Page 21 of She's Mine

“You cantry, but if youdobeat me, I’ll just come back down here and take it from you,” Alyssa said, and I knew from her tone she was being perfectly serious.

The only way I was keeping the highest score was if I set it to something even ridiculously higher and considering the amount of time it had taken me to get that score in the first place, reaching a new score Alyssa wouldn’t be able to beat seemed impossible.

“Is that what you’ve been doing down here the whole time?”

Alyssa shrugged as she stepped away from Tetris and loaded up the arcade machine for Street Fighter. I instinctively jumped in as player two, not that Alyssa seemed to mind.

“No, I watchedCasablanca, Gone with the Wind, Breakfast At Tiffany'sand a few others until I got burned out watching movies and needed a change.”

“What did you think ofCasablanca?” I asked, one eye focused on the arcade machine screen, as the other glanced at Alyssa to see her initial reaction.

Back when we’d been spending our downtime together at Alyssa’s home in Beverly Hills, she’d mentioned thatCasablancawas one of the few old Hollywood classics she hadn’t seen.

A wry smile crossed Alyssa’s lips. “It felt especially poignant considering our current situation. You know, with all the sacrifices the characters make, and them being separated from their loved ones by war. I related to Ilsa Lund a lot.”

“Does that make me Rick Blaine?” I quipped without thinking.

When Alyssa didn’t respond, and instead lost our match in Street Fighter in such a way that it seemed intentional, I got the hint, and backed off.

“Well, when you get bored of video games, there’s plenty of books in the main living area if you want to read those. I can work in my room or something.”

Alyssa’s eyes widened. “You’re working?”

“Well, I did my taxes.”

“I don’t know if I should be impressed or pity you. Do youevertake time off?”

“Actually, before accepting this assignment, I’d just been here for a few weeks relaxing. I don’t know … maybe I should be enjoying the fresh mountain air and all that, but I can’t seem to turn my brain off.”

“Tell me about it,” Alyssa agreed with a sigh. “Why do you think I’ve been spending so much time in the pool and gym?”

“Yeah, I just got done taking out my frustrations on the punchbags.”

There was a long pause, before Alyssa asked, “So, is everything okay back home?”

“As far as Jeffrey has been able to tell me, yes. Your parents are both safe at their secure locations, and Jeffrey is working hard with the rest of the team at J&J to track down the Bloodline.”

“That’s a relief. And is your mom, okay? How is her treatment going?”

I couldn’t help but feel touched by the fact Alyssa had thought to ask after my mom, and a small smile covered my lips. “She’s doing well, thanks for asking. She’s on a break between treatments, so she’s feeling a lot livelier. And she loves her new care worker, Denise. I know she liked the last one too, but to hear the way she speaks about Denise, you’d think she’s a saint or something.”

Alyssa smiled back. “I’m glad to hear she’s doing well. Hopefully you’ll be able to get back to her soon.”

After a brief pause, I said, “I bet you miss having contact with the outside world, don’t you? I know you can’t message Brittany or Courtney, in case someone from the Bloodline is watching them, but I could pull up their social media profiles on the laptop if you wanted to check in on how they’re doing.”

To my surprise, Alyssa shrugged. “Don’t get me wrong, I do miss my friends, but since I’ve been away from them for so long, I’ve started to realize I don’t miss the lifestyle. All that shopping and partying was exhausting, and I never realized how unfulfilling it was. I thought I was happy living off my parents’ money, and being a socialite, but now I’m not so sure.”

I was astonished to hear Alyssa saying these things. Until that moment, she’d never given any indication she wanted more out of life than just shopping and partying with her friends.

“Well, you’re still young. Once all the Bloodline people are caught and you’re back at home, you can start thinking about what you want to do with the rest of your life.”

“That’s just the thing. I don’t know what I want to do. I’ve never given it any thought before. Even when I was at school, I had no ambitions beyond going to parties.”

Curious, I tilted my head to one side and asked, “Well, what subjects did you enjoy?”

“I liked art,” Alyssa admitted. “And I wished there’d been some sort of fashion design course.”

“You could always see what the local college has to offer,” I suggested.

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