Chapter 21
Lydia
AFTER CHURCH ON Sunday, I come home to find a note from Cole on the counter saying he had to go into work. This suits me just fine since I have a new regency romance novel from the library, and, in my experience, men are too busy making fun of the covers to appreciate the quality literature contained inside. With him gone I can enjoy my book on the couch under a blanket instead of in my room with a giant tree frog making eyes at me.
Cole still isn’t home that evening, so I eat dinner alone. I’ve finished my book by now, so I just head to bed. I’m starting to wonder if by work he meant hanging out with Ashley; after all, he referred to her as work once before. No, I squash these suspicions down, not sure why the thought of the two of them together bothers me so much.
To distract myself I get out my journal and start planning my next move, taking the seed of my idea from the night before and mapping it out into a full-on attack. I decide I’ll do it on Friday, because Faith has a half day and, since we have a meet on Saturday, we don’t have track practice either.
I just hope I can be patient until then.
Cole
When I get home from the office shortly before eleven on Sunday night, Lydia is already asleep. I feel a little bad for leaving her on her own her first full day in the house, but she’s a grown woman; I’m sure she was fine. Besides, I can’t control the fact that the teenage son of a major client of ours chose last night to go joyriding in someone else’s Mercedes. This week will be crazy trying to get him off with just community service, and I’m not thrilled about the work. Frankly, it sounds like the kid could use a stint in juvie, but I’m not paid to have that opinion. At least it means I’ll have an excuse to see my parents very little while they’re here.
The strangest part of today though, was that at one point I actually found myself wishing I were at home with Lydia. Doing whatever she was doing, even if it was just lying around watching television. After that I couldn’t shake the feeling, and I kept picking up my phone to text her, then putting it back down, determined not to give into the whim. I showed her enough of my emotions last night. Not only that, but twice I came within a hair’s breadth of kissing her. Man, do I want to kiss her. I can’t let her know that though, not when she so clearly still doesn’t like or trust me. She considers us to be at war for Pete’s sake!
Even though it’s late I head down to my home gym for the second time that day, needing to work out some of my pent-up emotions. As my feet pound down on the treadmill and sweat trickles down my forehead, I try to think about anything but her.
As I lie in bed an hour later though, I pick up my phone and open my YouTube app. Glancing around surreptitiously as if Lydia, or even Jamie, will pop in and spy what I’m up to, I pull the phone closer to my face and turn the volume down low. Clicking past the same paper towel ad from yesterday, I fix my eyes on the screen as a man in a lab coat comes on. When the video finishes, I hit replay. I watch it two times, then three times, then a fourth, until I’m confident I now know how to use an EpiPen.