Unknown
Thank you so much. I’m Scottie by the way.
My fingers go numb around my phone and my chest drops so hard it feels like gravity just doubled. Hearing that Scottie is the one staying in the apartment above my garage is a whole new feeling.
The woman who laughed into my neck in a hotel room in San Francisco as I tore the bright yellow blazer off her.
A woman I left in tangled sheets because I didn’t trust myself to stay.
A woman who stood in front of me yesterday morning and looked at me like I was nothing more than an inconvenient memory.
A woman I have not been able to get out of my head for a single fucking day since.
Nan clears her throat but I don’t look at her. If I look at her, she’ll see it—the shock. The way my pulse is suddenly everywhere.
Before I can write back or save her name in my contacts, my phone buzzes again.
Unknown
Also, is there anywhere good around town that’s open late for something to eat?
I turn my phone again toward Nan. “Are you telling her to ask me this?”
“No.” Nan covers her face with her hands and laughs. “You know I don’t carry that cell phone with me anywhere. I don’t need it when I remember numbers right here.” She taps a fingerto her temple as she stands from the barstool. “Let’s just add this to the list of all the times I’m right. Which is always.”
“I wouldn’t go that far.”
“Bring that girl some food and be a good landlord. They’re harder to find than good lumber,” she says, walking toward the exit. She pauses just before the doors and faces me. “I know you try to hide it, but I see you, Tucker. You have a habit of trying to keep to yourself. Try not to do that with her.”
I don’t get a chance to respond before she’s out the door.
I look from the closed door and back down to the phone in my hand, staring at her message.
Would it be so bad if I just brought her home some food?
Not because Nan pushed and not because it’s the polite thing to do. But because I know what it feels like to be dropped into a strange place and act like you’re fine when you’re not.
If I’m honest, it would give me an excuse to stop pretending I’m not already thinking about her. About the way I heard her laugh coming out of the old abandoned house.
It’s just food, I tell myself.
Nothing complicated.
But the truth in my thoughts settles in my gut. I don’t want this to be just about being a landlord. I want to seeher.
Me
I can bring you something on my way home. It’ll be late though…close to midnight.
Scottie
Are you serious? That sounds perfect. You’re a lifesaver. I’m swamped with work so I’ll be up for a while.
Me
How does a burger sound?
Scottie
