18. Chapter 18
Chapter 18
Tessa
T he bell above the door of the coffee shop chimed when Reagan opened it for us. I glanced up at the sign above the door before following her inside.
Reagan headed toward the register. “Hey, Sasha. Can we get two of your specials?”
A brunette several inches shorter than me stepped out from behind the espresso machine. “Sure thing, Reagan.” Sasha’s smooth southern drawl wrapped around us as we reached the counter. Her eyes moved toward me before widening slightly. “Well, hello there. And who might you be?”
Reagan raised her arms in her best Vanna White impression before responding, “This is Tessa. She’s Finn’s new roommate.”
Sasha’s eyes met Reagan’s, and the pair appeared to have a silent conversation. I began to feel uncomfortable and was calculating how far of a walk it would be back to Finn’s place when Sasha turned her attention back to me.
“Well, any friend of Finn’s is a friend of mine. Welcome to Pandora’s Coffee and Creamery. You two sit tight, and I’ll get those drinks right up for ya.” With a slight twirl, Sasha disappeared behind the counter.
The hiss of the large espresso machine filled the coffee shop as Reagan leaned her hip against the counter and faced me.
“After we get our caffeine fix, I figured we’d hit up a few of my favorite thrift stores. The one I was telling you about is a couple towns over,” she said.
When Reagan showed up this morning to take me shopping, I was mortified to confess how dire my financial situation truly was. She waved away my concerns and told me she was the best discount shopper in the state before promptly ushering me out of the house.
I looked at Finn, sitting at the kitchen table, and silently begged him to put an end to this insanity. Reagan didn’t even know me. Why the hell did she want to spend an entire day shopping with me? But Finn merely waved, telling us to have fun before his attention shifted back to the contract he was working on.
Four days had passed since we attended dinner at his parent’s house. The day after, I woke to find Finn coming in from outside, his hair wet and a towel around his shoulders. Instead of making breakfast together as was our norm, he spent the entire day locked away in his office, stopping only to make a sandwich before sequestering himself away again.
After watching him disappear down the hallway instead of continuing our usual routine, I made myself peanut butter toast and retreated to my room for a shower. When I returned to the living room, I walked to the couch only to find a note with my name on it and a pristine silver laptop beneath it. The note from Finn claimed the computer was one he no longer needed and encouraged me to use it as I saw fit.
To distract my brain from trying to figure out what caused the drastic change in his behavior, I spent the day researching different places I could go after I left Absolution.
Since then, Finn’s avoidance of me gradually decreased, but I couldn’t help feeling like my presence in his home bothered him. When I woke this morning, I decided to offer to find somewhere else to stay. I was scheduled to start my new job that night and finding a place to stay in town that would allow me to walk to work seemed like a smart idea until I could pay for the repairs on my car.
My plans to talk with Finn were derailed when Reagan arrived, bright and early, insisting we had a lot of ground to cover if we planned to be back in time for my shift.
Sasha placed two large to-go cups on the counter, effectively pulling my attention back to the present. I reached into my purse to pay for the drink, but Sasha waved me off.
“Consider it a welcome to town gift,” she said, handing us two straws. “Ya’ll have fun shoppin’.”
Reagan grinned, her eyes sparkling. “Oh, we will,” she assured before grabbing a straw and heading toward the door.
The door swung shut behind us, and I took the first pull off my drink. My eyes widened as the flavors danced across my tongue. Dark chocolate with a hint of…was that cinnamon? I moaned and went back for more. “Oh my god, what is this? The nectar of the gods?”
Reagan snickered at my reaction before nodding in agreement. “Sasha’s a genius when it comes to mixing flavors. You never know what she’s going to put together. Her store is a coffee shop by day and turns into the town’s ice cream parlor in the evening. But what makes her blended drinks truly one of a kind is the scoop of ice cream she adds to each one,” Reagan explained. “All of her ice cream is organic and locally sourced. While I’ve yet to have anything I didn’t like from her menu, I learned to always order her special of the day.”
I greedily drank from my caffeine-infused milkshake on the walk back to Reagan’s SUV. If this was what I could expect, I had a feeling I was going to become one of Sasha’s best customers. Good thing I would have income soon.
The names on the buildings caught my attention on the drive out of Absolution.
