I don’t know what to say, so I end up not saying anything.
“Have you decided how long you’ll be staying in town?” He places his arm along the back of the sofa and uses the leverage to scoot a little closer to me. My insides are going haywire, and not just because I know this may be the lead-up to me kicking him out.
“Not really.” There’s a slight tremble in my voice.
“I only have one more day.” He’s close enough now to use the tips of his fingers to graze my temple and brush my hair behind my ear. The touch is intimate and very convincing.
My mouth goes dry. Even though I’m assuming this is part of his ruse, I still find myself wanting to lean into his touch. Instead, I force myself to tilt my head back to create a little distance between us. “Really? Maybe we should talk about my sister’s case then.”
“It’s already pretty late.” He makes a show of looking out the window and into the evening sky. “I’d like to get to knowyoua little better.”
“You could have gotten to know me a little better over the past two hours,” I reply, dismissing his clumsy advance.
“You could have asked about your sister then too.”
Ouch.I know he doesn’t mean that, but the comment still stings because most of the time I’ve spent with Boone has had nothing to do with Hayzel. “I… I didn’t want to bug you,” I stammer.
“I told you that I will look into her case,” he says, but it sounds more like a concession than an actual offer. “I thought we were getting along well.”
“Hey!” I blurt out and back pedal off the couch when Boone lays his hand pretty high on my thigh. “You’re right. It’s getting late. I think you should probably go.”
The look on his face is at total odds with his behavior. His lips are pressed into a tight line, which could come off as angry, but his eyes are filled with what I can only call concern. There’s a short pause, and I open my mouth to ask him to leave again, but he cuts me off with a chuckle that is both condescending and cocky. “I think I read your desperation wrong.” He rises from the couch and walks straight for me.
Instinct has me wanting to stand my ground. I want to get some kind of confirmation that this is still part of the show, but my insecurities have me stepping back to get out of his way, making it so he just brushes past me in a dismissive manner.
“A word of advice, Harlyn. Move on. What happened to your sister is tragic, but seeing the boogeyman in everyone and everything isn’t going to help you. Stop trying to be an armchair detective and let the police handle her case.”
“I thought I was. I just didn’t realizeyourhelp came with strings attached.”
“You invited me over to your house, cooked me dinner, and accepted my offer to breakfast, and now you want to pretend I’m the one who’s out of line for touching your leg?” he scoffs.
“Heaven forbid I should be considerate. Next time I’ll know that comes off as easy to a guy like you.”
Boone’s back is to me, but I still see him shake his head slowly. I think he might say something else, but after a long pause, he just strides toward the counter and snatches up his keys I placed there, then he slams the door on his way out.
I don’t waste anytime following after him and twisting the deadbolt into place. Even though I know that was a fake fight, I still feel raw. When I hear his car speed away, a different sense of dread fills me.
I have to force myself to leave the entryway and head back into the living room. Why didn’t I ask him how he was going to get back in and when? My hand shakes when I pick up the remote and turn the television off. When the glow from the screen disappears, I walk hastily over to the lamp and flip it on, only to realize it makes it harder to see outside and, in turn, easier for someone to see in.
Mounting panic has me fumbling for the phone I left behind on the couch. I want to call Boone and ask him to come back, but I can’t, which leaves me floundering for my next move.
Act normal. Boone’s instructions replay in my head. I exhale slowly and force myself to sit on the couch. The space feels so much larger now that he’s gone. Heart in my throat, I send Livy another text because it seems like the normal thing to do.
Me: Men are dumb.
That sums up my feelings as best as possible, considering I can’t give a long-winded explanation. I wait for several minutes for a reply, but my message goes ignored. I think about calling Parker again, but it feels pointless since I can’t risk the conversation being overheard. I have to trust that if something were wrong with her, I would know by now.
A heavy thud on the wall behind my head makes me jump and spin around. With my heart pounding, it takes me precious seconds to realize it came from the shared wall between the condos. Strangely enough, it’s the first time I’ve heard a peep from the other unit. My shoulders fall as the reminder that I’m not completely alone sinks in. I try to remember if there was a car in the driveway or if the door was open, but I was far too distracted to notice.
I strain to hear any other sounds. I think I hear the water turn on at some point or a toilet flush, but I can’t be certain it isn’t mechanical in nature. Thankfully, it does the trick of giving my mind something else to focus on, and when I turn back around, the overbearing sense of doom has lessened.
Over the next hour, I remind myself several times that Boone cleared the condo. Unfortunately, it doesn’t ease my nerves enough to let me go upstairs where I would be trapped if someone did make it into the house, but I do find myself cozying into the couch with a blanket as my eyelids grow heavy the later it gets.
I must have fallen asleep at some point, because I wake up with a start when my phone vibrates under my side. Before my eyes are even clear, I’m digging it out and hitting the green icon without even knowing who’s calling.
“Hello?” Livy’s voice is clear but seems a little shaky.
“Hey.” I sit up, surprised she actually called.
