Page 6 of Just Dare Me
I blink out of my stupor and push away from the counter. My fox is just as anxious as Muppet to get out of this dungeon, get some night air. But I don’t dare touch the alarm system. Terrance is always changing the code, and one wrong entry will light this place up like a Christmas tree, if Christmas trees had blinding strobe lights and ear-piercing bullhorns.
Pausing outside the master bedroom, I put my ear to the door and listen. All is quiet. I ease the handle down and step inside. As expected, I am instantly seized by bitter envy. Nora sleeps peacefully in the center of a gargantuan bed, and she is surrounded by naked bodies, none of which is a slobbering labradoodle. No, these are man-bodies with bulging biceps and rippling abs, hard jawlines, and soft lips. The inner circle is pressed up against her on either side, but also at her feet and head. The outer ring of men is snuggled up to them, but reaching across their bodies in order to touch Nora, if only with a finger.
Hot tears swim in my vision as self-pity steals my thoughts away. I forget why I came in here. All I can think of is the fact that I’m not asking too much of the universe. I’m not! I don’t want what Nora has. She could literally have it all, if she wanted. She could claim every man in Detroit. I don’t need that. I only wantone. Just one! One out ofmillions.
From behind me comes the sound of somebody shifting in a seat. It’s Parker, of course. Wearing one of his impeccable suits, he sits in a luxurious recliner, one leg draped over the other, his open laptop resting on an end table next to a half-empty glass of wine.
Thankfully, he knows why I came in here. In silence he walks me out, gently closing the door behind us. “You were standing there a full minute.”
“Which means you were watching me a full minute.”
“Wondering what thoughts might be racing through your mind.”
“My thoughts don’t race,” I lie. Sometimes it makes me grumpy that everybody assumes I’m always scatterbrained, even if they may be right.
Muppet bounds ahead of us, leaping up the entryway staircase five steps at a time. I move ploddingly, pulling at the railing with each step. Parker’s dress shoes make light tapping sounds that echo in the dark.
He gives a little sigh, which I have come to learn is a sign of displeasure. “Not the best night for a walk. Rain coming.”
“Just what Muppet needs. A good rain.”
“You won’t go far, I hope.”
“Far is subjective. What do you consider far?”
“Brenner’s house is far. Too far.”
“You meanourhouse? Why would I go there?”
“I don’t know. Maybe just to stare at it for a full minute.”
“Or two, or twenty. So what?”
“It’s exactly what they’re hoping you’ll do. One of these nights, they’ll be waiting there.”
“Great. Saves us the trouble of finding them again.”
We’ve reached the top landing. Muppet paws at the front door.
“What if I told you as the Deputy Director of the FUA not to go back to your house?”
“Is that what you’re doing?”
“Is that what youwantme to do?”
“What the hell kind of circular argument is that?”
“I simply wonder if you’d rather be told what to do these days. Frankly, you seem lost.”
“Really! Well, frankly,youseem—” I bite my tongue, recognizing that critical moment just before I lose control of my temper. I close my eyes and exhale deeply while reciting a mantra. “Less words, morelistening. Less words, morefeeling. Less words…” I clasp my hands together and look him in the eyes. “And now…I’m listening to you.”
Parker is stunned. “Are you?”
“No, I’m not. But right now it’s enough that I’m saying the words.” I look at him, unblinking, my mouth closed. A long silence draws out between us.
He smiles. “Incredible. You’ve been practicing this?”
I speak in a rehearsed, even tone. “It’s Nora. She seems to think—and this is idiotic and totally not true—that maybe I sometimes let a little drama escalate into a big drama byovercommunicating. And don’t you dare laugh at that, or I’ll overcommunicate your face.”
