Page 26 of David's Chase

“Is that Chloe?” she asks, chewing on some eggplant parmigiana.

“Yes. It’s her.”

I grab my glass of wine and spin around.

“You can go into the reading room,” Thea says, and I smile, thank her, and swiftly head in that direction.

The women’s voices fade into the background while I answer the video call and pin my stare on my friend.

“Were where you?” I ask.

She shifts her focus to me, a smile on her face.

“I could ask you the same thing.”

“I’m sorry about last night.”

I give her an apology and a lengthy explanation about why I couldn't call her.

“You fell asleep?” she asks.

“Yes.”

She searches my eyes, an amused expression on her face.

“You’re getting old.”

“I’m not old,” I retort, laughing and pushing the door to the reading room open with my shoulder.

The room is lit, and the temperature is pleasant.

Looking around, I notice a fireplace, the burning logs scenting the air with a hint of smoke.

“Is this Thea’s place?”

“Uh-huh.”

I take a sip of wine, set my drink down, and plop myself on the couch.

“It’s nice, isn’t it?”

I move the camera around so she can get a glimpse of the interior.

“Yes, it is.”

“You shouldn’t have left,” I say. “And by the way, that man wasn’t even amongst the guests.”

Her smile melts off.

“He wasn’t?”

“Nope. I didn’t see him. There was no need to change your plans because of him.”

Looking down, she hides her expression.

Why is that man so important to her?

It makes no sense to me, but if she’s not willing to talk about him, I won’t insist for sure.

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