Page 65 of A Secret Chance
AHANDSHAKE AND A KISSon the cheek. That’s how they left things a week ago. She wanted more and she knew that he did too. The decision to wait until after the hearing was a smart move for both of them. Even if the anticipation was killing her. Not a day had gone by that she hadn’t dreamt about Baxter, and this morning, the dream had felt so real, his touch so visceral, that when she woke up in her bed alone, she wanted to cry.
Her argument against the development was solid; she knew that, but she had prepared herself for the worst – a loss. A loss that meant Baxter would stay in Chance Rapids, and the guilt from the joy that thought brought her haunted her.
Her life had gone on. She dropped Tabitha at school, went to work, made dinner, and went to bed. She had been happy with that, but now she felt like something was missing.
“Mom, where’s my toothbrush?”
“I already packed it,” she said.
Lauren sighed as she dropped Tabitha off at school, her overnight backpack bouncing on her back as she ran up the stairs.
Baxter had found excuses to message her every day, but they had all been business-related. Still, her heart jumped into her throat whenever she saw his name show up in her inbox. He could easily have had his assistant Nicole send the messages, so she knew that he was still thinking about her too.
She spent her day at the office reviewing her documents and recommendations. Her professional opinion hadn’t changed since she met Baxter. His project, as it stood, was a horrible option for the community and the environment.
Lauren walked home from work, kicked off her boots, and rummaged through the fridge. Without Tabitha, she could eat whatever she wanted, and tonight she opted for something easy – tuna. She turned on the broiler in her oven and plunked down on the sofa with a bag of tortilla chips. She usually spent her evenings reading, but after her week of intense preparation, she felt the need to fully vegetate. She balanced her plate on her knees and turned onGame of Thrones; between work and child-appropriate television shows, she was a little behind the times, and season one flickered on the screen.
Even if she wanted to go out partying, Charlotte and Logan were at his team’s hockey game, Serena and Freddie were in Las Vegas for the weekend, and Megan and Josh were exhausted from life with a newborn. But she didn’t want to go out, so she sat back and stretched out her legs luxuriously, pulling the handmade orange and green afghan over her legs.
The action on the TV flashed in front of her, but her mind was somewhere else – a heli-skiing lodge. Brock had held her in his arms all night, and she had felt a sense of belonging. She wondered if he was there with her now, would he slip in behind her? Would they snuggle into the late hours of the night? As her eyes grew heavy, she swore that she could feel his breath on her neck and his arms looped around her waist.
She woke up to total darkness, the text on the TV screen asking her if she was still watching. She sat up, disoriented until the furniture in the room slowly came into focus. She checked the time on her phone and saw that it was only ten p.m. She groaned. It felt like it was the middle of the night. She also saw that she had missed three calls from Baxter.
She padded to the bathroom to brush her teeth, wondering why he was calling her on a Friday. The hearing wasn’t until Monday morning. She splashed some cold water on her face and then pressed the button to listen to her voicemail messages. He was the only one who had called, and she smiled when she heard his voice.
Lauren, I need to talk to you about something important. Call me as soon as possible.
She stared at her phone, wondering what could possibly be so important. She let her finger hover over his contact information. Her stomach clenched as the worst-case scenario flashed in her mind, what if he found out about Tabitha. But how? She leaned against the sink, her internal lawyer arguing whether or not to wait until morning to call him. What if it’s about business? There’s nothing that can’t wait until the morning. But what if it’s really urgent? Oh, come on, there’s nothing that urgent, but Lauren’s gut overrode her brain, she pushed the button and her heart pounded in her ears as the phone started to ring.
‘Hi.’
‘Hi.’
‘I got your message,’ she said. ‘And I’m calling you back.’ She tried to sound as nonchalant as one could with their heart thumping like a bass drum in their ears
‘I need to talk to you,” he said.
‘Okay,’ she replied.
‘In person,’ he clarified.
‘Sounds serious,’ she said.
‘It is.’
She tried to gauge his response, but his voice was all business. There was no emotion, positive or negative, in his tone.
‘Can I come over?’ he asked.
‘What, right now?’ Her eyes glanced at the mirror where she saw the pillow creases in her face, and the kid’s toothbrush in the holder, evidence that a child lived in this home.
‘It’s important,’ Baxter stated.
‘I’ll meet you somewhere then.’ She couldn’t have him come to her house just yet. Not until she’d had the chance to explain everything.
‘You can come here. I’ll pick you up.’
‘No. No,’ she interjected. ‘If it’s that important, I will come up there.’
