Slowly, she turned to face me. "How about the hot water?"
My breath caught.Oh, no.
Like a total coward, I wanted to lie, to tell Maisie there was plenty. But what good wouldthatdo? Still, I tried to be optimistic. "There might besomeleft." With growing dread, I glanced up the stairs, recalling that the hot water tank wasn't the only thing I'd drained.
That stupid bubble bath.
Or, rather, stupid me.I should've been more careful.
With renewed dread, I turned back to Maisie. "I was in the tub a while, so… maybe the tank is hot again?" I offered a weak smile, which she didn't return.
Obviously, I'd ruined her night.
And now, I felt desperate to fix it. "Maybe I could heat up some water on the stove?"
She gave me a look as if to say,You've got to be kidding.But then, polite as always, she said with a tight smile, "That's alright. I'll just grab a snack while I wait."
It wasn't alright.I could tell. Probably, she was wondering if I had gobbled up all of her snacks.
Lamely, I asked, "You sure?"
"Positive. Just forget it, okay?"
As if I could.
When Maisie disappeared into the kitchen, I stood motionless for a long moment, feeling deflated and useless.
I should've left the wine. I should've watched the water. I should've tried harder from the start.
She'd taken me in. She'd loaned me a bike. She'd even tried to make conversation a time or two. But I'd been so lost in my own problems that I had barely met her halfway.
From that moment on, I vowed to make it up to her, starting now – because the way it looked, she could really use a friend.
And just maybe, that friend was me.
21
The Curious Case of Tessa Sinclair
Ryder
From my fourth-floor balcony, I had a perfect view of Main Street.But did Main Street have a perfect view of me?
Hell no.
And why?
Because I was no dumbass, that's why.
The time was just past ten – pre-lunch, post-coffee, around the same time I'd run into Tessa Sinclair yesterday.
Or should I say, she had run into me–which, just for the record, wasn't my fault, no matter what she and the bike might say.
The morning was cool with nearly no breeze, and I'd been out on the balcony for almost an hour now, doing business on my tablet while scanning the street.
So far, I'd seen maybe a million bikes, a hundred horses, and enough tourists to fill Times Square.
An exaggeration?
