I nod. “So where is home then, if that’s just like a vacation sort of place for you?”
He chews on the inside of his cheek before answering me. “Just around. Not far.”
It’s clear he doesn’t want me to know where he lives. As if I would stalk him or something? Please.
“Well... thanks again. It was nice getting to know you. Give Niko a pet for me.”
“I will. You should think about getting a dog since you’re alone here so much. A deaf cat can’t offer you much protection, no matter how cute he is.”
“Yeah, Michael doesn’t like dogs. I’m fine, really.” Just leave. Don’t linger. I want you to hold my hands again and make me tingle.
“Michael sounds like a smashing fellow.”
“Okay, you can go now. I have a ton of cleaning to do as you can see.”
He takes a few steps toward the door and turns around once more. “I’ll see ya around, Evie.
I walk past him and open the door for him so he’ll actually go through it. “Bye, Storm.” Go. Go. Go.
He stops in the doorway and leans down close to my face. For a second, I think he is going to kiss me. I hold my breath. “Promise me you’ll remember who I was with you,” he says, his raspy voice low.
“Yes. Of course, I will.” He winks at me, touches the tip of my nose, and leaves. I close the door slowly behind him. I refuse to watch him leave. I don’t know why, but I can’t.
What the hell was that all about? Cryptic. I have a feeling that meant something, but I have no idea what. Shit, I hope he doesn’t have some terminal illness. My stomach sinks. Could that be it?
I can’t dwell on it. I have so much to do starting with the mess Michael left me. Laundry, vacuuming, and I need to call my boss, Jack. Ugh. I should just get that over with.
I dial the office and punch in his extension.
“Jack Sands,” he says in his gruff tone.
“Hi, Jack, it’s me. It’s Evelyn.”
“Evelyn. What the hell happened? Where are you? It’s Tuesday afternoon and you’re not here, no calls, nothing. The event coordinator emailed over the weekend and said you never even showed up. I expect an explanation. The seminar and your room cost me twenty-five hundred dollars that I’ve now lost.”
I take a deep breath. “Jack, I am so sorry. I got lost on the way to the hotel, and I somehow ended up on this road up in the mountains. The snow was getting really bad and I lost control of my car. I was stuck on the side of the road. Another driver saw me there and stopped to give me a ride, but then while we were in his car, a deer ran out in the middle of the road, and he slammed on his breaks. That caused his truck to spin around and slide all over the road and next thing I know, we’ve gone completely off the road and out into the woods until we crash into a tree and we are totally stuck. The snow was so bad by then we couldn’t even try to walk to find help, so we were stuck in his truck for two entire days. It was terrible. I thought we were going to freeze to death. We finally got out yesterday. My car is stuck at a garage up there though, getting fixed.”
Hearing myself tell this story, I realize I sound like a complete idiot. It sounds utterly ridiculous.