Page 57 of V is for Valentine
For once she and her troublesome inner voice agreed.
*
Danny was runningout of time with Felicity, who would be boarding a plane in a matter of days, which meant he had to get ready to punt.
Unfortunately, he was a little shaky on his field position. Where exactly was he? He was getting some serious mixed messages from her which indicated that she didn’t know either. Or she did and it wasn’t working with her overall game plan.
Actually, that was a given. She had a career and a life in Seattle, one that made her happy, and he had a warehouse in Holly, Idaho, and planned to become a real estate magnate there, one small step at a time.
But he could be a long-distance owner. Other people did it. He had Sandra to manage things.
He also had his sanity, which meant that he couldn’t just pack up and move to Seattle for the express purpose of being close to Felicity. Not without them seeing eye to eye, and it looked like that would be a long time coming.
Bide your time.
Right.
Keep in contact.
Uh huh.
Hope for the best?
Not his style.
Felix was driving him nuts.
He finished texturing the last office of the day as he worked through the conundrum, then used what would be the mayor’s washroom to clean the hopper and other equipment.
When he came downstairs after sealing bags and tapping lids on buckets, Felicity was waiting for him, her red bandanna in her hand. When the scarf was off, the workday was done.
They left the building together without a word, walking companionably down the stairs to their cars.
“Have a good meeting,” Felicity said as she unlocked her car.
“Thanks.” He got into his own car, feeling oddly unsettled by the civil exchange and the silent camaraderie. Then it struck him.
Felicity was doing it on purpose. No challenge, no repartee, no laughter, no connection.
Fine. He put his car into reverse after she pulled away from the curb. He’d simply have to challenge her.
Chapter Ten
Felicity overslept onThursday morning, and by the time she topped the final step leading to the school entry, the donut box from Cakery Bakery tucked under her arm, she was out of breath. She pulled open the door and was greeted by the sound of the texture spray gun upstairs.
She was really late, and in a way, she could blame Danny, because she’d lain awake for an inordinate amount of time thinking about him, thinking about them, wondering what, if anything, to do next.
“Yes for now” had sounded good in theory, but it was so much harder to execute than she’d anticipated. What if she messed things up between them forever?
That was the question that had kept her staring at the dark ceiling.
Danny had been a part of her life since she’d been four, and yes, he had been wearing light-up sneakers when he’d made his way into her front yard, and she recalled being awesomely jealous of those shoes—and not very welcoming, as he’d pointed out. Things had evolved from there into a lifelong rivalry. Danny took challenges to heart, as did she.
There had been years when she’d pretty much hated him. Those horrible tween and early teen years when emotions were so strong and impossible to handle. The sensitive years, when being called Felix had truly grated. When he kept getting her locker combination and stacking her books at an angle, so they fell out at her feet when she opened the door, always a fun experience in a crowded hallway.
Their relationship had been so predictable, and while she might not have known what little scheme he was cooking up, she knew where they stood emotionally. She missed knowing what to expect from him in that regard.
Do you?
