Slightly comforted by her own logical analysis, she focused on the movements on the screen. Watching him bring up a small black box, Everly leaned forward with rapt attention as she watched him type in a string of random letters and numbers that made no discernible sense.
“I’m typing in some manual commands for the scanner’s drivers to read,” Dr. Black explained without prompt, sensing her questions.
“Like binary code?”
“Exactly,” he turned to meet her gaze while his fingers still typed out the last of the white text against the black command box.
“That is amazing Dr. Black, thank you,” smiling she turned to see him still looking at her.
The black pupils set deep within the dark blue pools of his eyes contracted like a bird of prey honing in on its target. Slowly her smile ebbed away as she instinctively shifted in her seat from the sudden change in atmosphere between them.
“You know, I hardly recognized you with her hair down today,” his voice felt lower somehow, as he raked his eyes over the loose, dark curls around her shoulders.
Everly’s lips parted slightly at the loss of what to say. She never had anyone look at her this way before, she wasn’t sure how to respond much less what to even think. God, she felt so clueless around a man like this, she wasn’t used to discerning the emotions of a man who kept his feelings tightly in check. Back home, the male counterparts of her community were prideful, arrogant, and often times quick with their anger like a child throwing a tantrum.
The thoughts of her past immediately snapped her out of her thoughts.
The change in her expression must have had the same sobering effect on him, standing up abruptly from the chair next to her Dr. Black gave her his usual stern look. “It should work now. Get home carefully Miss Pengram.”
Alone again Everly slumped back in her chair. Her heart was pounding in her chest. Why were the men in this town affecting her this way? She couldn’t decide if it was fear, attraction, or what, but she knew one thing she had absolutely no room in her life to take another chance on a man. Especially not another professor.
±
The only thing that could top Saturdays were her blissfully peaceful Sundays. A cup of steaming black tea on her nightstand and her laptop sitting on top of the large pile of blankets she was curled up under, nothing could be better. Leaning against her headboard, Everly looked up from the sketch she was working on and stared out the window at the gray, bleak sky.
2Blackhearts: it’s so cold here I think I already have icicles forming around my roof.
When they first started chatting 2Blackhearts shared that she lived on the border of Canada near one of the Great Lakes. The bit of information may have seemed inconsequential to some but it was a big step for them, since they never even shared their real names.
AdamantEve: it’s a little warmer today it seems, so no snow. It’s just gray, rainy, and cold. Do you have any snow-covered mountains where you are?
The flat, rural community she grew up in back in Tennessee was the very definition of bland isolation. A town with no major landmarks to speak of and a town where everyone knew everyone. It took hours of driving through densely pined forests along a narrow two-lane road to even reach the interstate and another few hours of driving to reach a major town. The land was flat, the summers were scorching, and winters were cold and windy. There was nothing there that she would miss.
2Blackhearts: yes actually. In the distance we have some snow-covered mountains but it will be weeks yet before we start getting some real snow where I live… hopefully.
AdamantEve: I would love to see something like that one day.
2Blackhearts: Don’t worry, you’ll definitely see it.
Smiling Everly just shook her head. That girl could be so self-sure sometimes it drove Everly crazy. Leaning her head back against the wooden headboard Everly let her mind drift towards her uncertain future. Thoughts of her life with the baby, financial security, her time being split between being a new mother and working full-time. Again, her mind recounted the day Peter gave her three thousand dollars and told her to leave town. He wanted her to get rid of the baby and then get out of his life. Walking away from that horrible liar wasn’t an issue at all, but getting rid of her baby, her only family now, that was impossible.
2Blackhearts: have you eaten this morning?
AdamentEve: you are probably the most random person I’ve ever met. One minute you are talking about one thing and the next thing I know you have turned into a worrywart.
2Blackhearts: that doesn’t answer the question.
AdamantEve: OMG no I haven’t. And before you say anything I don’t want to leave the warm protective cocoon I have built in my bed.
2Blackhearts: if I’m not mistaken aren’t pregnant women eating for two?
AdamantEve: don’t you dare try to guilt me!
2Blackhearts: okay different tactic… Get up. and. Eat. Something
She was fully prepared to argue some more until her stomach grumbled. Feeling guilty she crawled out of her toasty spot on the bed. Dressed in a too big pajama set she quickly shuffled across the brisk wood floors to the small kitchen. Grabbing some sliced chicken from the fridge, Everly made a large sandwich and cut it in half. Walking back to the bedroom, she carefully balanced her food whilst situating herself back into her nest of covers.
AdamantEve: I’m back… And eating. I hope you’re satisfied now.
2Blackhearts: I am.
