“True.” Sebastian nodded to himself. “Anyway, we were going to go ice skating later.”
Hmm, that was something I could do with Zoe. We could hold hands as we skated around the rink and then warm up with hot chocolate.
Or…
When I pictured another option for a snowy day, I changed my mind. I glanced outside the window and checked the weather on my phone. Five inches of snow had fallen overnight, leaving the tree branches and bushes covered in white. The sky was a bright blue with few clouds. It would be a mild sunny day until night when more snow was expected. It would be good to get outside while we could.
“Do we have any sleds here?” I asked Sebastian.
He drummed his fingers on the table. “I think I saw a blow-up tube in the basement.”
“You sure that wasn’t your doll?” I teased.
“Ha,” he countered in a flat tone. “Funny.” He scooped another forkful of omelet into his mouth. After he swallowed, he said, “So that’s your plan? Sledding?”
“Yup.” I nodded to myself, proud of part A of the plan. If Zoe was up for it, sharing the sled would be the perfect opportunity to get what I wanted—finding a way to get her back in my arms again as soon as possible.
Sebastian furrowed his brows. “Have you ever gone sledding before?”
“Nope.”
He placed his hand on his forehead. “That’s so you, Lucas. Jumping in without looking.”
I rolled on the balls of my feet. “How hard can it be?”
He blinked at me. “Let me give you some pointers, so you don’t crash headfirst into a tree.”
Zoe
While I ate a bagel at my kitchen counter, I fretted over the situation with the demon. It also gave me something other to do than think about spending the day with Lucas. Nerves twined with excitement in a sensual tango.
It took all my patience to wait until a decent hour to call the Network.
“Everything is fine here,” Pandora replied. “We have the demon locked up. He isn’t talking yet, but we’re working on it.”
“What about Gianna?”
“Zoe,” Pandora replied in a motherly tone. “We have it covered. Now go and relax. Get a massage or something.”
A stranger rubbing me? I squirmed at the image. “Okay, call me if you need me.”
After I ended the call, I stared at myself in the mirror. Lucas and I were supposed to go out today, and I didn’t have a clue what to wear. I rarely paid much attention to my clothes and chose to wear comfortable clothes I could move in. That meant skinny jeans, leggings, or shorts as long as they had pockets. I opened my closet. Too bad I didn’t have any cute dresses like those vintage style ones that Gianna often wore.
Then again, Gianna was a statuesque siren. I was five feet on a good day. I shouldn’t expect to pull off any outfit that she wore, ever.
I fingered through the items in my closet and thought screw it. I settled on a pair of skinny black jeans and a flowing emerald long-sleeve shirt that brought out the green in my eyes. I brushed my hair and fluffed it up with a spritz of hair spray, something I rarely bothered with. The effect with a little more volume gave it a wilder look, unlike typical Zoe.
If there was ever a day I could abandon responsibilities, it was one spent with Lucas. I pulled out my makeup bag and applied a bit to bring out my eyes and lips. The slightly sexier version of myself that looked back at me from the mirror smiled.
Once pleased with my appearance, I grabbed my phone case that served as a wallet as well as my keys and headed out to my car. Although Lucas offered to drive, I declined. If I wanted to bail at some point, I didn’t want to be trapped without my transportation. Since I couldn’t deny the thrill of anticipation on spending time with Lucas today, it wasn’t likely to happen. In fact, I’d woken up several times the night before, fantasizing about the day ahead. That meant the need to drive fell squarely on the shoulders of me being a control freak.
I left my house and trod on the newly shoveled path from my front door over to my car. One of my roommates must have gotten up early. We didn’t see each other much as we all worked different schedules, and I spent more time working or at my office at the Network than at home. If I didn’t return home for a week would anyone notice? Doubt it. We didn’t have that same kind of closeness that Lucas, Diego, and Sebastian shared. A part of me envied that. Then again, I’d never pursued a friendship with any of them and kept to myself.
As I drove over to their house, I navigated a tad slower than usual as the streets might be slippery from the wet snow and sand. Still, I arrived fifteen minutes early. Ugh, I didn’t want to seem too eager about our time together. Being prompt was something I strove to do. I couldn’t stand it when people were late. It was disrespectful. But far too often my avoidance to be late meant I arrived too early. Oh well, I’d kill time in my car scrolling on my phone.
I glanced at the purple house. Wait, Nova lived here. If she was home, I could visit her briefly and catch up about last night.
Hey Nova. Are you home?
