by D. D. Larsen
I take his hand in mine to comfort him. He is normally so strong and determined. It is hard to see my father this beaten down. “Don’t worry, Dad, I’ll stay out of the forest, but you need to promise me you will be careful, too.”
He smiles sadly. “It’s a promise.”
Last night after dinner, I sat in the kitchen with my parents and played cards for hours, just like old times. Some families like board games, but we were always card people. My brother taught me how to play blackjack when I was six years old. He always thought I was cheating because I would win so much. He always joked with my dad that they needed to take me to the casinos when I turned twenty-one.
I walk up the trail next to the creek for my shift at the coffee shop. It’s been two days, but the town is still buzzing about what happened to the family last weekend. The official word is that it was a bear attack. The locals seem to be staying away from the forest now, but it is peak tourist season. The rangers have posted warnings, but my father says tourists aren’t taking them very seriously.
I hope nobody else gets hurt, but after everything that’s happened, I fear it is inevitable.
I still haven’t heard from Wren. I feel like half of my time is spent waiting to see if he will contact me. With the way he left it, I will not be reaching out to him, but I want to know what happened that night with the little girl. Nobody has really mentioned that she was found alive, which I find strange. The newspapers simply say that the whole family was killed.
Liam has been freaking out since he heard what happened and keeps asking me to come stay with him in the city. I’ve already run away once, and I don’t plan on doing it again. He sends me a text every hour, checking on me. Generally I would find it annoying, but with Wren giving me radio silence, it is nice to know someone cares.
The area is deserted as I pull out the key and go to unlock the shop’s front door. It’s early—the sun hasn’t even popped up over the mountains yet—but I have to get ready before my shift. I’ve never felt uncomfortable opening the shop before, but this morning, something tickles the back of my neck. I can’t shake the feeling like something is watching, so as I scrabble to force the key into the lock, I keep scanning the forest around me.
As I get the door open, there’s the unmistakable sound of a cracking branch behind me. I spin quickly, and can swear I see a flash of black disappearing into the forest, making me think of the wolf with the yellow eyes. I hustle inside and close the door, sweating and breathing heavy. Maybe finding the family is affecting me more than I thought, like Mark said. I’m having dinner with him tonight, so I’ll talk with him about it.
Finally catching my breath, I rush behind the counter to prepare for the day. I turn the music up loud, hoping to drain out my thoughts and calm my nerves.
Suddenly, a hand falls on my shoulder. I jump and whirl around, tossing the bag of coffee beans in my hands into the air. As beans fly all over the room, I realize it’s just Roberta.
“Shit! Roberta, you scared me! I didn’t hear you come in.”
“I’m surprised you can hear anything with the music this loud. Everything all right?”
She must be able to feel my tension. The whole town is on edge after what happened. She looks at the clock and motions me to the couch. “Let’s sit down for a minute. Tell me what is bothering you.”
I nod because I need to get my head on straight before I start serving people.
I tell Roberta about this weekend and finding the family. I even mention the wolves, which I haven’t done to anyone else. There is something about Roberta that makes me trust her and I know she won’t think I am crazy or tell anyone else.
She lets me finish then puts her hand on my knee. “Awful. Sounds like you had a rough couple of days. Do you want to go home and let me take over?”
I shake my head because the last thing I need is more time by myself to overthink everything.
“Are you sure? Well, I was planning on doing inventory so I will be around if you need me. And I wouldn’t worry about the wolves. It sounds like they have chosen you and are protecting you. I would go with your gut instinct with them.”
Chosen me? Something about the way she says it makes me think she knows more and isn’t telling me.
“I feel like you know everything about me, Roberta, like seriously, everything. But I know so little about you. I’ll respect it if you don’t want to tell me, but I feel bad that our conversations are always so one sided.”
Roberta smiles. “I’m an open book. I was just waiting for you to ask. It’s about time!”
She is such an interesting old lady. I love how quirky she is.
My inquiry opens the floodgates. We both stand up and begin to clean up the beans I spilled everywhere as she tells me her story.
“When I was twelve years old, my family moved here. We came to town so my brother could attend The Academy. I wasn’t allowed to in those days because I was a girl, so I went to the small school we had in town.”
As we continue to get ready for customers, Roberta tells me her life story, and what a life story it is. She has outlived two husbands and used the money that was left to her by her second husband to transform this building into the coffee shop twenty years ago. Before that, she worked at The Academy for many years.
I ask her for her secret to having so much energy and she starts talking about herbs and crystals, losing me quickly. I have always been interested in science and don’t believe any of the spiritual energy stuff, but if it works for her, I am happy.
The day flies by and soon it is time to head home. I give Roberta a hug before I leave, feeling more connected to her than ever before.
As I walk out the door, I pull out my phone. I have texts from Liam and Mark but still nothing from Wren. I break and decide to send him a quick text.
Jamie: What happened with the girl?
The three little dots appear almost instantly and then his response comes through.
Wren: She died.
So wordy, that Wren. And? I type in.
No response.
After that, I send ten more texts to Wren, but I don’t receive any reply.
