Chapter 32
Mac
Waking alone in her bed is beyond weird. Being in her house all night while she wasn't here is even weirder.
I came in here, wanting to wait for her. I didn't want another damn day to go by without us talking. The woman is so fucking hot and cold it's driving me insane.
She hasn't answered my phone calls, nor has she responded to my texts.
I know she has to be safe. If something happened, I would've heard about it. Hell, Mrs. Easter from across the street would've been pounding on the front door had Riley even broken a fingernail, but knowing that still hasn't stopped me from worrying about her.
I sit up in the bed, letting my eyes drift around the room. The woman leads a simple life. She has few belongings in here, but her kitchen is a different story. She has gadgets and utensils I've never seen before, and would be hard-pressed to figure out what they'd be used for.
She loves to cook, and I love to eat. I think that makes us the perfect couple without even digging any deeper, but there's so much more to her than that, and I haven't even had the chance to really get to know her.
I head out of the room and down to the guest bathroom. Staying wrapped in her blankets all night was creepy, but doing that and showering in her bathroom using her bodywash would be crossing a line.
My shower is quick because since she's not here, I don't really want to be here either.
Although I've thought long and hard about it, I can't seem to pinpoint a moment when things shifted enough that she didn't come home last night in an effort to avoid me. I hate the idea that she won't come home because I'm here.
I shower and dress, avoid the kitchen altogether, and leave the house.
The drive to Main Street is quick. I make my way to the bakery, noticing that her car isn't outside of the bookstore, but that's not surprising, considering it doesn't open for another hour and a half. As busy as my day should be, I'll sit right in the middle of town and wait for her to drive by if I have to.
The scent of sugar hits me in the face when I open the door to the bakery. My stomach grumbles, reminding me that I haven't bothered to eat anything since the casserole Riley brought to my house yesterday morning.
"Hey," Adalynn says. "Picking up for yourself or the whole crew?"
"The crew," I tell her with a quick smile. "Have you seen Riley?"
She tilts her head to the side, but I see the smile she's trying to hide.
"Does she know you're looking for her?"
It's my turn to tilt my head. "What has she told you?"
"Any preference for flavors?" she asks, avoiding my question, but it makes it very clear that at some point Riley has mentioned me to her.
"Just a mix is fine," I tell her, quickly realizing it's some sort of girl code or something, and she isn't going to tell me a damn thing that might break her confidence with Riley.
I'd commend her for her loyalty, but right now, it just gets on my nerves.
"If you see her, will you tell her I asked about her?" I say as I pull my wallet out of my back pocket.
"Will do."
"Keep the change," I say as I hand over a twenty-dollar bill, hoping it'll help persuade her to reach out to my girl and tell her I need to speak with her.
The donuts are forgotten the second I sit them on the passenger seat. There's only one thing I'm worried about today.
The tension in my body eases when I take a side street off Main and another right. Riley's car is parked in Sage's driveway.
Instead of climbing out of my truck and banging on the door, insisting that she speak with me, I pull out my phone and call Ronnie.
"How did you know I was about to call you?" the man asks instead of saying hello when the call connects.
"What's wrong?"
We aren't the type of friends to call each other on the drive to work. We spend nearly ten hours a day with each other, and whatever we need to say can be done during that time.
"We had some shit go down last night," he mutters. "We're just running a little late. No big deal."
"Need the day off? "
It's a consolation offer because I don't know that I'm going to get much work done today myself.
"Naw. We'll just be like half an hour late."
"I'd say go ahead and head over to the Drocer house then. We got the things we needed to wrap that job up."
"Umm."
"Ronnie," I chastise, knowing from his tone that whatever happened last night probably has to do with the daughter that has moved in there.
"We might need the day off then. Is that a job that Ethan and the other guys can handle wrapping up?"
I pinch the bridge of my nose in annoyance. "If need be."
"Then I think that might be best."
"Fine," I grumble.
It wouldn't be the first time the twins' antics kept them from being welcome at certain places in town, and as easily as I could get mad at them both about their downtime interfering with their ability to work, that's the last damn thing on my mind right now.
"I need something from you."
"Anything, boss."
"I need you to get me Sage Douglas's number."
"No," he says, his response quick and easy.
"What do you mean no?" I hiss, annoyance lacing my voice.
"I think you have a great thing going with Riley, and I just might kick your ass if you even think about hurting her. Better yet. Let me call Adalynn to get that number. If you're not going to pursue anything with Riley, then I think Donnie and I—"
"Finish that sentence, and you'll need to find a new job."
Silence fills the line.
"Her number," I say after a long beat.
"Give me a few minutes," he says, and the line goes dead.
If waking up in her bed without her coming home is creepy, then I've crossed over into something even worse, sitting in my truck down the block from Sage's house and staring at her car.
It takes ten minutes before my phone chimes with a text, but to Ronnie's credit, he managed to get Sage's number.
Without hesitation, I type it in and save it to my contacts before calling.
"Hello," she says, picking up after the fourth ring .
I can tell by the scratch in her voice that I woke her up. Any other day, I'd feel bad about it, but today, I just need confirmation that Riley is okay.
"Just tell me she's safe," I say rather than explaining who I am like a normal person might do.
"Mac?"
"Who else would it be, Sage?" I ask, instantly regretting the tone of my voice.
She's silent, and I use the opportunity to apologize.
"Sorry," I mutter, fully meaning it. "I'm worried about her."
"She's safe. Well, as safe as she can be on my awful couch. She may need traction when she wakes up."
"What did I do wrong?" I ask, knowing that she's not going to betray her friend's trust, but I can't hang up, not having made an effort.
Another wave of silence proves my mental point.
"Just give her some time," Sage whispers. "Riley isn't accustomed to people... finding her attractive. It's hard for her to wrap her head around."
My brows dig in closer together. "Are you serious? That woman is the sexiest person I’ve ever laid eyes on."
"Have you told her that?"
"I'm sure I have."
If I haven't said it with words, I sure as hell know I've told her as much with my actions.
"That tells me that maybe you haven't. She needs the words, Mac, and then she needs you to prove that you mean them. And for it to get through her thick head, you may have to say it and prove it over and over."
"I figured I had with the number of times... you know what... that's private."
"And I appreciate you not sharing more about the time you've spent with my friend," Sage says with a weak laugh. "These are things you need to be saying to her."
"Kind of hard to do when she's avoiding me to this extreme," I mutter. "She didn't come home last night, obviously. She won't answer when I call. She hasn't responded to texts. Will you let me into your house so I can talk to her?"
"I'm on her side," Sage answers immediately. "I can't do that. You know I can't."
"You don't seem to be Anti-Mac."
"I'm not. Far from it, but my loyalties are with her, no matter what my opinions are about you and this entire situation."
"I can respect that, " I say, even though it gets on my very last frazzled nerve.
"I can tell you that she isn't working at the store today."
She doesn't say another thing before ending the call. I appreciate what she didn't say. I think that so long as I stay away from Riley's house, she'll go home at some point this morning, and I can talk to her then. I just can't be there when she shows up, or she'll continue to avoid the place even though it's hers.
If I thought last night was the longest night of my life, I guess today will be the longest day. I know, without a doubt, it will end with us discussing what I needed to tell her yesterday, but I'm not as certain of the outcome right now as I was before she bolted yesterday.