“Hey,” I say.
She steps forward and sets the drink carrier down on the table in front of me. “Did you get past that boring chapter yet?” she asks.
I nod. “Yeah, just about.”
“Good.”
She spins back around, peeling her coat off as she moves toward the door. I watch from the couch, waiting for when she sees the boxes.
She spots them and pauses mid-stride.
“Your dad stopped by,” I say, gesturing at them.
“Oh, yeah?”
“He said you needed those for some work thing.”
Melanie looks at me, her smile brief and strategic. “Right.” She waves a hand. “Deb wanted me to sign some paperbacks and send them to her before January. Some reader convention or whatever.”
She lied to me.
“Cool,” I say.
Melanie hangs up her coat. “So, I was thinking Thai for dinner. I passed by that new takeout place on the corner and got a mad craving,” she says. “Are you okay?”
I look up, not even realizing how hard I was staring at the floor. “Yeah,” I say. “Thai sounds good.”
She lied to me.
She smiles and walks off down the hall toward the bathroom.
She’s never lied to like this me before.
I sit forward as my gut ties into a million knots.
So, this is what that feels like.
Twenty-Five
Melanie
“And you’ll be living alone?” Sylvia asks, her voice light and chirpy through the phone.
“Yes, but I’m looking for a two-bedroom,” I answer as I pace back and forth through my kitchen. I peek behind me into my empty living room, lamenting the messy desk in the corner. “I work from home, so I need office space. Not working with much of it at the moment...”
“Oh, absolutely!” She laughs. “I know exactly what you mean — and I have just the short list of places. When will you be free to come and check out a few of them in person?”
“Oh, not until January,” I say, pumping her brakes. “After the holidays. I won’t be in the position to leave town until then.”
“You betcha. I’ll make a note to give you a nudge after the first. Until then, I’ll send you over the listings so you can take a virtual look. There are some beautiful places on the upper west side that I think you will adore!”
“Thanks, Sylvia. I’m looking forward to it.”
“So am I! You know, I’ve got to tell you, I’ve worked with some high-profile clients before, but when I saw your name on my docket, I had myself a little fan-girl moment. I just love your books!”
My cheeks brighten as I lean against the counter. “Thank you,” I say, my eyes straying upward toward the ribbons hanging from a magnet. “I honestly never tire of hearing that.”
Sylvia laughs. “Well, I think that’s all I needed from you today, but if you have any questions for me...”
I gently run my fingers through the ribbons, my thoughts drifting back to him as I count them. Why hasn’t he messaged me back? Did I say something wrong?
I turn the ribbons over in my palm. First month red. Second month gold...
“Third month green,” I mutter aloud.
“What was that, hun?”
I lower my hand. “Uh... no. Nothing. I have no questions, Sylvia. It all sounds great.”
“Excellent! I’ll be in touch.”
“Thanks again.”
I hang up and stare at the ribbons for a little longer.
They’re the same colors from Robbie’s tattoo. Or... I think are they? I can’t say for sure. I haven’t taken the closest look at them, truthfully. I get distracted by... well, the rest of him when he’s naked. Maybe I’m remembering them wrong.
Either way, it’s a coincidence.
The secret admirer is not Robbie. It can’t be. He openly mocked the secret admirer. He questioned him and made fun of it. But if he were the secret admirer, isn’t that exactly what Robbie would do?
I lean against the counter again, thoughts swirling in my head as I swipe my phone on again. I open the message thread between me and him, my secret admirer.
There’s only one way to know for sure.
Hey, I think we should finally meet. Tonight?
I hit send.
Twenty-Six
Melanie
6 PM. Moira’s Cafe.
The evening crowd at Moira’s differs from the Sunday brunch crowd. They’re younger, for starters, and hipper, making me feel uncomfortably old for the first time in a good while. But it’s the perfect place to meet him for the first time.
Assuming this will be the first time.
6 PM. Moira’s Cafe.
I read his response again. He sent it a few minutes after I asked to finally meet and my mind has been buzzing ever since.
I check the time. 5:59. Sixty seconds to go before I know for sure. If he shows up at all, that is.
Are you really Robbie?
Or are you someone new?
If he doesn’t show, then I’ll know it’s him. Then again, that could also mean they stood me up and I’ll be right back at square one. But if he wasn’t going to show, then why reply to my invitation at all?
But if it is Robbie...
I don’t even know how I’ll react to that yet.
I exhale hard. My breath turns white against the cool winter air. I tap my toes on the sidewalk as I scan the faces passing by. I check the time again.
6:01.
He’s not coming.
“Hey, Ms. Rose.”
I look up and smile at the familiar face in front of me. “Hey, Roger,” I greet. “You working the late shift tonight?”
“Uh...” He returns a pleasant smile above a fashionable black jacket with a blue scarf wrapped around his neck. “No, I’m meeting someone, actually.”
“Nice. Me, too.”
I check my phone again, acting on a social instinct to look busy.
Roger doesn’t move.
I peek up again. His smirk remains, lighting up his handsome face, but he awkwardly presses his lips together.
My chest flutters.
No way.
Roger chuckles softly as he pulls an old flip phone from his pocket. He taps out a text and hits send, making my phone vibrate in my palm.
Hello, beautiful.
My jaw drops, silently stunned.
It was him?
Roger puts
