AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The air is still and so silent, filled only with the crackle of the fire and my heavy sigh. She may not come back, or she may only come back to get her stuff. How could anyone blame her? She came here for a peaceful getaway and instead got her car window smashed, ran into a thief in the woods, then found out I followed her.
After all this time, I thought I understood loneliness, the creeping hell of it, but that’s something I’d become accustomed to. Now, the thought that she may not want to see me again, that I’ll return to a solitary life is horrible.
All I want to do is go back to my porch. It’s a struggle not to spend every second there watching for her to pull into the driveway. That’s another reason I need to keep things platonic between us. Love and obsession walk a thin line inside me. When I love something, I’ll let it take over my life. I found that out when I picked up a pencil to sketch. This is just the first time that feeling has been directed toward a person.
I can’t let another minute go by without reaching out to her. Terrified she won’t reply, I send a text.
Me
I miss you. I hope you’re having a great time.
I can see that she reads it instantly, but no little dots appear to show she’s going to acknowledge it. Sitting back, I tilt my headto watch the stars appear a handful at a time from behind the moving clouds.
How can the night feel so empty and heavy at the same time?
CHAPTER 20
CALLIOPE
I’ve pickedup my phone to text Arlow back three different times and set it back down without doing it. He misses me. Part of me was sure he wouldn’t be giving me a second thought by now. That he would’ve moved on to something else that caught his eye and inspired him. Artists are fickle and unpredictable, that’s what Helen warned me.
He respected my need for space and hasn’t contacted me until today. I want to reply but my head is spinning with so much I want to say and probably shouldn’t.
Helen’s advice to get away was sound, and as the days have passed, I haven’t missed him any less, but I’ve had time to think and be real with myself. Distance has given me perspective. Maybe I am falling for him, or maybe two years of isolation and loneliness led me to get close to someone too quickly. The same could be true for him and his reclusive lifestyle. He may be attracted to me and enjoy being around me, but he doesn’t want anything more. He’s important to me and I don’t want to lose him, but something needs to change.
My plan when I moved was to get out more and meet people, find new hobbies. And I did. But once we met, a lot of that took a backseat to being with him. It’s time to focus on myself again.I need to spend less time with him. He can be an important part of my life, a close friend, without being the center of it. It’s funny, I’ve never been the type to latch onto a man before. I value my independence too much. There’s just something about him.
We’re going to have a talk about the stalking because I won’t forgive that twice.
“Earth to Calli.”
My head jerks up to see everyone’s eyes on me. The sounds and smells of the roadside diner thrust their way back into my awareness. “Sorry, what?”
Freya tilts her head, scrutinizing me. “Are you sure you’re up to driving tonight? You look like you’re zoning out pretty hard.”
We’re all exhausted after weeks on the road but I’m not sleepy, just distracted by a certain beekeeper. “I’m fine. What did I miss?” We’re only about five hours from my house so the plan is for everyone to crash with me tonight since it’ll be past two a.m. by the time we get there, then we all have to say goodbye tomorrow.
“Nothing, but there’s a snowstorm hitting northern Michigan so we’re going to have to stop somewhere for another night after we leave your place anyway. If you want to wait and drive back tomorrow, we can grab a room here.”
“I’m not sleepy. I was reading a text.” An idea strikes me. “Why don’t you spend tomorrow night at my place too? We can all sleep in my cabin if you don’t mind some pallets on the floor, and it won’t be too cold if you decide to sleep in the RV.”
“Are you sure?” Leo asks.
“Of course. We can have one more night to hang out. Build a fire, grill out, it’ll be fun.” We’ve had such a great time and as eager as I am to get home, I hate to see them all go.
“Sounds great,” Cal exclaims, and the others agree. While everyone grabs a coffee for the road, I pick my phone back up and reply to Arlow.
Me
It’s been a great time. Be home by tomorrow. See you soon.
Cal volunteers to drive for a few hours so I hand over my keys and happily settle into the passenger seat while Helen rides in the back. Once we pull out onto the road to follow the RV, I call Silver.
“You’d better not say you still aren’t coming home, bitch,” she answers, without a hello.
“We’re on our way now, but it’ll be the middle of the night before we get there. My friends are going to stay tomorrow night too. Do you want to come over and meet them? We’re going to cook out, have some drinks and a bonfire.”
“Hell yeah. Have you talked to Arlow?”
