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While I’m showering, I can’t help but wonder what he’s going to do for me for dinner today. And that’s crazy. I can’t be entertaining these sorts of thoughts.
It's mid-afternoon and I’m lying on the couch with a fire going. Leaves are rapidly descending from their trees in the back yard. And this room would look absolutely incredible with a soaring Christmas tree. A real one. Filling the house with the scent of fir. I love that smell.
I’ve been enjoying my book, but I’ve been frequently assaulted with random thoughts or images to do with Derek, with a future. A future here in this house. One that has kids. That giant Christmas tree. Snowman-building. And me making dinner while watching him out back raking leaves into a giant pile and jumping into it with kids. And a dog, maybe. Not a purebred from a breeder, either. A rescue dog who gets his forever home with us.
Yeah, I’ve been crafting pie-in-the-sky fantasies today. And I feel a little stupid for it.
And just like in the first book in the series I read, the main male character morphs into Derek in my mind during the sex scenes. I’ve put the book down three times already when that’s happened, but found myself picking it back up a few minutes later.
My phone rings and I sit up, feeling so absolutely lazy it’s not even funny. Alannah’s calling me. I called her first thing this morning but got her voicemail so texted to say,
All is okay here, just wanted to say Hi. Call when you’ve got time.
I did that so she wouldn’t worry. She’s most likely quite worried about me. And I’m not exactly okay. But I am.
“Hi you,” I answer.
“Hey,” she says.
“Everything good with you?”
“Everything good with you?” She answers my question with the same question. But her voice sounds funny.
“I mean… yeah. I guess. It’s weird. We were gonna go on a honeymoon but with that dirty laundry blog thing, it got canceled. Not that I wanted to go, of course, and I don’t even know where he was planning to take me. We saw my parents that same day and that was beyond weird. Derek took charge and tried to put their minds at ease, telling them he’s handling the gossip and not to let it get to them. Talking about inviting them to the Swiss Alps for a do-over wedding and having them come here for a weekend.”
“God,” she mutters.
“Yeah. It was bizarre. Then yesterday we had to go to his parents’, and I spent the morning being grilled, lambasted, and raked over hot coals by their media monster. A judgy woman who tried her hardest to trip me up in an effort to make sure I’m ready for any media attention. It was bizarre. And a photoshoot for any other media releases that go out. I’m afraid to look at social media. Is there still buzz about me?”
She makes a funny sound.
And the line is dead-quiet for a long minute, so I’m thinking I’ve lost her. I look at the screen to make sure we’re still on a call, then call out, “Hello?”
“I’m here,” she says. “So, you’re okay?”
“Yeah, I mean, I’m not but I am. I don’t know. This whole thing is crazy. Like… really crazy.”
“Beyond crazy,” she agrees.
“Are you okay? That was pretty stressful for you on Monday at City Hall, I’m sure. I’m trying to get him to leave Craig alone. He… I don’t know if you know but he was planning to make Craig a dirty cop, force him onto their payroll. God knows how many other cops they’ve got, but I think I’ve talked him out of it.”
She makes that funny sound again. Is that a sarcastic, throaty scoffing noise?
“Is Craig okay? Have you talked to him? I talked to him for a minute later that night, and he was trying to let me off the hook. He’s such a good guy. And I don’t know if I’m even supposed to talk about it. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you to keep everything I say about Derek between us.”
“Oh no, you don’t have to remind me of that. Though if I forgot, I’m sure he’d remind me again. In a dark alley, probably.”
She sounds absolutely pissed.
“I’m okay, Alannah.”
“None of this is okay, Chloe. Don’t go getting Stockholm Syndrome here, okay?”
I flinch. “I’m not. Definitely not.” My face is suddenly burning hot. “I just… I wanted to make sure you’re okay. Because that was beyond amped the other day.”
“I am. No thanks to the heart attack I nearly had yesterday after work when he made it clear that bad things will happen to me if I intervene again.”
“What?”
