Page 26 of Night and Day
She pursed her lips, looking up at him apologetically through a fringe of dark lashes. He wondered if they were golden brown under the mascara, just like her eyebrows. “I don’t have any other clothes.”
Izzy ran his hand through his hair, scratching the back of his neck. “We should have gone shopping earlier to get you some clothes. Nothing’s open at this hour. I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s fine. I wasn’t expecting to get a new wardrobe tonight. I’m just thrilled I don’t have to sleep in the women’s shelter, or in jail.”
Izzy’s breath trapped in his windpipe. “Are you serious?”
“Yeah, that’s what the receptionist told me at the police station. That’s why I called you. I don’t know anyone else in New Zealand. Not that I really know you, either, but...”
Her face contorted in apology, fingers rubbing her bare arms as she hugged herself against the cold. Izzy’s heart climbed up his throat. “Wait here. I might have something in the car.”
He ran back and searched the boot for anything useful. A hoodie! Perfect. It’d be several sizes too big, but maybe that was an advantage. In a spare gym bag, he also located a pair of clean socks and added those to his offerings.
The grateful look on Mia’s face as it emerged from the neckline of the hoodie warmed him like a hug. The hoodie reached her mid-thigh, completely covering the tiny shorts he’d enjoyed earlier. He’d tried hard not to look at her that way, but he was only human, and this woman had the most tempting bottom he’d ever seen.
Mia let out an uneven sigh, slipping her arms in the sleeves and resuming the tight hug of her middle. She seemed to spend most of the time with her arms wrapped around herself in a tight little package – one he longed to unwrap. He’d unwind those arms and kiss her senseless, make her every muscle relax... Nope. She had a boyfriend. She also had a home country on the other side of the planet and he needed to pull his mind out of the gutter.
Izzy took out his phone and turned on the flashlight, leading the way up the hill. With every step, he doubted the idea a little more. Why had he brought her here? This was where he came to listen to music and wait for those elusive film ideas that might turn into something. There was nothing to see here, in the pitch dark, other than the stars. Although... Izzy looked up, past the black treetops at the sky. A layer of clouds had gathered, leaving only a patch of starry sky peeking through. As they climbed higher, he felt the wind picking up, pushing against their backs. This was the worst introduction to New Zealand he could possibly have thought of.
“Everything smells so different,” Mia said, her voice full of wonder. “Like I’m eyes closed inside a bouquet of flowers. It’s so fresh, but not cold.”
Izzy’s shoulders dropped and he let out a sigh, guiding her to the top of the hill overlooking farmland, which in the dark looked like a big, open plain. Izzy spread out the picnic blanket and they sat down. He wiggled the two pairs of studio headphones out of his bag, handing the slightly better ones to Mia. “Ready?”
“So, we just lie down and listen to music?” She sat with her knees inside the hoodie and the hood drawn over her head, her nervous laughter almost disappearing inside the pile of cotton.
Izzy browsed his phone for the right playlist, wondering if she’d like any of the songs. He felt his confidence waning. “We don’t have to, if you’re too cold.”
“No, it’s fine. I want to try.” She shifted inside the hoodie. “My legs will get cold, but I’ll just do it for a little while and then I can warm up again like this.” She hugged herself tighter, turning into a dark lump someone could have mistaken for a rock. Izzy imagined hugging her small body against himself to keep her warm. His arms twitched at that thought and he focused on his phone, his thumb hovering above the play button for so long the screensaver appeared, feeding up dismissed notifications. The top one was a text message from Mac:
Barbecue at ours on Sunday lunchtime! We’re all looking forward to meeting your girlfriend. Mum won’t stop talking about it, but I promise we’ll all behave :)
Izzy bristled. Sunday? He’d have to get out of that. Even if Mia agreed to play the part, Sunday was too soon. But then again, if he wanted this to work out, he had to ask her. It was getting colder, the wind raising the hairs on his skin. “Mia?” He asked, his voice rough, throat tight.
“Yeah?”
“I have something to ask you. And I know it will make me sound like a dick since I just told you I don’t expect anything from you. I don’t! I mean it. But...”
“What? It’s okay, I’d love to do something for you, if I can.”
The earnest hope in her voice gave Izzy chills. Or maybe it was the wind, now pushing at their faces like it couldn’t decide which way to blow.
“The thing is, I’ve been kind of focused on work and these creative projects, filmmaking mostly, so I haven’t had much of a social life or ... you know.” His words hung in the darkness, thick and regretful.
Mia leaned closer, her soft voice rising just above the sound of wind, matching his sombre tone. “I heard your family talking about you. I mean the intervention. Sorry, I tried not to listen, and should have blocked my ears, but I... didn’t.”
He caught the faint light of his phone screen reflecting off her eyes. There was remorse, but no judgment.
Izzy grimaced, his mind desperately scrambling the worst parts of that conversation. What had she heard? What did she think of him? He rubbed his temples, tucking his fingers into his hair. Too much hair. Too much beard. He recalled her expression when she’d first laid eyes on him. That’s what she’d seen – an absolute caveman with no social skills or social life, an impression that his ever-so-helpful family had promptly confirmed. God dammit. For the first time in five years a woman entered his life, albeit a temporary visitor, and the cards were thoroughly stacked against him.
“It’s okay,” he said quietly. “I’m not going to pretend I’m something that I’m not. But I have my reasons, you know ... reasons I prefer my life the way it is. It works for me. I have goals, these nearly impossible ideas I want to see through and I’m willing to sacrifice other stuff to get there. Maybe I’m wasting my life—”
“No!” Mia’s sleeve landed on his arm and her hand squeezed him through the fabric. “Please don’t think I’m judging your life or anything you do. Your family sounded like they really care about you, but sometimes people don’t understand. They look at their own lives and think what works for them must work for everyone else. It probably comes from a good place, but it’s misguided.”
Her words sent a bucket of warmth down his gut, relaxing his shoulders. He held still, hoping she wouldn’t break contact. “You’re right. They mean well and I hate seeing their worry... I feel like I just want to buy some time, you know? Put up a front to show them I’m okay and carry on, finish this film project. And once I’m there, I’ll build up my life again, start going out and meeting people. Get a girlfriend...” Her hand slipped off his arm and he wished he could take back the words.
But her voice brought him back, soft and warm. “I get it. Sometimes you need to do things on your own schedule. It sucks when people think they know better and make you feel like you’re failing. Mikko thought I should have said yes to this business proposal. It’s a no-brainer, on paper, but I couldn’t commit. I told him I needed time and he agreed that I could do this trip first, but I felt like he never really understood.”
“How long have you guys been together?” Izzy asked.
