that specific supermarket, on that day and at that time, he might never have met Maddison Clarke and his life might have turned out totally differently.

It was pleasantly cool inside the shop away from the warmth of the early afternoon sunshine and he strolled about simply enjoying the refreshing change in temperature. Wandering aimlessly around the aisles he wasn't thinking of anything in particular apart from Chloe Avery.

He had had a thing for the cute redhead for a while now and he had got the impression from his friend Trent, who was hosting the party he was going to, that she was quite keen on him.

With that thought in mind he was wondering if she would actually be there and if he could find the courage to ask her out.

His thoughts were still firmly on the possibility of getting off with Chloe later that day when he randomly picked up a box of 12 cans of lager, two large packs of sausages and a jumbo bag of crisps.

Satisfied he had everything he wanted to take to the BBQ with him he went to pay at the check-out.

Turning the corner at the end of the aisle he looked along the line of unoccupied tills and sighed, there was never anyone around when he needed to be served.

Scanning around his eyes eventually came to rest on the vacant check out right in front of him.

That was when he saw her.

Stopping he stared virtually enthralled as, for the very first time, he locked eyes with the woman of his dreams.

She was easily the prettiest girl he had ever seen; with long deep chestnut coloured hair that hung halfway down her back and big hazel eyes that looked extremely inviting and yet totally innocent.

Guessing her age to be about nineteen or twenty he could somehow tell she was slim and athletic despite the fact her figure was hidden under her shapeless work coverall.

Hardly able to breathe it was impossible for him to tear his gaze away from her.

"Hello, can I help you?" her soft voice dragged him out of the trance he had been in.

"Oh... err... yeah sorry...I umm... just these." Liam stammered, his cheeks colouring slightly in the knowledge that she had caught him staring at her.

The sexy giggle she gave him at his confusion sent a shiver down his spine as she started to check his items through.

"That's an interesting diet plan you have."

"What... oh no... I'm err.... I'm going to a BBQ at a friend's later." he laughed and told her by way of explanation.

"Very nice for you." Her big hazel eyes locked tantalisingly onto his once again and staring back into them he forgot what he was doing for a moment.

"That's £18.60 please." She looked up at him, smiling.

"Oh right... yeah umm.... ok." Fumbling with his wallet Liam pulled out his card and scanned the machine with it.

"Do you need a bag... for the sausages and crisps?" she enquired giving him the sweetest smile he had ever seen.

"Oh... errr... yes.... yes please."

Handing over a carrier bag she winked at him "Don't worry about the ten pence. It's on the house."

"Thanks...... err.....I wondered... would you like to come... with me... maybe...? To the BBQ. If you want that is." before he could stop himself, he blurted out exactly what he had been thinking.

'Shit, she probably has a boyfriend' he thought to himself as he stood by her till, his face turning a deep shade of crimson as he wondered why he had said it.

One thing he was completely certain of was that a girl like her would never agree to go a party with a total stranger like him.

"Err.... Maddison..." he finished lamely by reading her name off of her badge.

She didn't answer and just looked up at him, he was cute and, for some reason, she wanted to say yes. Still smiling sweetly and hoping he wouldn't hear the way her heart was thumping she bit her bottom lip hesitating for a moment.

Liam took the silence as a sign of her refusal.

"I'm sorry... no, of course not, you obviously have a boyfriend. I'll just go.... I'm sorry." feeling like a complete idiot he picked up his purchases and turned to leave.

"I don't have a boyfriend but, I don't know." She blushed, not wanting him to walk away, "I mean I don't even know your name."

"Oh yeah of course... It's err... it's Liam. My name.... it's... Liam Cooper."

Regarding him carefully for a moment she hesitated, smiling and obviously considering her reply.

"And are you trustworthy Liam Cooper?"

"What? Oh yes... yes absolutely. I can tell you the address where we'd be going and stuff. Where I live. My phone number to if you want. Whatever you want to know." he began to babble almost incoherently.

She giggled again and felt her pulse start to race "OK, I finish at four Liam Cooper. I'll meet you outside the store just after that."

