Page 28 of Stacked
She laughed. “You’re storing it all under there?”
“Didn’t really have any other place to put it.” I lifted a curled edge, then stopped. “You sure you’re ready to see this? The whole vision has a way to go.”
“I’m ready.”
I pulled back the tarp, revealing the small stand, stacks of glued books, and other supplies the art students had arranged in the middle of the trailer. “Like I said, a total work in progress, but you can see where it’s headed.”
“Lady Liberty,” she whispered as she stepped closer. “Made out of books.”
“They’re doing a great job on it, aren’t they?”
Anya swiveled in my direction, and her eyes were wide. “They?”
“Sure.” I spread my hand. “I’m so busy with all the renovations to the store that there was no way I’d be able to do this myself, so I got help.”
She took one step toward me. “From whom?”
“A couple of high schoolers I got in touch with and—”
“Oh my God.” Anya closed her eyes, the spray of her lashes visible in the warm light. “Of course.”
“What does that mean?”
Her eyes snapped open. “Nothing.”
But I knew by the hardness in her voice that it wasn’t simply nothing at all. Something was wrong. In the space of less than two minutes, everything between us had changed. I flipped the tarp closed. “You’re upset.”
“No, I’m okay.” She backed away from me. “That looks...amazing, Robert,” she said, turning away.Was she angry? What’s going on here?I thought things were going well, and yet, Anya was once again leaving. “Thanks for dinner.”
She was already several feet away from me, moving through the space between the parking lot, the store, and the street.
“Let me walk you out.”
She shook her head. “No, I’ll show myself out.”
Anya turned and strode away. And then, just like the last time, she was gone.
