5. 5
5
LYLA
W ell, the morning is off to a rough start. I can’t believe that Parker is my new coworker and that I have to listen to him boss me around every day. It’s not ideal, but I’ll be sweet and charming, and I’m sure I can get on his good side eventually. He agreed to give me a chance, so it’s a start. I also know that Dennis won’t let him get away with treating me badly and that gives me some comfort.
Dennis re-enters the store and looks sheepishly between his son and I.
“Well, I showed Lyla everything she needs to know and she’s a natural so far. I’m going to head out and go for a hike with Lucy to give Peyton a bit of a break. The store was busy this weekend so she’s exhausted and running around with a six year old is probably the last thing she wants to do today.”
He chuckles at that and runs his hands through his beard. He clears his throat and points directly at Parker.
“You play nice. And Lyla, you let me know if he’s anything less than pleasant to you.”
Parker sighs.
“I’m not that bad, you know. I’m perfectly capable of being nice to her. ”
“Being capable and being willing are very different things, son.”
Dennis turns on his foot and waltzes out of the shop, throwing a wave over his shoulder on the way out.
I snort and turn to look at Parker. His expression is a mix of disbelief and humor. He catches me looking at him and quickly adjusts his face to portray indifference.
“Alright, let’s get to work.”
The next few hours are spent cleaning, organizing, dealing with customers, and staying as far away from Parker as possible.
I love interacting with the people of Emerald Falls. Everyone, except for one grump, has been so welcoming and friendly. Many customers ask how I’m liking it here so far, where I came from, and of course, we chat about books. It’s a subject I love discussing with others. No matter what genre you read, the commonality is the feeling reading gives you. It’s the ultimate escape and it’s so soothing to get lost in between the pages of a novel. I’ve always used reading as a way to cope and sharing something I love with others makes me feel an immense amount of happiness.
Throughout the day, I could sense his eyes on me. He watches every one of my interactions with curiosity and I feel smug knowing that I’m killing it on my first day. I’m getting more comfortable with the register and am already starting to remember how the genres are laid out in the store, quickly finding the books that customers are requesting. I’d even been able to sell some fantasy novels to a young woman who was looking to dabble in the genre for the first time.
During a lull in foot traffic, Parker approaches me.
“Well, everyone seems to be crazy about you so far.” He lets out a huff that sounds suspiciously like a laugh.
“Like I said, I’m quite charming. Not my fault you’re a grumpy old man that’s so set in your ways of thinking that you can’t imagine that you might have been wrong about me.”
His gaze abruptly collides with mine and I suck in a breath. The way his eyes are lingering on my face and assessing me is unnerving and I find myself feeling flushed. Parker has the type of eyes that seem to pierce right through you and I’m not used to feeling like someone can see me. I’ve spent my whole adult life trying to fly under the radar and nobody generally cares to know more than what I willingly give up.
His prodding gaze lingers and I shiver under the intensity.
“I have to pee!” I shout before abruptly turning my back and all but running to the washroom.
What the heck was that?
I groan when I walk through the door of my apartment. It feels like such a long day. I enjoyed most of it, but seeing Parker had rattled me and he continued to piss me off at every turn. After I got back from the bathroom break that I didn’t actually need, he seemed even more distant and grumpy. I tried to coax him into conversations about books, the store, his family, his hobbies. Everything I asked was met with a blank stare and a mumbled, short response. I’m trying, but damn that man is testing my patience and it’s only day one. I practically wept when Cassie came to relieve us and I tripped over my own two feet trying to race up to the apartment.
I go into the fridge to grab some ingredients for dinner and start laying them out neatly on the counter and gather the pots and pans. Fifteen minutes later, I’m eating my grilled cheese and tomato soup while watching Bridget Jones’s Diary for the thousandth time. I’m a comfort watcher—I love watching my favorite movies over and over, and somehow never get sick of them. Once I finish my dinner and movie, I do my dishes and change into my pajamas. I pull my e-reader onto my lap and begin reading my current book. Before I know it, the knob is jiggling and Cassie steps inside.
“Damn, that was a slow night. Mondays are always dead.”
I put my e-reader to sleep and adjust the blanket draped over me. “Well, you’re done now. How about a glass of wine before bed?”
Cassie comes out of the kitchen already holding the open bottle. She tops up my glass and proceeds to chug some wine straight from the bottle.
“So, want to tell me why Parker was staring daggers at your back as you stumbled up the stairs after work and grumbled ‘fucking women’ before taking off without so much as a goodbye?”
I choke on my wine and frantically pat the dribble off of my chin.
“Um, yeah, about that. I may or may not have rear ended him on my way into town.”
The cackle that comes out of my roommate reminds me of the laugh the evil stepmother in Snow White lets out while she’s an old hag poisoning her.
“Oh my god, I would have loved to see that. He’s a bit of a grump, so I’m sure he was nothing but pleasant to you.” She lets out a sarcastic snort.
“Yeah, about that. What’s his deal? I mean, he thought he had me figured out based on where I’m from. He judged me before he knew me.” I nervously twirl my hair around my fingers. I’m used to feeling rejected by people in my life, but this is next level.
Cassie chews at her bottom lip and finally says, “Okay, but you can’t tell anyone that I told you this.”
I make a cross over my heart and lock my lips with a fake key that I promptly throw over my shoulder.
“Parker was engaged to a girl from the city four years ago. Two weeks before the wedding, she basically decided she wanted to go back to Calgary and just, left. He hasn’t been the same since, from what I hear.”
Everything finally comes into perspective. Parker seeing my clothes and being immediately stand-offish. His constant scoffs and bad attitude towards me. Him saying that I was probably going to leave anyways.
My heart aches for him, despite the fact that he drives me crazy. I knew what it was like to be left by someone you loved. I knew how it felt, that rejection, that pain. The what-ifs, and wondering if there was anything you could have done to make them stay.
“That’s so sad. I can imagine how that felt.”
Cassie nods. “At first I thought the guy just needed to get laid but it sounds like he gets on just fine around town.”
Unexpectedly, I feel jealous. What the hell?
“Well, I’m going to head to bed.” Cassie’s words penetrate my thoughts. She stands up and makes her way to the kitchen to dispose of the wine bottle and calls out, “Good night!”
“Night.”
I make my way to my bedroom and flop onto my bed. I stare at the ceiling as thoughts of a broken-hearted Parker continue to play in my head. I wonder what he was like before it all happened. I wonder what he was like when he was in love. Probably still intolerable, honestly. I roll over to turn off my bedside lamp before climbing under the covers. Sleep quickly claims me.
Yelling. That’s what I hear first as I groggily come to.
Crying.
Glass breaking, followed by more yelling.
I stumble out of bed and into the closet, where it’s safe. Where voices are muffled.
I can hear the shrieking getting closer, as well as two separate footfalls.
One loud, charging.
One frantic, scrambling.
The next thing I know, the closet door is being ripped open before my own screaming begins.
I shoot up out of my bed and desperately fumble for the light switch.
I can’t breathe .
I peer around the room and don’t recognize where I am. The fog slowly lifts, and I realize that I’m in my new apartment. I stalk across the room and rip open the curtains, staring at the mountains as the sun begins to rise. I sit back on my bed, pulling my knees to my chest and I take five soothing breaths. In for four seconds, hold for four, out for four. Repeating, until my skin is less clammy and I feel like I’ve fully caught my breath. I gingerly move towards the window again, bringing pillows and the duvet with me. I find my sketching pencils and a pad, and get to work on the floor of my bedroom.