Chapter 13
13
Elise
T he regrets don’t come.
The doubts are out of my reach.
As the morning washes over the Rocky Mountains with its golden hues and pink skies, I realize that, for the first time in my life, what is happening is meant to happen. It feels right. Yes, it’s strange. It’s more than I ever bargained for. But I love it.
I want more of it.
“Good morning, sunshine,” Roman comes in, car keys jingling in his hand before he throws them into the large catchall on the counter island. “Any coffee left for me?”
“Just brewed a fresh pot,” I reply with a lazy smile.
It’s my day off and the house is wonderfully quiet.
“I dropped the girls off at school,” he says, pouring himself a cup. He likes his coffee black and sweet. Sweet as sin, he insists, always following up with a mischievous smirk. “They start crafting Halloween decorations today, so brace yourself for sticky hands and clumps of papier maché in their hair when they get home tonight.
“Oh, gosh, we’re getting closer to Halloween. I lost track of time.”
“We had a long night,” he says and joins me at the breakfast table. We kiss, sweet and tenderly, and I briefly get lost in the blue depths of his eyes. “How are you feeling?”
I think about it for a moment before answering.
“Deliciously sore,” I say.
Roman’s face lights up with a smile. “It means we got the job done right.”
“And then some,” I giggle. “Where are James and Oliver?”
“They went into town for some supplies. What are your plans for today?”
“I want to stop by my place and see how far Mr. Ronald has gotten with the repairs. Then I was thinking I’d go into town as well. I need a new winter jacket. I want to be prepared before it gets too cold.”
Roman leans in and softly kisses my temple. “Need me to come with?”
“You don’t have to.”
“I don’t mind. Unless you want some time alone.”
“Maybe, if for no reason other than to better process what happened last night.”
“How’s everything sinking in after the fact?”
“Last night was amazing and I loved it,” I say, briefly lowering my gaze.
Roman clasps my chin between his thumb and index finger, beckoning me to look up at him. “You loved it, huh?”
“Yeah.”
“Would you do it again?”
“Absolutely.”
“It’s a date then. Leave your bedroom door unlocked,” he says, then kisses me again before getting up. I watch with wide eyes as he finishes his coffee and heads out of the kitchen. “I’ll be in the home office if you need me. By the way, I’m making lunch today.”
And just like that, I’m left with a fluttering heart, tingling lips, and excitement for what tonight is going to bring. How the hell am I ever going to move back into my place when I feel so at home here with them?
Half an hour later, I take the Ford and make my way up to the cabin. I could’ve walked, but I might as well get a few more things out of my old place while I’m there.
To my dismay, there isn’t a single worker’s truck outside nor are there any signs that any kind of renovation work is being done. “Well, shit,” I grumble disdainfully. “It’s just as I left it.”
Absolutely nothing has changed, no work has been done.
The cabin is practically derelict, with its shoddy door and broken windows. Mr. Ronald taped a thin tarp over the windows instead of boarding them up. I doubt it’ll do much against a heavy rain and we’re smack in the middle of fall. Spring and autumn rains in the Rockies can be quite intense when they come through and seeing as we are almost at the end of October, heavy snowstorms aren’t far behind.
I can still smell cat pee everywhere.
“This is so not cool,” I say as I go up the porch steps, stopping cold in my tracks when I notice something that wasn’t there before.
I stare at the large glass vase sitting on my welcome mat, filled with a generous bouquet of white roses. They’re wrapped in golden paper and tied with a wide, delicate satin bow. There’s a note nestled in between two rose buds. With a trembling hand, I pull out the envelope, embossed with Shauna’s flower shop logo.
“A sea of roses for a rose,” I can hear the shakiness in my voice as I read the typed words out loud. My blood runs cold through my veins as chills take over.
“It can’t be,” I whisper.
Maybe it actually was Igor I saw outside the diner a while back.
No .
My mind rejects the premise altogether. It can’t be. I’ve stayed quiet, been keeping my head down. I picked the one place I knew would be so far removed from where he would look for me. I would expect him to search for me in a place that would better fit my style and my nature.
Definitely not Rustic, Colorado.
I shake my head as I toss the flowers into the trash bin, leaving them to rot. I check the perimeter of the cabin; nothing appears to be out of place. I go inside and do a quick walk-through before packing a few more things in a suitcase. As I step outside, everything seems fine. I spot no evidence of anyone being around since I went in.
“I need to talk to Shauna,” I groan to myself as I get behind the wheel. It’s a conversation I really don’t want to have but I need to find out who ordered those roses. My stomach churns and my head spins as I nervously look around. I need a moment to recalibrate my own breath as I’m once again reminded of how quickly everything can turn upside down.
My hands are shaking as I search for my burner phone in my purse. I manage to put a new SIM card in, and I call my brother. After three rings, he picks up. “Hey.”
“Hey, Mikey. Everything okay there?”
“Yeah. I’m out shopping with Igor for the Halloween Bash. They invited the freshmen this year,” my brother says.
A knot forms in my throat. I swallow it back as I force myself to smile. “Igor took you out shopping, that’s nice.”
It’s not nice. I could vomit just from uttering his name.
“Yeah, I needed some new shoes,” he says. I can sense the tension in his voice.
For obvious reasons, we can’t talk. Not right now.
“I’ll catch you another time, then,” I reply. “You take care, okay?”
“Yeah.”
I hang up and throw the SIM out the window to the ground, where it will rot under a carpet of leaves. I stare at the shades of gold, brown, and ruby red and cry my heart out. Igor may still be in Chicago with Michael, but it doesn’t mean he hasn’t found me. It doesn’t mean I can sit back and relax.
Someone sent those flowers.
Someone who knows where I live.