Page 56 of Play the Field

I walked past the Chinese food place, its open sign still blinking this late into the evening. Cat and I went on our first date there. A picture of us giddily holding hands as we walked inside came to mind. The warmth of her palm on mine was as fresh to my mind as the food inside.

We didn’t have much money, just whatever we’d made at our summer jobs. But Cat never let me pay. Not for the first few months anyway.

Shaking the thought, I kept moving. The brisk air made my cheeks tingle as I moved.

There was another world, where I tried to believe Cat and give this another chance just to have her go back on everything she’d promised. But maybe it would be a pleasant few months before the facade broke.

And even still, maybe I needed to learn this lesson one more time.

Then I passed the florist’s shop, the windows dark and the lights inside off. I’d bought Cat a bouquet there for our first Valentine’s Day together. But she came inside at the same time and I had to hide behind the shelves of tacky decor while trying not to overhear what she picked for me.

I could still see her gawking at me when I told her the story a few months later, surprised that I could manage to be so sneaky. She told that story to everyone we met.

By the time I reached the intersection of Main Street and Pine Road, my heart rate had settled.

Fucking Cat Collins.Leave it to her to reinfect my mind with endless memories of our time together in this small town. She was right, everywhere I looked I saw her. I’d never be able to escape her, even if I did manage to push her away.

Blowing the air out of my mouth, I nodded as I turned on my heels and walked back to my apartment.

I wasn’t sure if it was the cold or my pull to Cat that made my feet move so fast as I made my way down Main Street. By the time my building was in view, I was sprinting down the block, my feet pounding against the cement sidewalks.

Throwing open the downstairs door, I ran up the steps, taking two at a time.

When I unlocked my door and pushed inside, I didn’t see Cat in my living room. The kitchen was clean and most of the lightswere off. Finn was stationed in his cat tree by the window, likely watching me on my walk.

Please tell me I didn’t scare her off.My heart was racing again, my lungs hot from running. I threw off my shoes and jacket before moving down the short hallway.

Laying in my bed, Cat looked up at the ceiling.

“Hi.” I swallowed as I crossed the room and threw myself in the bed. Too embarrassed to look at her, I put my back to her and put my body in an S-shape.

From behind me, Cat pressed her body against mine and wrapped her arm around my front. Brushing my blonde hair off of my face, Cat brought her lips close to my ear and whispered, “I’m not going anywhere, Cleo. I lost you once, I’m not losing you again.”

I felt a weight lift off of my shoulders as my body sunk into her embrace. Her body warmed me from the chill of the mid-fall cold.Maybe we could make this work.

34

CAT

A few daysafter our fight, Cleo and I had mostly gone back to normal. But I could tell that they were waiting for another shoe to drop. And I was hoping that this phone call might help.

The phone rang a few times before I heard their voice. “Hi, everything okay?”

“Yeah, are you busy?” I asked while sitting in my Mercedes.

Cleo took a moment to think. After a second, I could hear some rustling through their end. “Not really. I can close up early.”

Biting my lip, I closed my eyes. “Are you sure?”

“Just tell me where to meet you.” Cleo giggled as they moved through the store.

“Done.” I pulled my phone from my ear and sent them a text with just an address. “See you soon.” I hung up the phone after they said goodbye, anxiously tapping my fingers against the leather steering wheel.

I wasn’t sure how they would react to the news but I needed to find something concrete to convince them that I was going to be spending significant time in New Winford.

It only took them a few minutes to walk the ten blocks from Cleo’s Shelf to the unremarkable house in town. Once I saw them, I hopped out of my car and waved. Their face was wrinkled with confusion as they tried to catch up.

“Did you bring me here to kill me?” They teased.

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