She shakes her hand, insisting I take it. It pains me that I have to let it go as she tucks me into bed. Did you hear me? This woman tucked me into bed after I scared the shit out of her.
“Thank you,” I say as she shuts the light off.
She lingers in the doorway. “Flowerbomb.”
I sit up on myforearms. “What?”
“Mysmell,”she says, making air quotes. “It’s called Flowerbomb, my favorite perfume by Victor and Rolf.”
“I’ll have to remember that,” I say coyly, knowing I’ll never forget.
“Goodnight.”
She closes the door behind her, and just like that, it’s one of the best and worst nights of my life.
playing house
DUKE
Over the next few weeks,Roxanne and I fall into a rhythm neither of us dares to name. It’s like playing house with someone who causes my stomach to knot every time she enters a room. She says goodnight like it’s a habit now, voice soft through the hallway. Some nights, I hear the faint click of my door handle as she checks on me when she thinks I’ve already fallen asleep.
In the mornings, when she doesn’t make it back to the lodge, I find her asleep, curled in the oversized chair. Sometimes she’s slumped over the desk, notebook slipped from her lap, pen still in her hand like she dozed off mid-thought.
I leave the coffee nearby, but now I’m careful not to wake her. For some reason, cosmic forces which I cannot explain, have propelled me to start drawing suns and happy faces on notes I leave with her coffee. I’m not sure what she does with them, but I never find them in the trash either, so there’s that.
Despite our adorable little routine, she still calls me “Mr. Faraday.” Not sure what I feel ready for with a woman who can’t bring herself to use my first name, but I like smelling herperfume in the library. I like hearing other footsteps in the house at night instead of the familiar sounds of the ice maker and thermostat.
We both keep ourselves busy throughout the day. I hit my chores and my repair list hard while she conducts more interviews. She has even started to follow along with Rusty on evening chores, which I think he appreciates. She’s only been here a month, and I’m already used to her.
One night, I make a decision that will set us down a different dusty road. After I try and fail to sleep, I come downstairs for water and find her sleeping in the library again. Her head is tucked against the arm of the chair, her breathing is soft and slow.
“I’ve had just about enough of this,” I whisper.
She barely stirs when I slide one arm beneath her knees and the other behind her back. I lift her, and she’s light and warm against my chest.
I carry her upstairs to one of the guest rooms down the hall from me. She doesn’t wake even as I tuck the blanket over her shoulders and brush a strand of hair off her cheek. I sit on the bed next to her, taking in the sight of her cuddled up under the covers in my house. She helped me that night when I couldn’t breathe. She stayed when I thought she’d run.
A grunt from Jameson interrupts my thoughts.
“What do you want, stinky?” I ask.
Jameson wastes no time jumping up on the bed and curling up near Roxanne.
“Hey, get down. Leave her alone,” I whisper.
When Roxanne turns on her side, Jameson doubles down and stretches out.
“Traitor,” I say as I get up and close the door.
I linger a moment longer, watching them both sleep. Figures that my dog gets the girlfirst.
I don’t even waitfor the sun to filter in through my window. I’m up with new energy as I head downstairs to start the coffee. I’m savoring the fact that Roxanne is still upstairs, but my dreamy state is interrupted when the familiar voices of Topper and Rusty come into the house.
“I sure hope that boy is not messing around with—” Rusty stops when he enters the kitchen and sees me sipping the warm brew I just made.
“Good morning,” I say, taking a seat on my barstool. “You were saying?”
“Good morning, dear,” Topper says. He kisses me on the cheek just to piss me off and pours coffee for him and Rusty. “Rusty and I noticed that Roxanne’s golf cart never leaves the house. She’s usually still in the library in the morning, but we didn’t see her there when we walked in.”