Going back to her sketching Everly lost herself in the black and white drawings until the chime of her laptop tore her attention away. Looking up she noticed it was now dark outside.
2Blackhearts: you’re quiet. What scene are you working on?
AdamantEve: the scene where my dad announced he wanted me to marry the family friend Joseph.
2Blackhearts: …damn…are you serious?.....you’ll never even comprehend how angry that makes me to even hear that.
Do you want to talk about it?
Everly’s hand paused over the keys, a part of her wanted to talk about it with someone, to get the thoughts out of her head. This faceless, nameless girl was the only one she ever opened up to now, but tonight she didn’t feel like opening up and delving through those painful emotions she just wanted to get the scene done so she can forget about it.
AdamantEve: no. Not tonight, thank you though.
2Blackhearts: I’m happy you escaped that place.
AdamantEve: Me too
Chapter 4
Looking over his shoulder to check the time on the bank’s large ornate brass clock, Zane looked back down to the personnel offices from his elevated position on the scaffolding with a lethal look.
It was fifteen minutes past nine and Everly still wasn’t into work yet.
Arriving late himself, he was more than alarmed to see the absence of her piece of shit red car. Grabbing his phone out of his pocket he dialed the number, ignoring the hanging wires to the security system he was supposed to be working on.
The phone connected through on the first ring.
“What is it?” the rough voice answered.
“She isn’t here yet.” He replies back just as tersely.
“The hell you mean she isn’t there yet?!” the man growled through the line.
Looking up at the ceiling, Zane had to mentally tell himself not to react. Through clenched teeth, he responded. “She is not at work and you and I both know I cannot simply walk up to the bank manager and demand to know where she is.”
“I will head to her place now. Give me ten,” the sharp words were punctuated by the line disconnecting.
Keeping his phone in his hand, Zane stared back down to the personnel offices, at the spot he usually watched the quiet curly-haired girl type away diligently at her computer. For months now, he watched her arrive every day at the same time, politely acknowledge her coworkers, and punctually take her lunch every day at noon. She was never once late and never deviated from her routine. So, where the hell w
as she now?
The phone vibrated, Zane answered immediately. “So?”
“She isn’t in her apartment, and her piece of shit car isn’t here either. I’m looking through her calendar now.” Zane could hear the crisp anger in his brother’s tone.
“I’m going to…,” Zane was walking to the ladder when the familiar glossy black curls caught his eyes. “Nevermind, I see her, she just came walking through the damn door.” Relief and anger rushed through his veins calming him and enraging him all at once.
“Politely ask our little angel, where the hell she has been?” His brother growled before disconnecting the line.
±
Waiting for her computer to log-in to her programs, Everly turned in her chair to grab the payroll file behind her when she noticed the shadow over her desk. Turning, her heart jumped a little at the sight of Zane quietly standing directly on the other side of her desk. Confused by the intense look he was giving her, she smiled back up at him in attempt to break the heavy aura he brought with him.
Slowly a smile spread across his lips revealing, not for the first time, small indiscernible dimples on his cheeks. The stubble of his beard pronounced the hidden indentions making them slightly more visible to her eye. Normally the friendly blonde construction worker was rather cleaned up despite his job, always shaved and always wearing rather clean work clothes in contrast to the other men who wore paint smeared clothing. Today, however, he was completely different, his blonde hair was messy and looked as if he only ran his hand through it to keep the long golden strands out of his face and the darker blonde stubble gave his handsome face a much more rugged look. Though it was his attire and what lie beneath the clothing she couldn’t seem to take her eyes off of.
“I missed you this morning.” Vaguely she heard him speak. Zane waited staring at her naturally wanting her to respond with why she was late she presumed.
“Oh, umm,…I…I had a doctor’s appointment,” she replied finally. Frowning a little, she tried to regain control of her focus, but it was rather difficult.
Wearing some sort of blue canvas jumpsuit, Zane’s normally covered body was exposed for all to see. With only a thin white tank top covering his torso, the blue jumpsuit was unzipped and pushed down to his waist, using the unused arm sleeves to tie around his narrow hips keeping the remainder of the pants portion of the jumpsuit on. With no control of her own Everly’s eyes traced intently the bold black patterns of the skin engraved ink covering his arm, and what arms they were too. Never in her life had she seen such muscular arms. Immediately her brain conjured up the image of professor Black and the defined bulge of his biceps through his knit sweater. Was every man in this town like this? Was keeping your body in top physical shape such an important factor out here in the real world? No that couldn’t be right, of course not, Peter looked nothing like these men.
“Why? Are you okay?” Placing both hands on the top of her desk, Zane’s movement temporarily broke the brief spell she was under.
