Page 90 of Trip Through Your Wires

“Just you,” he calls back over his shoulder.

Once Cruz grabs their bags and makes it up the stairs, Ellery heads into the kitchen, and I follow.

“Now,” she points to a stool while getting to work at the cappuccino maker. “Tell me how the trip was, really?”

“It was good.” I climb onto a stool at the end. “Really.”

She looks over, eyeing me curiously. “That’s it?”

“What else do you want me to say?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Was she glad to see you?”

“Not quite the word I’d use,” I laugh.

“What do you mean?” she asks casually while turning her attention back to the machine.

“Well,” I lean back, “I show up at her door, unannounced, on the weekend, nonetheless, delivering a message from her best friend…it caught her off guard.”

“Off guard.” She works the machine like a scientist running tests in a lab.

“Yeah,” I shrug with a laugh. “She was surprised to see me.”

“That’s it? Nothing more?”

“There’s nothing more, really. I flew down there, checked on her, and we had a good visit. She’s fine, you have nothing to worry about, which you already know because I understand you two talked.”

She tilts her head and looks at me over her shoulder. “And you know that, how?”

“She told me,” I laugh. “She wanted to make sure I got home okay so I called to let her know that I did.”

“Mm-hmm,” she smiles.

“What’s that…mm-hmm?”

“It means, don’t think I didn’t notice you moping around here the past few weeks because she was avoiding your calls. And now you two are friends and she is cooking for you and lets you stay over? Sounds to me like it was more than a good visit.”

As much as I wish I could tell her she’s right, it was more than good, it was fucking great, I am all about keeping this afterglow to myself for a while. After Charleston, however, I have a feeling all bets will be off because Jenica and I want each other too much. There’s no way we can be in the same room and not touch, or act like we are less than what we are. I mean, I practically crawled through the phone last night to tear her clothes off.

“Jenica told me that she got a second job,” Ellery says, changing the subject. “Between that, the store, and class, she’s been pretty tired the past few weeks. But I think something else is going on.”

“She has been working hard,” I agree, remembering the fatigue in Jenica’s eyes when I first arrived.

“I can’t put my finger on it,” Ellery continues, “but I get the feeling something is up. She sounded good when we talked last night, but I can’t help but think something is going on.”

“You know,” I place my elbow on the counter and rest my head against my fist. “Maybe it’s residual anxiety about that body that washed onto shore.”

“Mmm,” Ellery nods. “Maybe.”

The two of us are quiet for a moment, then she spins around and makes her way over to where I’m sitting, placing a latte down on the counter in front of me. “So, Cruz told me about Colorado.”

I reach for the cup and take a sip. I’m not surprised she knows—Ellery is Cruz’s partner, in every way. “What do you think?” I ask when I set the cup down.

“Well,” she taps her nails against the counter. “Sounds like it’s pretty unusual.”

“It is,” I agree.

“They must see something pretty special in your bond. That good ole catcher/pitcher bond is pretty special.”

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