Chapter 22:
Mark picks me up precisely at six that evening. He looks nice in khaki pants and a button-down shirt, and I can tell he took extra time getting dressed. As I get into his car, I have major déjà vu. All the times I did this in high school come flooding back.
I smile at Mark, not wanting to bring up the past. Even so, there’s a steady flow of easy conversation as soon as I get in the car that continues through dinner. We decide to go to the same Italian place I went with Tollen since we both like it.
Since I haven’t had the time to really catch up with Mark, it’s nice to hear how everything went for him over the past few years. As we are finishing up dessert, I finally bring up the family that was attacked and how nervous I’ve been. A shadow crosses Mark’s face. “Yeah. It’s crazy. The whole incident is. Two incidents like that, so close together … what does your father say?”
“He’s worried. We all are.”
As we walk out to the car, the mood has dampened with talk of the incident. It’s early, so I ask if he wants to go back to my parents’ house and watch a movie.
“What about my place?” he says.
I haven’t seen his place yet. I can tell he doesn’t want to be presumptive, but we are adults now.
We drive across town to his apartment. As we walk up the stairs, he seems quiet. I’m not sure if he is nervous about me being here or is still upset about the incident that happened this past weekend. We were having such a good time; I don’t know why I had to bring it up.
He opens the door to his second story apartment and I look around. It is good-sized, fairly up-to-date, and neat for a bachelor pad. It reminds me a little of the apartment I had when I lived in the city, but with a much better view.
Mark gives me a quick tour; the rooms are clean but not spotless, which makes me smile. Liam’s apartment always
felt fake because he had someone clean every day. This feels lived-in, like a home, and it makes me smile when I see Toby’s room. It looks as if a pink bomb has exploded.
Mark hears me laugh and asks what’s up.
“You used to hate all the girly stuff. You would never even hold my purse, but now look at you. Father to a little girl and she looks like she gets everything her heart desires.”
He smiles. “I never thought I would want a little girl until I had one. She is so perfect; I couldn’t even imagine not having her in my life now. I may go a little overboard, but I feel bad that she gets moved back and forth, so I want her to have everything she needs when she comes here.”
I place my hand on his arm. “You are a great father. She adores you.”
He smiles, and I catch him looking at my hand on his arm. It’s not an invitation. I quickly take it away.
“Do you have anything in mind to watch or should I start looking?” I head over to the couch and grab the remote.
Mark hesitates for a second before coming over. He sits on the other side of the couch, away from me. “Whatever you want.”
As I turn on the TV and flip through channels, it hits me. This is the first time we’ve been alone, in private, since I left him.
I have been putting it off, but we need to talk about us. Or the lack of an us.
“Mark.” I say his name so he will look over at me. “Um … well … I don’t really know how to start …”
He cuts me off and says, “I love Tollen.” I freeze, not expecting those words. “I wouldn’t take back what we had, but I have moved on. I have been wanting to talk to you but there has never been a good time.”
This is what I want, so why do I feel a little hurt? They deserve to be happy. Mark was mine, but he isn’t anymore.
“I wanted to tell you right away, but Tollen wanted me to hold off. You didn’t handle the Toby situation well, so she wanted to wait. We are kind of dating, but Tollen is worried what you will think so we’ve kept it quiet.”
He pauses, waiting for a response. I need to respond. “Mark, I’m super happy for you. I was actually going to suggest you guys try dating. I feel dumb for not catching on sooner.”
I can tell Mark is nervous and he lets out a large breath at my words. “You’re not dumb, Jamie. It’s all very new. I knew I had feelings for her, but it took seeing you again for me to act on them.”
I smile at him. My best friends have found their way to each other.
“Jamie, could I ask you a favor? Tollen feels guilty about the whole thing. Could you talk to her?”
“Of course, Mark.”
My best friends together and happy is the best thing that has happened since I returned home.
Chapter 23:
Finally in a rhythm, the next week flies by. Liam is still tied up in the city but promises he will be up tomorrow to take me to dinner and will be staying through the weekend. The coffee shop is running smoothly, and I’ve convinced Roberta to order some more New Adult books since we have such a young crowd that frequents the shop.
Making coffee while talking to people in town has been nice, but getting more involved with the business side and book purchasing is my favorite part of the job. All my life, I’d wanted to join a big company and climb the ladder. It was stable, consistent, and predictable. But now I am seeing a lot of positives to owning a small business, being involved in every decision, and working toward its success.
I don’t even want to think about Wren, but I can’t help it. We haven’t talked or texted since he told me the girl had died. I haven’t even seen him. Roberta tells me he comes in all the time, just not when I am around. What is he playing at?
I don’t know why I care. Things with Liam are going well. We seem to be connecting on a much deeper level than before. We still haven’t been intimate yet; maybe this weekend. I figure I will know when it’s time.
At two, I pick up my bag and prepare to leave. Roberta asked me to stay a little later today because she needed to run some errands. She walks in the door and after a few pleasantries, I say goodbye.
Distracted by digging in my purse for my keys, I don’t notice him until I practically run into his solid, warm chest. I stumble because of the unexpected obstacle and his arms come up to steady me.