Picking up his purchases he walked out of the supermarket in a total daze. Somehow, totally out of the blue and much to his complete amazement, he had a date for the BBQ with the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.

He was still smiling to himself when he eventually reached his mother's house and knocked on the door twenty minutes later.

~oOo~

The afternoon at his mother's seemed to drag on endlessly for Liam as he drank tea and listened to his parent chatter on while he checked his watch every few minutes.

"You meeting someone?" his mother asked after he glanced at his wrist for the umpteenth time.

"Oh err... yeah... I'm supposed to be taking her to the BBQ at Trent's house later."

"Well, it's about time. How long has it been since you were dating that awful girl, Christina?" she took a sip of her tea.

"Aww come on mum she wasn't that bad and it's been a year."

His mother rolled her eyes at him "She cheated on you, didn't she? With one of your best friends?"

Liam nodded and stared into his cup. As always, his mother was right, Chrissie had been an absolute bitch to him.

"I hope this one's better."

'Oh yes she's much better' he thought but didn't answer.

He stayed until a quarter past three and then making his excuses he left.

Not wanting to miss her Liam made sure he was outside the store a good fifteen minutes early. Nervously walking up and down he then spent the entire time worrying that she had just been teasing him and wasn't going to show up.

Maddison immediately noticed him through the store window as she finished her shift, smiling to herself as she watched him pacing back and forth.

"Is that him?" Over her shoulder her friend Stacey peered out taking a long look at Liam.

"Yeah, that's him. He's cute don't you think?"

Stacey shrugged "I wouldn't say no I guess."

Maddi laughed "You wouldn't say no to anything in trousers."

"True." The slightly older blonde sighed, "Have a good time and don't do anything I wouldn't."

"See you Monday." Maddison called back as she picked up her bag and walked towards the exit.

Heading out of the supermarket doors she crossed car park giving her date a broad smile and a wave as she strolled towards him, noting the obvious expression of relief on his face.

Grinning back her like an idiot Liam let his eyes roam lasciviously over her slim body making her shiver with excitement.

She had removed her overall and was now in her ordinary clothes. A tight pair of ripped jeans, which did nothing to conceal her pert backside and long shapely legs. While the tight vest top she had on was obviously being worn without a bra judging by the points her nipples were making as they pushed out against the thin material.

He guessed that she was around 5' 7", reasonably tall for a girl, although her slender 34A-24-34 figure looked a little to skinny for her height it did emphasise her long legs to their best advantage.

"Hi." Maddison bit her lower lip and greeted Liam shyly as she stopped in front of him.

"Hi." He couldn't help but continue to grin inanely, "I wasn't sure you'd come."

She gave him a pained look "Why? I said I would."

"Maybe because I can't think of a single reason why a girl like you would go out with a guy like me."

"Why ever not?" she answered with a look of surprise, "I think you're rather cute."

He blushed at her comment.

"Well, you're gorgeous and I'm...." he stopped, his voice tailing off, "I'm just average."

She giggled "Thank you but I think you're very nice. If I didn't, I wouldn't have said yes. Now tell me where we're going, so I can tell my mum."

Filling her in on his friend's address Liam waited while she made a quick call to let her parents know where she would be, adding his phone number to the information she had for their reassurance.

"OK all finished." She closed her phone, "How far is it?"

"About twenty minutes from here if you're ok with walking."

"Let's go then." she took the carrier bag with the sausages and crisps off him and left him to carry the carton of beers.

Then, to his surprise, she reached for his free hand and casually took it in hers, just as if the pair of them had been dating for ages.

"So, tell me all about Liam Cooper?" she asked, coyly glancing sideways towards him as they began to stroll along.

"There's not a lot to tell really." He shrugged glancing down at her fingers entwined with his.

"Oh, I'm sure there is." Giggling she squeezed his hand, batting her eyelashes at him.

For the next few minutes, she listened as he, rather reluctantly, gave her an abbreviated history of Liam Cooper. Certain that once she knew everything about him, she would find an excuse to go home.

