Page 6 of Love Off Script

“Are you a cop?” She studied me with a disgruntled expression.

“No. I’m supposed to be meeting someone, but I don’t know what she looks like.”

“A blind date?” She quirked a brow, but I was done with the twenty questions.

“Sure. Can you make an announcement for Shorty and see if anyone comes up?”

“Shorty?” She appeared to be waiting for more information, but that was all I had.

I knew she had a real name, but I had forgotten it, and the paper was at my place.

“In a gray shirt.” I filled in the missing piece I knew.

“I’m not doing that. Do you want something to drink?” She shot me down way quicker than it took for me to get to the question.

This was why I didn’t talk to people—they just pissed me off.

I sighed. “Yeah, I’ll have a Vanilla Caramel Nitro Coffee with an extra shot of espresso.” I probably shouldn’t have gotten more caffeine, but the effects of my orgasm were fading, and my patience was wearing thin.

While I waited for my drink, the door opened behind me, and a rather nondescript woman in a soft gray V-neck with a crossword puzzle in hand walked in. She made me feel like a giant next to her, and thoughts of Davia quickly bounced around in my head, but I shook them out. Was she Shorty?

I stared at her, but she refused to make eye contact, which made me pause. If it was Shorty, wouldn’t she be looking for me, too? She seemed focused on the drink menu and determined not to speak or be noticed.

When the lady took her order, I couldn’t even hear what she said because she was so quiet. She couldn’t be who I was here to meet. Once I got my coffee, I made a loop around the place, but no one was in gray except the mousey woman, who just sat down in a corner booth by herself. Maybe she was reserved and needed me to introduce myself.

I considered myself introverted, but that was by choice, not nature. I pulled up a chair across from her and sat down.

“Hey.” I reached out my hand, and the fear in her eyes made it seem like I was holding a gun to her. “I’m not going to hurt you. I think we have a meeting.” I held my hands up in supplication, but her expression didn’t change. “Shorty?”

“I don’t have drugs.” Her response was so low that I wondered if I had heard her correctly.

“Drugs? I’m not looking for a high.” I shook my head, as that wasn’t my scene—anymore.

“Isn’t Shorty some kind of code word or something?” She put her puzzle down, and I stared into her warm, amber eyes and couldn’t read her at all.

I thought about the call to the station, the texts, and now this person before me, and none of them matched. If this was the same person, she was an enigma.

“Do I have something on my face?” She wiped above her upper lip, and I shook my head.

“No. I’m sorry. I must have you confused with someone else.”

She chuckled. “I can’t say that has ever happened to me before.” Her laugh was soft and airy, like her, but her voice had a little more bravado.

“Well, I’m sorry to have bothered you. I’ll have to keep looking for Shorty.” My lips curled into a genuine smile, and I wished she had been her, because I think she would have made my job easy.

“Good luck.” She turned her attention back to her crossword, and I gave the place another glance before realizing I was stood up.

Was this a prank? I wasn’t sure what they would get out of it, but it wouldn’t be the first time one of my adventures became a misadventure. Oh well, it seemed my wish had come true, and I wouldn’t have to do this stupid task anyway. Now, I could go home and take a much-needed nap.

I would send “Shorty” one more text to show I tried, and then I would message Matrix to tell him we needed to find something else for me to do.

Me: Just wanted to let you know that you’ve disappointed thousands of people by flaking.

I would leave her with a little guilt and me with a clear conscience. I smiled as I returned to my hidey hole to spend the rest of my day not peopling.

Chapter 4

Shiloh

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