Page 26 of Chasing the Fall

Bran’s pupils dilate, his jaw tightens, and his fingers flex on the denim covering his legs. Turning, I stroll toward the bedroom. “Coming?”

Bran may have won Scrabble, but I’m definitely the winner in this other game between us.

Twelve

Twiggy

The entire cabin smellslike sex and sin, and it’s getting close to the dinner hour before Bran finally lets me leave the bed. I look back at him, sprawled out and dozing, and am stricken by how peaceful he looks. The harsh lines usually carved into his face are absent, replaced by an almost boyish laxness.

Frowning, I close the bedroom door behind me. I know those lines are probably there because of me. Not for the first time, I wish I had never gone to the cabin in Lucy Falls. It gained me nothing.

Well.I tilt my head, considering, as I wander over to the picture window and peer outside. That’s not entirely accurate. It gained me Bran. I can be thankful for that, at least.

I don’t know exactly what this is that’s happening between us, but I like it. I even like how he calls me Tallulah, in that deep rumbling voice of his…

What I don’t like is being here in the sticks, with no computer or WiFi or—

My rambling train of thought halts, my attention snagged by a bag sitting beside the door. That looks like the bag I use to haul my laptop when I have to carry it with me.

Curious, I unzip the bag. A squeal leaves me when I see that it is indeed my laptop, and I pull it out.

I have no idea when it arrived, and I’m okay with that.

But why didn’t Bran tell me he had it? I could’ve been on it all day…which, now that I think about it, is probably why he didn’t say anything.

“Neanderthal,” I mutter.

The date shown at the bottom of the screen makes me pause after powering up the laptop.

Thanksgiving Day. I had lost track of the days. An odd emotion seizes my throat, a blend of sadness and resentment. If I was home, I’d be sharing a feast with all of the other only-lonelies—Jack, his deputy, and a few others. It was a tradition we had fallen into over the last several years after my mother had died, when I realized I wasn’t the only one with no family over the holidays.

Another realization seizes me. Tomorrow is Black Friday. I’m supposed to show up at a toy shop in downtown Lucy Falls and play Santa’s helper for local kids. The owner had asked me to doit years ago because I was short and thin and looked like an elf, and I’d been doing it ever since.

I loved the look of awe and joy on the kids’ faces when they saw Santa.

Damnit. I need to talk to Bran. Maybe he’ll let me return, just for that.

My fingers fly across the keyboard as I locate a WiFi network and begin the process of hijacking it. I need to check on the state of things in Lucy Falls.

“Why am I a Neanderthal?”

Bran’s voice in my ear makes me jump and squeal again. How long had he been standing there? “Jeezus, wear a bell.”

He grins and kisses my neck. “Why am I a Neanderthal, baby? I got your computer for you.”

I send him a mock glare. “And then failed to tell me about it because you were too busy screwing my brains out.”

“You loved every minute of it.”

I make a face. “And that’s the only reason you’re forgiven. Be happy you have a good dick.”

His smile is more of a leer now. “I have a fecking great dick.” He rounds the back of the sofa to sit next to me. “What are you doing?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. I just needed to do something, you know? Check on things in Lucy Falls. Did you realize what day it is?”

Very gently, he closes the laptop. “I do know. I also know what day it is. Let’s go for a drive, get some Thanksgiving dinner. I know a restaurant that serves a great one.”

I eye him dubiously. “And I can log back on later?”

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