If she could help it, she’d never leave her apartment again. Her thoughts flew to the last remaining task on the list. If she went through with it, she’d have to face Colt at the Fourth of July Festival. And she didn’t think she’d survive the encounter. In fact, she wasn’t sure how she’d endure the next two weeks if he decided to stay in town before catching his flight. Simply knowing he inhabited the same square mile made her heart ache.
Throwing back the covers, she swung her feet over the edge of the bed. Every muscle in her body groaned as though she’d run a marathon the day before. When people described a broken heart, they failed to mention how every fiber in your being disintegrated at the same time.
After setting the teakettle on the stove, Penny pulled a bundle of collard greens from the fridge. While she would surely never eat again, Chip shouldn’t have to suffer with her. She tore off a handful, still baffled Colt presumed she could leave her life behind for six months, and maybe even longer.
Sprinkling the shredded leaves on the floor, she knelt on the carpet, waiting for Chip to emerge from his enclosure. The day she’d found him huddled in the corner of an old steamer trunk her heart had finally started to heal after her father’s death.
The poor discarded pet, with his fearful eyes and chipped shell, became her family, providing a renewed sense of purpose. And caring for him had helped her recognize her own feelings of abandonment.
When Chip didn’t appear, Penny rustled the leafy greens between her fingers. “Rise and shine. It’s time for breakfast.”
After not garnering a response, she looked inside the enclosure, brushing aside the lush foliage of surrounding houseplants.
But Chip was nowhere to be seen.
Though uncommon, he sometimes fell asleep elsewhere in the apartment. But a slice of juicy watermelon would always entice him from his hiding place.
Penny arranged a few cubes on a plate before setting it on the floor. When he still didn’t surface after several minutes, panic gripped her.
A cold feeling of dread slipped down her spine as she turned toward the front door.
It hung ajar.
In her blind anguish the night before, she must have left it open.
Darting across the room, she halted at the top of the landing, peering down the dimly lit staircase. He couldn’t have gone far, could he?
Grief and guilt churned inside her stomach as she scrambled down the steps into the storage room. “Chip? Chip?” She couldn’t hide the terrified tremor in her voice, but she tried her best to remain outwardly calm. He had to be in here somewhere.
That’s when she noticed the brocade curtain separating the storage room from the main part of the shop had been tied back with the tasseled drapery cord.
No…She’d completely forgotten Bree volunteered to arrive early in order to receive a special delivery. A man from Sacramento had called yesterday and asked to drop off any unwanted items from his late grandfather’s estate before heading back to the city.
“Bree?” Rushing into the store, Penny scanned the cluttered hardwood floor for any sign of Chip.
“Yeah?” Her helpful employee poked her head above the large cardboard box clutched in her arms.
Penny froze, watching in horror as Bree strolled through the front entrance, which she’d propped open with an old-fashioned milk can. “H-how long has the door been open?”
“I don’t know. Twenty or thirty minutes, maybe?” Bree grunted as she slid the heavy box onto the table where she’d already stacked several others. “You know, I thought the guy would help me unload everything. But he simply dumped it on the sidewalk and took off. Can you believe it?”
Suddenly light-headed, Penny pressed a palm to her forehead.
“Are you okay?” Bree squinted in concern. “You look pale. And your eyes are red and puffy.”
“Close the door, please.” Penny leaned against the checkout counter, trying to steady her ragged breaths. She needed to get her emotions under control. Even with the door wide open, and the fact that tortoises could move quicker than most people thought, the odds were in her favor that Chip was still in the store somewhere.
After casting a worried glance over her shoulder, Bree dragged the milk can out of the way and swung the door shut. The bell twinkled cheerfully as though Penny’s world wasn’t crashing down around her. “What’s going on?” Bree’s tone carried an uncertain waver. “There are still a few boxes outside. Should I get them?”
“No.” With her fingertips resting against her temple, Penny shook her head. “I need your help with something.”
“Anything,” Bree said quickly.
“We need to find Chip. If we don’t…” Her voice cracked.
She couldn’t even think about the alternative.
He was all she had left.