Ripping her eyes away from his thick developed arms she forced an overly cheerful smile as she awkwardly reshuffled the papers in front of her. “Yes of course just one of the many prenatal doctor’s visits I have to take.”
“Did you find out if it’s a boy or girl?”
Everly didn’t miss the hint of excitement in his tone and gave a small laugh while absently rubbing her small baby bump. Zane was probably the only one other than 2BlackHearts that genuinely cared for her pregnancy. A stray thought flew by in her head— well them and her curmudgeon of a professor, thinking back to that day he practically shoved her into her car.
“No, not yet, for some reason this little one doesn’t want to change positions yet and give us a good look.”
“Well don’t worry about the names I’ve got you covered,” Zane grinned, leaning to one arm as the other hand toyed with her jar of pins. Before she could even stutter out her question of confusion, he continued. “I know plenty of boy and girl names that should cover you. Zachariah, Zelda, Zachary, Zora and tons more if you want to get crazy with the spelling.
Pressing her lips together to hold back a smile, Everly looked down at her lap. “I haven’t even thought of names yet to be perfectly honest.”
“Don’t worry, we have plenty of time,” he paused, causing her to look back up. Like a small woodland creature springing the hunter’s trap, Zane’s bright blue eyes caught hers intentionally. “You had me worried there for a minute… I thought I was going to miss my lunch break with you today.”
Warmth spread through her body at his handsome smile and the flirtatious undercoating to his words. Taking her eyes back off his she unintentionally brought them back to the hard flesh of his extended arm planted on her desk.
“Aww that’s right, you have not seen my tattoos before,” straightening from the desk he pushed his hands into the pockets of the jumpsuit hanging low on his narrow hips. “Remind me to show you the rest one day sweetheart.” Giving her a wink, he turned to leave.
With suddenly dry lips, Everly stared with wide-eyed shock as she watched him leave. “The rest?” She whispered aloud to herself.
±
With only one bedside lamp lit, Everly’s tiny apartment was encased by darkness. Tiptoeing across the cold wooden floorboards, Everly cinched the towel around her breast tighter as she looked hopefully at her computer screen.
Nothing.
Still not a word from 2BlackHearts. It had been two days now, and there had been no reply to any of her messages. Sitting on the edge of her bed Everly slowly slipped the long flannel nightshirt over her head simultaneously letting the towel drop to her waist.
This entire week and been no good from the start. After another perfectly peaceful weekend, she arrived to work on Monday to realize Zane and the construction crew had finished over the weekend and were gone. Of course, the news overjoyed her supervisor and bank manager, Teddy Alloway but she was shocked to find herself more than a little dismayed. The handsome, friendly face that she had seen daily from her first day on the job was now just gone, no goodbye, no note, nothing.
Days without personable familiar conversation or friendship, loneliness started to seep in like the cold edges of winter. Today felt like the final blow though, and she didn’t even know why. Flopping back into her warm cozy blanket Everly lifted and tucked her legs underneath the covers shielding her from the cool air of her small bedroom. Today her math class welcomed back Mrs. Hornsby as the professor for the remainder of the year, excitingly explaining that her husband’s job allowed him to come back freeing her up to come back to work. Looking around to her fellow classmates as they gave words of congratulations and voiced their relief to have her back Everly realized she was the only one who didn’t take the news as good news at all.
Gone. Dr. Black was gone too.
Never again was she going to catch his glacial eye amongst the mass of students or silently walk next to him as he walked her to her car after class. Looking back at the laptop screen her heart twisted at seeing the same no reply to her last messages sent hours ago to 2BlackHearts.
What was going on? By now the creeping dark edges of loneliness enveloped her completely. Pulling the covers higher around her neck, she hid herself from the world in the fortress of her blankets just as she did growing up. Abandoned and alone, this was the second time this year she was made to feel this way. Although arguably the first time was far more painful and probably more sensible, considering the man she thought she would spend the rest of her life with just broke her heart, compared to three people she barely knew suddenly disappearing.
Suppressing back tears, Everly pulled the light switch chain on her bedside lamp and only prayed tomorrow would be a better day.
±
Slowly like shadows, the two men moved throughout the small apartment with unnatural familiarity.
Pale blue nocturnal light streamed in from the one window in the bedroom, combining seamlessly with the soft white glow of the laptop illuminating t
heir target against the soft blankets.
Carefully, Reid pushed the laptop screen until it gave a barely audible click shut, sinking the room deeper into the night’s shadows. Sleeping soundly on her side with one hand tucked beneath her pillow they watched her light shallow breathing. His fingers practically burned at his side at the restraint he enforced to keep from reaching out to her and touching what had tempted him for months now.
Looking up across the bed to the other side he saw a similar pained expression on his brother’s face.
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