“And you kind of are. But that’s just you. So I’m not sure what’s going on to make you look all rosy and stuff, but you’re going to spill it now.” Tess leaned forward and folded her hands in front of her. “Pretty, please. Tell me.” She batted her eyelashes for good measure.
“It’s really nothing—”
“It’s a guy,” Tess announced. I flushed.
“Yep, it’s a guy. I can tell. Who is it? Stop being so damn coy, Im!” Tess pouted.
“I can be happy without it being about a guy, you know,” I said, flipping through the meaningless paperwork in front of me.
“Sure you can, butthatlook.” She pointed at my face. “That one right there is because of a man. And I want to know who he is.”
I shrugged. “Yeah, okay, so there’s a man,” I admitted, knowing that if I didn’t toss her a bone she’d never leave me alone.
Tess squealed. “Who is it?”
“Someone from my past. Someone I never thought I’d see again,” I told her.
“Oh, juicy! A second chance romance! Those are my favorite!” Tess clapped her hands together. “You’re being very stingy with the details,” she scolded.
“It’s new, Tess. I want to keep it to myself for a little while,” I said with a smile.
Tess grinned. “I get it. That’s fine. But once the bloom has faded, I want to know all about it.”
I thought about Yoss kissing me last night. About waking up beside him this morning.
I didn’t think the bloom would ever fade.
It had been growing stronger for a long, long time.
“Sure, Tess. When the bloom has faded.”
“Yoss! Are you here? I bought a couple of bags of Hershey’s Kisses, just for you.”
I never took lunch off the premises, but today I couldn’t make myself stay. I had tried calling the house a few times but no one answered. I didn’t really expect Yoss to pick up the phone, but I tried anyway.
I went by to see Dr. Howell, but he was dealing with a patient most of the morning.
I started to fill out the updated paperwork in Yoss’s file.
I never got very far.
Because I was antsy.
So around noon I told Jason I was going home for lunch and quickly made my escape before he could interrogate me over my deviation from norm.
I made a stop at the grocery store on my way and picked up a couple of sandwiches and a few bags of Yoss’s favorite candy. Hershey’s Kisses.
“Hello? You here?”
I dropped my keys and the grocery bag with the candy on the coffee table before walking into the kitchen. Yoss had obviously been cleaning. I had never seen the place so spotless.
The coffee cups from this morning had been washed and were on the drying rack. He had scrubbed down the counter tops and the stove was so shiny that it practically sparkled.
“Yoss?” I called out again. “I’m home for lunch. I brought you a sandwich.”
Silence.
Eerie quiet.