"Well, let's see, I'm 6' 1" tall, I have brown hair and dark eyes," he stated the obvious to begin with, "but I've never considered myself as anything special."

Pushing her hair back from her face she frowned "I can see all of that that for myself and I quite like what I see. It's the things that I don't know that I want to hear about."

"Ok then," he took a few moments to think, "I'm 23 and two years out of university, where I studied computer science. And, because of that I now have a reasonably well-paid job in IT."

"So, you're a bit of a techie geek then?" she was surprised that she felt comfortable enough to tease him.

"I suppose I am." He grinned back at her clearly enjoying the ease with which they were talking.

"Also, I haven't had a girlfriend in over a year." He confessed slightly embarrassed.

"Awww." She squeezed his hand and kissed him on the cheek, wondering why someone who looked like he did would be single, "Is there a reason for that?"

Taking a moment, he considered just what to tell her, before deciding it would be best to be honest.

"There was this girl I was seeing, Chrissie. I liked her but it turned out she wasn't so keen on me in the end."

"So, what happened then?"

He shrugged not wanting to think about what had occurred and the pain it had caused him.

"Come on there must be something?" Maddi pressed him wanting to know.

"I found out that she was cheating on me with.... with someone who was one of my best friends if you must know."

"But that's awful." She stopped and looked into his eyes seeing that the pain of it was still quite raw for him, "I'd feel terrible if someone did that to me."

"Then a year or so back, just about the time we broke up I received a sizeable inheritance from my grandparents and I was able to put a substantial deposit on my own small apartment. So, I now live alone in a my own 2-bedroom flat."

"Wow."

He looked at her and shrugged before he started walking again "And that's me in a nutshell."

"So, no criminal record then? You're not an insane axe murderer or something?"

"Nothing I'm going to admit to." He laughed, "So, what about you? What's Maddison's story?"

She went quiet for a moment thinking about what he had told her.

He had obviously been fairly honest, at least as far as she could tell, so she decided to do likewise.

"Err... Well, my full name is Maddison Amy Clarke and it's my birthday in a couple of week's time. I'll be nineteen then."

"I'll have to get you a card then." he chuckled.

She ignored his comment "I'm single, just like you. I did have a boyfriend but it wasn't serious and we broke up about three months ago."

"Do you miss him?"

She shook her head thinking back to the arsehole that she had been dating "No, it turned out he wasn't a very nice person and like I said it wasn't serious anyway."

"Ok, what else?"

"I finished school with excellent grades but I haven't been able to decide on what I want to do, so I've taken some time out to think about my future. However, I didn't want to sit around and do nothing so I took a full-time job in the supermarket to earn some money while I made up my mind."

"Very commendable of you."

"Unlike you though I'm still living with my parents." she finally finished telling him about her background, just as they arrived outside his friend's house.

If Liam hadn't been totally smitten with Maddison Clarke before they started out on their walk, he most certainly would have been by the end of it.

As he listened to her chatter on, holding his hand the whole way, he could feel himself falling for her. Intelligent, funny, sweet, gorgeous and sexy were just a few of the words he could have used to describe her but most of all she just made him want to be with her.

Holding his hand Maddison felt exactly the same way about him. She had thought he was cute and had been enchanted by the fumbling way he had asked her to the BBQ. Then listening to him talk and seeing something of the person he was by the time they arrived at his friend's house she had been captivated.

It was immediately obvious that his friend Trent hadn't been expecting Liam to bring anyone. After all he was single so his surprise was genuine when he opened the door and saw Maddi holding hands with him.

"Hi Liam welc...." He stopped mid-sentence and just stared at the two of them

"Hello." She beamed a hello at Liam's friend even before she had been introduced.

"Hey Trent. This is Maddison. I hope you don't mind me bringing a date?" he interjected.

"Err... I... umm... no... err not at all." Trent stammered seeming a little bewildered at being confronted by the stranger with Liam, "You had better come in. Everyone's in the garden."

"And err... Chloe's here." He whispered to Liam, "I thought you might want to know that."

"So, who's Chloe?" Maddi enquired as Trent led them through the house.

