Page 100 of Falling into Place
Just in case, she circled the counter and checked the coffee table for a note, then went back to her room to see if he’d sent her a text.
Nothing.
She sent off a text that simply said,You okay?and made herself a pot of coffee. When he didn’t reply right away, she assumed he must have gone home for some reason and probably fallen asleep.
It hadn’t been long ago that he’d gone silent after having that difficult case at work, and despite saying he wanted to get better at talking through things and not retreating into himself, she understood it wasn’t a habit that he could break overnight. Still, this felt ... different.
When it had happened before, he hadn’t slept with her, said he loved her, and snuck out of her bed without a word.
Was he embarrassed he’d allowed himself to be vulnerable in front of her? Maybe it was naive, but she’d hoped they were close enough by now that he wouldn’t feel that way. Before she could get too far down that road, her phone lit up with a text.
Mom:Is this outfitOkfor Café 501? Never been there.
Shit. Carly glanced at the clock. She was meeting her mom and the new boyfriend, Lance, for Sunday brunch and was gonna be late if she didn’t get ready. The guy had made reservations at one of Carly’s favorite restaurants, which meant either her mom had tipped him off in the hope of earning brownie points or he’d just gotten lucky. Either way, she needed to put aside her brooding about Brooks and focus.
Carly:That’s perfect. See you soon.
She took the quickest shower of her life and made it to the restaurant just in time. Her mom was glowing, her occasional high-pitched laughter the only thing that tipped off how nervous she was.
“I just want you to like him,” her mom whispered when Lance was in the restroom.
“Relax, Mom. He’s great.”
It wasn’t a lie, exactly. Lance was perfectly nice, polite, and intelligent. He was easy to talk to and seemed to really like her mom, which waswhat mattered most. He reminded Carly a lot of Benjamin, actually. Still, Carly wasn’t completely taken with him for her mom. There were no red flags, which was good, and she couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was ... but everything about them together was just sort of flat. She’d say none of this, though, because her mom seemed happy, and Carly wasn’t in the best place to be judging anything romantic right now. She struggled to keep from thinking about Brooks, which was probably to blame for her pessimistic attitude. By the end of the meal her mom had a content smile on her face, and Carly counted it a success.
She checked her phone as she walked out, thinking surely Brooks had called or texted her back by now.
Still nothing.
She stayed out of the house and kept herself as busy as possible for the entire day. She shopped for clients, browsed the bookstore, and went grocery shopping. It was after eight when she got home. By this point, anger had set in, and after she unlocked her apartment door and stepped inside, she tossed her purse on the table with more force than necessary.
Where the hell was he?
Carly woke with a start. Her leg was asleep and her neck ached, and the faint sound of music floated through the air.
She sat up from where she’d apparently fallen asleep on the couch, orienting herself to place and time. Monday morning, sometime after sunrise because light streamed through the sheer curtains behind her. The music kept going, and she suddenly realized it was her ringtone.
Brooks? Did he finally call?
It took her several seconds to locate her phone stuck between two couch cushions. She looked at the screen and disappointment filled her yet again.
“Hey, Mai,” she greeted, trying to sound chipper and not like she just woke up.
“Carly, how are you?” Something in her boss’s tone felt off, and Carly sat up straighter.
“I’m okay,” she answered honestly, urgently scrolling through her brain to make sure she hadn’t missed some sort of meeting or appointment. She still wasn’t used to the fact this job didn’t require her to show up and clock in at a certain time, and being at home on Monday morning felt a little like cheating. “How are you?”
“I’ve been better. I have something to discuss with you, and I’d like to do it in person. Could you come by the office this morning?”
Oh God.“Sure. Is everything okay?” Was she in trouble?
“Let’s talk about it when you get here.”
Her stomach flipped with unease. “I can be there in an hour, is that okay?” Her hair was a complete mess, so she had to do something about that before going in.
“I’ll make myself available. See you soon.”
Hands shaking, Carly ended the call and put her phone down, her mind racing through the possibilities. A client issue? A company layoff? She’d recently met Jacque at the outlet mall to help her find something for her anniversary dinner and hadn’t charged her a fee for it. She’d just wanted to help, but her business-minded boss might not see it that way.
