Page 36 of Ms. Lead

“Great,” I smile at his reflection. “I’ll be right there.”

Suddenly I’m nervous, and I don’t know why. Nothing has changed since last night except the sun rising, so I shouldn’t feel this way. I haven’t changed my mind about anything either, so that’s not it.

Maybe I’m concerned that Oliver has changed his mind and will stick to his guns about going it alone. That would be devastating. But then, would he bring us breakfast if he was going solo? I don’t think so, but who knows where his head is? I sure don’t.

Well then, find out.

Chapter Twenty-One

OLIVER

READY FOR SOMETHING

I did not anticipate any of this. Not telling Bianca about my MS, and certainly not her standing up to me the way she did last night. I still don’t know what to make of it all. While I am somewhat relieved to have everything off my chest and out in the open, I feel like I’m waiting for the other penny to drop.

Bianca’s reaction was above and beyond anything I could have hoped for, and I don’t trust it because of that alone. Finding her in the bathroom a little while ago, completely lost in thought, only adds to my mistrust of the situation.

If she came to me now and told me she was done; she’s decided that it’s too much for her to handle, I would completely understand and wouldn’t blame her for one second. It would hurt like a bastard, but it would make sense.

If I were in her shoes, I don’t know that I wouldn’t run for the hills at the earliest opportunity. Especially since it’s such an unknown.

Her vow to learn about my disease to make an informed decision has only increased my respect for her tenfold. But my guard is still raised. I do not want pity of any sort, regardless of how it goes with her, and so far, thank God, she’s not done that.

She’s staring at the tray of breakfast items, debating within herself on what to eat.

“You know you can have whatever you want. You don’t need to pick just one thing.” I chuckle and stand next to her, debating my own choice.

All of the pastries look delicious, and my stomach grumbles loudly. She glances up at me, and we both burst into laughter. Leave it to my empty stomach to break the ice between us.

“Well, you better pick first, obviously.” She gives me a smile that melts my insides. It’s the smile from the airport. The one that told me in that first instant that I was a goner. “It sounds like we wouldn’t want your stomach to get any angrier.”

We take our time and eat our breakfast leisurely. Neither of us has plans for the rest of the day, so it’s nice to go at a slow pace for once instead of rushing from interview to interview like we typically have been doing. I do have to cram a lot into my schedule in one month. I’m lucky to have most of the weekends free like this.

“I should take you to Tahoe with me next weekend. I think you’d like it,” she says to me over her coffee mug, a thoughtful expression in her eyes. It feels like a special invitation that isn’t often handed out.

I arch a brow at her, curious. “Why do you think I would like it?”

She tilts her head, considering. “Well, it’s peaceful, for one thing. And it’s beautiful. These desert sunsets are great and all, but there’s nothing like watching a sunset from a boat in the middle of a lake.”

Her entire body relaxes as she pictures this in her mind, and I instantly want to be there with her to experience it. If it makes her react like this with a memory, I want to feel the real thing firsthand.

“Well, then, I would love to see that with you.” I like that we’re making plans, but it makes me wonder about my time left here. I will eventually need to go back home to write this book I’m diligently working on. I have a strict deadline with my publisher, and Darcie has warned me that there will be no further extensions of time. Almost two weeks have already passed, and I only have two left. I need to make the most of them. It hits me then what she said. “Wait. You have a boat too?” I’m starting to wonder if perhaps Bianca has money like the Carmichaels. It sure sounds like it.

She smirks at me as if she knows what I’m thinking. “It’s an old power boat that my grandfather used to use for fishing, but yes, there is a boat.”

This short jaunt sounds better and better. I guess I’m game for all kinds of new adventures now. So much has changed in the last 24 hours that it’s hard to keep track of all the new possibilities.

“You should definitely see the Grand Canyon while you’re here too,” she announces matter-of-factly as she rips off a piece of croissant and pops it into her mouth.

“Oh?” I kind of love that she’s taken over my itinerary for me. All I had planned for my days off was going through my notes. These destination explorations sound a lot more fun than that. It begs the question, though, and I dare to broach the subject but keep it cheeky. “I can think of ways to spend time that doesn’t involve any travel….”

That gets me a piece of croissant thrown directly at my face. She has good aim, perhaps from growing up with an older brother. I also got a laugh from her, so I didn’t miss the mark by too much. Even I don’t know how serious I was.

* * *

The week both flies by and drags at the same time. It’s an anomaly of physics that would stump the most learned horologist. We agreed that Bianca would take this time to learn what she can about MS on her own and will bring any questions with her this weekend. So, I’m preparing myself for the onslaught waiting for me in Lake Tahoe. I am curious about what she’s learned and where from. It should be an interesting weekend.

We take the short hour-and-a-half flight from Vegas to the Reno airport and then drive about another hour to reach the house on the north edge of the lake. It’s dark when we arrive, and the place is secluded, so I’m unable to see much of the architecture as we pull up. It appears to be a normal-sized house with a modest two-car garage.

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