I look up into those yellow brown eyes I love and the desire hits me like a punch in the stomach. For a few moments neither of us say anything, just stare into each other’s eyes. Whatever is between us doesn’t feel sane and that is half the reason I need to stay away. I hate being pushed in any direction, even if it is towards a guy I am attracted to.
Determined not to be the one to break the silence, I wait for Wren to say something. It takes a while, but he finally cracks and speaks first.
“Hey.”
“Hey, yourself.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I work here. What are you doing here?”
“You get off at noon, and I’m at the coffee shop for coffee.”
“Roberta had stuff to do so I stayed late.” Why am I explaining myself to him?
He makes a move to sidestep me. “Oh, well, I should probably get going.”
I clamp a hand on his wrist, surprising him. I have questions, and now that I am standing right here with him, he is going to answer some of them. “Why won’t you respond to my texts? What happened to the girl? Why is everyone saying she died with her parents in the forest?”
He looks around and pulls me off to the side of the trail, away from the other people that are walking by. “Jamie, no. You aren’t ready to know everything yet.”
I stare at him, confused. “If not now, when?”
In answer, he presses his lips to mine gently before pulling away and entering the coffee shop.
Stunned, I touch my mouth, still feeling the pressure of his lips on mine. Why does he always kiss me?
I slide behind the wheel of my car and stay there for the longest time, trying to process the last few seconds. His words reverberate in my head. You aren’t ready to know everything yet. What is he talking about?
I’m dressed and ready when Liam pulls up.
He is always so put together. His clothes fit him perfectly and always compliment his looks. They show off his body that I know he works very diligently on with a trainer to keep in top form.
I smile as I walk out to his car. I opted for a dress because, knowing him, I figured we would be going somewhere nice for dinner. He gets out of the driver’s seat and walks around to open my door. He has such good manners.
He kisses my cheek lightly then closes the door behind me. As he is walking around the car, I see Moon barrel out of the forest to run up and greet him. He obliges her and scratches her ears as she licks his arm. Something about seeing him with my dog makes my heart hurt. He really seems like a good guy. He may not have treated me the best before, but he is making up for it now.
As he gets in the car, he looks over at me and just smiles. Then he says, “You are extremely beautiful, Jamie. I know I talked to you every day, but I still missed you.”
“I missed you, too.” Did I miss him, or did I just say that because that was the first thing to come to mind? “Where are we going to dinner?”
“I did some research and there is a seafood and steak place on the east side of town that looked really good. I made a reservation, but we can go wherever you would like.”
I reply, “That sounds great. How has work been? Did the emergency get smoothed out?”
I’ve broached his favorite subject, work. He starts going into all the details. Part of me misses the fast-paced lifestyle I had when I worked for Liam, but I know that would only be true for a few weeks. Grinding is fun for a little while, but it becomes exhausting fast.
I’m so busy thinking about my old life in Denver that I only catch about half of what Liam is saying to me. Something about one of the drugs they created having unusual side effects in one of the trials.
As we arrive at the rest
aurant, I am excited to have a nice dinner and good conversation with Liam.
Dinner is fantastic. I ordinarily stay away from seafood when I am not close to the ocean, but the scallops were amazing. Afterwards, Liam asks if I would be interested in going back to the hotel for a drink.
I agree, not ready to go home yet. I know his intention is to get me in his room for other activities, as his sexual appetite has always been large. He’s being polite about it, but I can tell he’s getting anxious. I haven’t decided if I am ready yet. Something in the back of my brain tells me it isn’t a good idea.
We sit in one of the lounge chairs watching the sun set behind the mountains. I sip my Cosmo as he takes a big gulp of his scotch on the rocks. There are only a few clouds in the sky, so the sun puts on a real show of bright pinks and oranges before it tucks itself behind the mountain. Seriously, nature is so incredible. When I lived in the city, a building blocked so much of the view, I rarely got a chance to catch the sun.
Liam says, “It’s incredibly beautiful. I think I have fallen in love with the beauty of this town.”
When I look over at him, he is staring right at me. Whoa there, boy, slow down, slow way down.
I finish the rest of my drink and ask, “Want to go watch a movie in your room? It’s still early, but I don’t feel like drinking anymore.”
He smiles. “Yes, that sounds wonderful.”
As we walk to the elevator, he holds my hand. It feels nice being with him this way, especially since, before, we didn’t touch much in public and tried to stay under the radar.
As the elevator takes us up, I tell him I have never been past the lobby in this hotel and I am excited to see the rooms. We walk to the end of the hall and he opens the door. I step in and am shocked by its size. I know this must be the best room in the hotel. It is huge!
Awestruck, I take a moment to walk in and look around. The whole side of the wall is glass and I faintly see the mountains outlined with the light from the moon. The living area is dominated by three large brown leather couches circling a glass coffee table with flowers sitting in the middle. On the left wall, there is a large gas fireplace with a chair tucked between it and the windows. I think about how that would be the perfect place to snuggle in and read a book on a snowy day. Off to the left, I see a fancy drink cart fully stocked with ice and bowls with sliced fruit for drinks.