Her fingers tapped across the screen.
Clara: Hey. Just letting you know I won’t be at running club for the next week.
Send. Done.
The three dots popped up immediately, and her dang heart gave a little thump when his text came through.
Holden: Is everything okay?
Did he really need to ask that?
Clara: I’m not injured or sick, if that’s what you mean. Have a great week.
The three dots popped up again, then disappeared. A second later, his text came through.
Holden: You too, Clara. Call if you need anything.
She absolutely would not be doing that. She’d made herself vulnerable twice with him, and both times he’d basically run from her. Kissed her and run, that was.
She lifted her tea and moved to her acupuncture studio, where she turned on the music before setting up her diffuser. Lavender, bergamot, and ylang-ylang. The perfect essential oil blend to turn her morning around. The moment the scents hit the air, Clara’s nerves calmed.
Thiswas why she did what she did…to create peace and alignment. It was more powerful than a lot of people realized. A person’s nervous system could wreak such havoc on health.
A knock came at the door to the studio, and Clara opened it with a smile to see Helen on the other side. “Hi.”
Helen returned her smile. “Hi, Clara.”
“Come in.”
Clara stepped back and indicated the seat. “Please, sit. How are you today?”
“I’m okay.”
Not at all convincing. “I noticed on your form that this is your first time trying acupuncture?”
“Yeah. It’s supposed to be good for stress, right?”
“Greatfor stress. You didn’t write much else on your form though.”
Helen lifted a shoulder. “That’s all I’m really here for.”
Clara nodded slowly. “Okay. So what my clients usually do is—”
“Could I use your bathroom first?”
“Oh, um…sure. It’s just inside the house. I’ll take you through.”
Helen followed her into the living room and down the hall, where they stopped at the bathroom door. “Here you go. Would you like me to wait here?”
“It’s okay. I can make my way back.”
“Okay. See you back in the room.”
Clara returned to her studio. Luckily, Scarlett had left early that morning, something Clara only knew because her car was gone. It wouldn’t matter a whole lot if the two women bumped into each other, but Clara preferred to keep her clients separate from her home life during appointments.
She got the needles ready, then waited. When five minutes passed and Helen still wasn’t back, Clara frowned and looked at the door.
Should she check on her?
