Page 70 of Any Second Now
A deep-set comfortable loveseat is against the wall next to my bed, facing a large television mounted on the wall. I don’t use it much in here since I live alone and have a bigger TV in the living room, but it’s come in handy during the construction.
“You are such a neat freak,” Raleigh says from behind, startling me. “I usually am too, but the Pink Palace is so small it feels cluttered and out of control.”
I turn and drink her in, t-shirt snug against her chest, arms hanging by her side, her expression uncertain. “Want some popcorn?” I hand her the remote control. “Just search for the movie and buy it if it’s not on streaming.”
I escape down the hallway and stick the popcorn bag in the microwave, leaning against the counter to ground myself.
This is Raleigh.
This is my chance with her.
I can’t let her slip through my fingers.
Three minutes later, I sink into the couch next to Raleigh, handing her the big plastic bowl of popcorn and throwing a few pieces into my mouth. She’s got the movie paused at the scene in the pub where the group is surrounded by zombies. Our thighs are a few inches apart, and I regret the fact that my loveseat is much bigger than the one she has in her RV.
“Where would you go?” Raleigh asks.
“Huh?” I turn to her.
“In a zombie apocalypse. Where would you go to hunker down?” She looks at me with her eyebrows raised.
I chuckle before reaching in and grabbing more popcorn. “Maybe the Blizzard arena, because it’s pretty secure. We could get the whole team there. There’s plenty of food at concessions and in catering, and we could fight off zombies with hockey sticks and skates.”
She laughs. “That’s perfect. I’m screwed in the Pink Palace. Can I join you guys?”
“Eh, not sure there’s room.”
“Hey!” She tosses a piece of popcorn at my face and it bounces off my nose. “But I have cross-stitch needles that I can stab zombies with. I’d be useful.”
“They’re pretty short, so you’d have to get really close.” I take a handful of popcorn and casually lift my hand over her head. “But youcouldtoss Megghen at them as a distraction.”
“How dare you.” She glances up and I drop the handful of popcorn. Pieces bounce off her head onto her lap and the couch. “Seriously? You want to have a popcorn fight?”
Raleigh reaches for popcorn and throws it at me point blank before I can even flinch.
“Hey, you got popcorn in my eyeball,” I say, giving her a sad look while I fist another pile of popcorn and come in from below to toss it up like confetti.
She giggles and reaches again for the bowl, but I grab her wrist and shake out the popcorn she’s got in her clutches.
“No you don’t. You’re making a mess in my clean room.”
“Not fair,” she says, her voice airy and breathless. “And you started it.”
Both of us stare at where my hand surrounds her narrow wrist. There’s a tingling shooting up my arm from the site of our connection, and she visibly shudders.
It’s not just me.
She feels it too.
“I have a confession.” I slide my hand down her wrist and onto her palm to stroke her fingerswith mine.
“What’s your confession?” Raleigh turns her body toward me, her knee nudging against mine. She meets my gaze.
I pick a piece of popcorn from her hair and drop it back into the bowl. Her mouth twitches and she waits for my answer.
In the background, there’s a battle against the undead. We ignore it—both of us know how it ends, and it’s happily ever after for Shaun and his girlfriend.
“I lied about needing a dating coach.”
