Page 18 of An Overdue Match
I worry my lip. I don’t owe him an explanation. Even so, I feel pressure building behind my ribs to say something. Maybe I could let a pinprick of honesty out? Just a little. Not enough to reveal anything too personal that will ruin the haven I have here in Little Creek but enough to appease him so he won’t make any other too-close-to-the-whole-truth assumptions.
“Have you ever...” I start, pause, then start again. “Have you ever reached a point where you couldn’t bear to see the way people look at you anymore?”
He considers my question, and I’m taken aback yet again by how serious he’s being right now. Until today, our interactions have been him teasing me and amusing himself at my expense.
He nods slowly. “I’m pretty sure there are some people in town that think I must have a Marauder’s Map on me.”
“Because you solemnly swear you’re up to no good?”
He dips his head. “Thank you for catching my reference.”
“It was an easy lob to field.”
“Anyways”—Tai grins, his usual carefree expression back in place—“I may have made some poor decisions with some cans of spray paint and a few buildings along Main Street in my youth. Pair a small town’s long memory with the fact that when I came back after a few years away looking nothing like their idea of a clean-cut, respectable young man, and you can imagine some of the looks I get.”
“Is that how you got your reputation?”
He gives me a look that I think is supposed to be an impersonation of Johnny Depp inThe Pirates of the Caribbean. “So you have heard of me.”
I laugh in spite of myself. “Not really, no. I just assumed you must have one in some circles.”
At this, he mock-pouts, and I laugh again.
What are you doing, Evangeline?a little voice in the back of my mind accuses. I freeze. Dagnabit. WhatamI doing? I wasn’t ... oh heavens ... I wasn’tflirting backwith Tai. Was I?
Oh no. This isn’t good. I should leave. Right now. Before I do or say anything else I shouldn’t.
My gaze flicks to Tai. He’s back to regarding me with a singular focus that creates a phantom shiver that tracks down my spine.
I bolt to my feet, picking up the folder I’d momentarily forgotten about and pressing the front and back cover in a vise grip to ensure that none of the pages escape again.
I give Tai my practiced, polite smile. “Well, I really have to go now. I hope you have a nice rest of your day.”
He seems bewildered by my abrupt departure but recovers quickly. “I’ll see you around, Angel.”
An innocuous salutation that anyone would give, but coming from Hayley’s cousin, I can’t quite figure out if I should take it as a threat ... or a promise?
9
“You’ve got plenty of food and water in your bowls to last you until I get back.”
Kitty Purry ignores my comment like I’m beneath her notice. She knows I’m leaving and wants to make sure I’m aware of her displeasure. Her Highness is keenly offended that I expect her to consume kibble that’s been put into an automatic feeder instead of being served to her. Not to mention the fact the food will not be one hundred percent fresh. Just who do I think I am?
I collect my purse and the lasagna from the kitchen counter, then slowly approach my cat. Her tail flicks the closer I get. She waits until my hand is a breadth away from giving her a scratch on the head before she saunters out of reach, an air of offense following in her wake.
“I’ll see you when I get back,” I call to her as I open the front door. Once she forgives me and deigns to allow me back in her presence, that is.
The morning is crisp, and I take in a lungful of fresh air as I walk to my car. I’m looking forward to seeing Grampie and Granny, but not so much the congestion of the city. Chattanooga is by no means on par with New York City or Chicago, but I’ve been living in a small town with only three traffic lightsin the whole municipal limits for a hot minute now. I’ve gotten used to raccoons as my neighbors and being woken up when they decide to have a party at my trash cans, rather than the traffic noises of I-75 or the loud music my neighbor liked to play until one o’clock in the morning.
A northern bobwhite calls out in its distinct two-whistle pattern. I pause at the side of my car and peer into the underbrush of the woods around my cabin. The small quail is easily camouflaged among the foliage. Without him whistling out his own name—bobwhite!—I’d never know the fowl was even there.
He calls again, but I can’t see him, so I go ahead and open the car door, set the lasagna and my purse on the passenger seat, and slide behind the wheel. I plug my phone in so that CarPlay will connect, then open the audiobook app and click the green triangle to start playing the epic fantasy I’m in the middle of.
The drive to Chattanooga is along a windy two-lane highway that hugs the mountains. Caution signs for rockslides are posted along the road as well as plenty of pullouts for slower vehicles or those wanting to rest and take in the breathtaking view of the Cherokee National Forest.
The scenery opens up along with the lanes as I descend into the valley. Before long, I see the city sprawl on the banks of the Tennessee River, Signal Mountain on one side as sentinel and Lookout Mountain on the other. The mountains are rich in Civil War history, one being an important communication spot of Union troops, while the other was the setting of a skirmish known as the Battle Above the Clouds. Now, however, they are both popular destinations for tourists and locals alike. Signal Mountain has a gorgeous vista of the Tennessee River Valley that excites hikers, while Lookout Mountain is known for its incline railroad, a 145-foot waterfall inside a limestone cave called Ruby Falls, and See Rock City, one ofthe only places in the United States where you can see seven states from one vantage point.
The narrator of the audiobook has a slight British accent, making me wonder if the fictional kingdom of Lilyra was inspired by that great island. Probably a far cry from the backwoods or even the big city of the Volunteer State. Although, with how often Lilyra is on the brink of war with the neighboring northern kingdoms, she could use an ally in a nation nicknamed for its eagerness to step forward in times of war.
