Page 145 of Light in the Dark
"I will be." I shake him. "Enjoy your day. Take that beautiful bride of yours home."
They went on a two-week vacation to the Bahamas a few months ago, before she got too pregnant to fly—a pre-wedding honeymoon, since she'll be having the baby any day now.
He searches me. "I worry about you, you know."
I shove him playfully. “I’m good. I'm good. I swear."
"Don’t make me sic Cole on you!” he shouts after me.
I flip him off as I walk away.
Hop into my truck and leave the farm.
But I don’t go home. I can't. I just can't bear that empty fucking place.
Maybe I should get a dog or something.
I end up cruising through town, my windows open to let in the cool spring night air. I love Three Rivers at night—it’s quiet, dark, and peaceful. No summer crowds jamming the sidewalks. No block parties, as cool as those are. Just the streets and the shuttered businesses, the trees with their skirts of flowers rustling around their feet, the stoplights flashing yellow, and the silence.
Whoa—hold on. That's unusual.
I squeal to a halt, mentally reminding myself to have Nyx do my brakes soon.
At the far north end of town, sitting on a bench by herself, is a woman. Or a girl. Not sure. Her head is down and her shoulders are heaving. She's sobbing, like, bad.
Fuck.
I'm the last moron that should be trying to comfort her, but god knows no one else is gonna come by, so it's me.
I shove my truck into park and cut the motor right in the middle of the street—the sheriff is my best friend and he's at the wedding, three sheets to the wind.
I sit on the bench near the girl—close but not creepy or in her space. "Hey."
She lifts her head. Sniffles. Looks at me. “Hello.”
I'm dumbstruck.
Strawberry blond curls—a wild, untamable profusion of them in bouncy ringlets. A perfect heart-shaped face. Big green eyes the color of holly leaves. Exactly that shade. Pale, creamy, freckled skin.
My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth, and my heart palpitates. Hands go clammy. Stomach flips.
What am I feeling?
Why can't I breathe?
“Um." I close my eyes. Shake my head in an attempt to clear it of the nonsense. "What's…um. What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
I snort. “Yeah, okay. You're a shitty liar, beautiful."
She frowns at me. "You are not very good at this."
I laugh. "No, I’m not. Do I get credit for trying?"
She sniffs. “Yes. Two points extra credit."
"Sweet. That brings me all the way up to zero."