“How come most of the businesses have Greek mythology themed names?” I asked.
When I came here with my parents, we spent most of our time camping, making only the occasional trip into town for groceries. A vague memory of my dad telling me about the town’s history on one our supply runs played at the edges of my memory but refused to come into focus.
“Absolution was founded back in the nineteenth century by a group of pioneers who were hoping to cash in on the gold rush. What they failed to plan for was the shit luck they had finding any type of payday. When they made it to Montana, they were broke and running low on food. With winter not far off, they became desperate and started stealing from anyone they could along the way. Eventually, people caught on and distanced themselves. Around the same time, there was an outbreak in the area. The entire group became deathly ill, but because of what they did, everyone refused to help. However, the lone doctor for a hundred miles took pity on them. About half of the pioneers died, but the survivors claimed to see the error of their ways. With no money or food to weather the winter, they were considering turning back when they struck gold at the foot of that mountain,” she said, pointing at the tallest peak off to our left. “Instead of leaving, they stayed and founded the town, claiming this place was their absolution.”
Scanning the landscape, I tried to picture what the town looked like back then.
“Anyway, one of the pioneers jokingly started calling the mountain where they found gold Mount Olympus, insisting it was the gods who finally showed them favor. In the end, the theme stuck, and to this day most of the shop owners honor the town’s tradition by naming their businesses accordingly.”
I contemplated Reagan’s story during the drive, thinking about how this little town certainly seemed to be my own absolution.
After parking in front of Reagan’s favorite thrift shop, we went inside.
“I know you’re worried about money, but believe me when I tell you it won’t be an issue here. I think half of my closet came from this place.” She laughed and started rifling through the nearest clothing rack. I eyed the outfit she currently wore, noting she was exceptionally well dressed every time I saw her for someone who claimed to shop on a budget. Aware I needed to find some clothes suitable for my new job, I began flipping through the display closest to me.
“What is it you do for work?” I asked. Finn never mentioned it, and for some reason it hadn’t occurred to me to ask.
“I’m a 911 Dispatcher for the county. I love my job, but the pay not so much,” she said, her nose wrinkling at the last part.
I startled when Reagan held up a stretchy black dress with the sides cut out. “Oh my god, yes! This would look amazing on you,” she said.
My stomach sank in horror, and I momentarily forgot to breathe as Reagan’s laughter filled the air around us.
Seeing my reaction, she conceded, “Alright, alright. I take it your tastes are a little more modest then.”
Modest was a good way to describe my wardrobe over the last several years. The more I thought about it, the more I wondered if the clothes I bought were because I liked them, or because Daniel insisted no one could see what was ‘his.’ Deciding now was as good a time as any to figure out what I actually liked, I selected a variety of things to try on.
When our arms were ladened with options, we headed to the dressing rooms. For the next hour, we tried on outfits, putting on a mini fashion show for each other between wardrobe changes. After my tenth outfit, Reagan huffed before diving back into her dressing room, only to return with a skirt and what looked to be a rather revealing blouse. My eyes grew wide when she shoved the clothing into my hands before pushing me behind the curtain and ordering me to try it on.
Regardless of my reservations, I did as instructed. Eyeing myself in the mirror, a wave of insecurity washed over me. The skirt, while significantly shorter than anything I would have chosen for myself, wasn’t indecent. The black, stretchy material hugged my curves before stopping mid-thigh. The wine-colored top wrapped around my torso, flaunting my generous cleavage while still covering enough skin to be considered professional.
I scanned my reflection and noted the long flutter sleeves of the top managed to cover up the remaining bruises on my arms. Focusing on my legs, a pleasant surprise filled me when I discovered the skirt covered the fading marks there as well.
“Tessa, get out here,” Reagan demanded. “Otherwise move aside because I’m coming in.”
Knowing full well she would make good on her threat, I took one last look at myself in the mirror before pulling the curtain aside.
Reagan’s jaw dropped while she looked me over from head to toe.
“It’s way too much…right?” I asked as I gnawed on my lower lip.
Reagan shook her head adamantly. “Hell no, it’s not too much. In fact, I know exactly what you need to complete the outfit. Can you walk in heels?”
I nodded, momentarily recalling the shoes I wore to each charity event Daniel required my attendance at.
