Blessed Twice by Lynn Galli

Author:Lynn Galli
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Retail
ISBN: 9781432730512
Publisher: Outskirts Press
Published: 2008-08-10T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 22

This time when I approached her door, I didn’t bother to look at the architectural details. I was too excited to see her. My inline skates hung over my shoulder, but I barely noticed their weight. I knocked twice and waited.

“I’m not late, am I?” I asked when M opened the door. “Gene stopped by my office before I left. I wasn’t sure I’d get out of there in time.”

She smiled, familiar with how our dean’s drop bys killed thirty minutes more than was ever necessary. “You’re right on time. Ready?”

“Mind if I use your bathroom? I didn’t get a chance before Gene cornered me, and I had to leave to get here.”

She hesitated briefly but stepped back to let me inside. “Sure, second door on your left at the end of the hall.”

“Thanks, I’ll just be a minute.” My bladder rushed me through the living room and into the hallway. I caught a glimpse of her home office on the left as I walked past the first open door. As pristine as her living room and kitchen, a black and white workspace where I guessed she spent a good deal of her apartment time.

When I resurfaced from the immaculate bathroom—clearly, she didn’t have kids—I made my way back at a much slower pace. As I passed the next door, what I saw brought me to a standstill. Her bedroom, smaller than her office, was awash in color. Two tones of yellow on two walls butted up against the other two walls with burnt orange blending up into cinnamon. I was immediately reminded of the fall season in Vermont. Color must represent some sort of comfortable place for her. To see it everywhere would strip it of its meaning. That it was in her bedroom told me she needed the security it brought to help her sleep. Along with the clustered furniture in the small area, it made for a cozy, sheltered space.

Not wanting to get caught, I hurried back out into the living room. M was just grabbing her skates from the front closet. I studied her again, piecing together what I knew about her. She’d had a hard childhood. She didn’t make friends easily. She was painfully shy. She didn’t like people violating her personal space. She needed a security blanket. And she was slowly stealing my heart after years of being locked in limbo.

“All set?” she asked when she turned back.

More than you know. “Yep. Do you have a specific trail in mind?”

“We can get to the park pretty easily from two streets over.” She opened her door and waited for me to head out in front of her.

I resisted the urge to brush up against her on my way by. After Quinn told me about Willa’s personal space theory, I realized that I needed to get M to trust that I wouldn’t infringe on her space without her permission so that she could drop her guard around me. As much as I was starting to feel for her, I knew it would be one of the hardest things I’d ever do.

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