"Oh... err... no one important." He told her, "Just one of our friends who I wasn't sure would be here."

"Just a friend?" she raised her eyebrow questioningly.

Once they were outside Liam went round and introduced Maddi to everyone there. Several of his mates jokingly asking her what she was doing with a loser like him and a couple even suggesting she might prefer to dump him go on a date with them.

Their comments reminded her of what Liam had told her on the way to the party and, much to his relief, she made a point of hanging on to his hand, smiling sweetly, and generally just laughed at their banter.

"Hi Liam... who's your friend?" a girl's voice behind them made them both look round.

"Oh, hi Chloe, this is Maddison. Maddi meet Chloe." He swallowed nervously as he introduced the two girls to each other.

Eyeing the redhead warily Maddison smiled and held out her hand "Nice to meet you.... Chloe."

"Likewise.... Maddison, is it?" Came back the guarded reply as the other girl weighed her up.

Despite their apparent outwardly friendly demeanour it was obvious to both the girls that the other was competition as far as Liam was concerned.

Each of them took some time to look the other over as they were introduced. Although Maddi was smugly aware that she was the one holding Liam's hand.

Keeping her eyes on her rival, Maddison made sure she stayed by Liam's side determined not to give the redhead any opportunity to steal him away from here. While from a distance Chloe watched the pair jealously waiting for a chance to get Liam alone.

They had been there for a little over an hour when Maddi finally had to surrender to a call of nature and head off to the bathroom.

"So, where'd you meet your new friend?" Chloe slipped her arm through Liam's the moment he was alone.

"Oh... err Maddi you mean... she err.... she works as a check out girl in a supermarket."

Chloe grinned "You're not serious, are you? A bloody shop girl."

"What's wrong with that. She's nice and I like her."

"Oh come on Liam, you can do better than that." she wriggled up closer and looked up fluttering her eyelashes at him.

He looked down at the redhead for a moment.

"She is so out of my league it isn't true. I'm just waiting for her to come to her senses and drop me." he slipped his arm out of hers leaving Chloe standing open mouthed.

Turning away he stopped as he came face to face with Maddison.

"Maddi I...." he started to speak.

Leaning up she kissed him and then glared at a red-faced Chloe "Let's go and get something to eat."

"Maddi she was...."

"Do you really think I'm going to dump you?" she turned to face him.

He nodded "Yeah, I do."

She giggled and took hold of his arm "I'll have to prove you wrong then won't I."

The pair stayed for another couple of hours, having a few drinks and enjoying the simple basic fare of burgers, sausages and salad.

"I really need to go Liam. Before it gets too late." Maddison eventually suggested they should leave as she wanted to get home needing to be up early for work the next day.

"Oh sure, I'll walk you back."

She hadn't been certain he would go with her and was worried he might be tempted to stay at the BBQ with Chloe so his answer filled her with a sense of relief.

Making their excuses and getting shouted down for being lightweights they left. The green-eyed Chloe making a point of hugging Liam as she stared malevolently at Maddison.

"Will I see you at Deanna's party Liam?"

He shrugged "I'm not sure. She didn't invite me."

Not ready to give up Chloe continued "Don't worry you can come with me. She said I could bring a guest."

"Oh... err... I'll have to let you know." he glanced nervously at Maddi.

The journey back took them nearly half-an-hour as they began to slow down, the closer they got to her house. The conversation petering out as they completed the last few minutes in total silence.

"Thanks for walking me home." She said reluctantly letting go of his hand as they stopped at the end of her road.

"Can I see you again?" he suddenly blurted out nervously.

"Aren't you going to a party with Chloe."

"What... no... not at all. I'm not interested in.... in her." he started to protest.

Maddi turned to look at him thoughtfully and he felt his stomach lurch as he felt the polite rejection coming.

"Then I'd like to see you again." She said quietly.

Speechless he just stood and stared at her for a moment not daring to believe what she had just said.

"You... you would." he finally managed to overcome his surprise and stammer a response.

"Yes, I would." She giggled at his bewilderment, "I've had a lovely time and I really would like to see you again."