After giving her my size, Reagan sprinted off toward the shoe section. When I saw what she returned with, I began shaking my head. There was no way I could pull of something like that.
She shoved them at me, my arms wrapping around the soft suede to avoid dropping them.
“Reagan, I can’t do this. It’s…it’s too much.”
Reagan studied me for several long moments. Unable to wring my hands together while they were full, I shifted my weight back and forth between my currently bare feet. Her posture softened before she walked towards me.
“Tessa, if you really aren’t comfortable with this, I won’t push you. But I think you look amazing.”
I raised one eyebrow, the doubt plastered across my face.
“I’m serious, Tessa,” Reagan reassured. “You are stunning. You’re tall enough to be a model, you have the most gorgeous brown hair I’ve ever seen, and you have curves I would literally kill for.” She made sure I met her stare before she emphasized, “You have nothing to be ashamed of in this outfit. Hell, I’m pretty sure Finn’s tongue would fall out of his mouth if he saw you in it.”
Her statement pulled me from my bubble of self-consciousness.
“What are you talking about?” I asked. While Finn was generously allowing me to stay with him, he wasn’t attracted to me. Hell, if his avoidance of me the last several days didn’t get that message across loud and clear, I didn’t know what would.
A small voice in the back of my mind whispered that he must feel some level of attraction to me for what occurred in the bathroom to have happened. More confused than ever, I closed my eyes, noting how the tight fit of the shirt eased the ache in my ribs a bit.
Bewilderment evident in her tone, Reagan asked, “You truly don’t see it…do you?”
I opened my eyes to look at the woman who befriended me for no apparent reason and swallowed hard around the lump that formed in my throat. “What are you talking about?” I asked.
Reagan sighed. “Look, I’ve known Finn literally my entire life. He is one of the best human beings I’ve ever met. But something inside him broke during his time in the Navy. He was never a super outgoing guy back in high school, but people gravitated toward him. Once he got back, he was…different,” she said shaking her head. “I could see the guy I grew up with was still in there, but he kept to himself more. And while he was still the town hero, he was no longer the golden boy, if that makes any sense. He spent as little time around people as possible, and for a while, I was seriously concerned he was going to develop a drinking problem.”
My throat constricted, and a heaviness filled my body as Reagan’s words settled. Finn had a problem with alcohol? I filtered through my short time with him, unable to recall a single instance when he drank so much as a beer. There was alcohol at Sunday dinner, but Finn declined, claiming designated driver status.
Pulling me back to the present, Reagan continued. “So, when he built his cabin in the woods, I was convinced none of us would ever see him again. And to a degree, I was right. He only comes into town when he needs something. He doesn’t socialize with any of his friends from high school.” Reagan stopped, ensuring she had my attention. “He doesn’t invite people over,” she paused before emphasizing, “ Ever .”
Reagan’s words crashed over me like a twenty-foot wave.
Pulling me out of the downward spiral my thoughts plummeted into, she continued her crusade to change my mind.
“But suddenly he gets locked in a cabin with you for a few days, and he’s convincing you to stay with him indefinitely,” she said while her eyebrows crept up her forehead. “So, when I tell you Finn is invested in you and your well-being, what I really mean is Finn has feelings for you. Ones he may not have fully realized himself. He never was one for messy emotions. God knows that bitch in high school did a number on him,” she muttered the last sentence under her breath. “But I guarantee when it hits him, it’ll be like someone ran him over with one of those giant Humvees he used to ride around in.”
My mind reeled at everything Reagan just confided. Finn was one of the most generous people I’d ever met. Sure, he was quiet, but I had no room to throw stones in that regard. The struggle with alcohol was what really threw me. I tried to picture him with a drinking problem but failed.
And what happened with Finn’s ex? Did he really not socialize with anyone in town anymore? If what she said was true, his invitation to stay was an even bigger deal than I initially thought, but it didn’t mean he was attracted to me.
I was still stuck in my head when she shoved me back in the dressing room. “Try those on,” she said. “I want to see the outfit as a whole.”
When I exited wearing her most recent selection, her eyes sparkled, her smile growing wide as she nodded once.
“Yep, if this doesn’t do the trick, I don’t know what will.”