The Covering by Dana Pratola

Author:Dana Pratola
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pelican Ventures Book Group

The Covering

19

Murder. A terrible word, no doubt. The worst thing a man could do was take a life. Yet despite Gunnar’s best efforts, Tessa didn’t see the monster he tried to illustrate. She saw a man who deeply regretted huge mistakes, and knowing he deserved punishment, was determined to inflict it upon himself.

Before she heard the heavy footfall of boots or the jangling of his car keys moving along the side of the house, Tessa knew he was leaving and likely wouldn’t be back. While one man might use the confession of murder as a key to open a new door of his life, Gunnar used it as a key to lock the door behind him, leaving her on the other side.

The scene with him a little while ago frazzled her nerves. She needed to relax before this evening’s service. No sooner had she settled on the bed than her mother called. Once Tessa convinced her Gunnar hadn’t sold her into slavery, and promised to call her tomorrow, she closed her eyes and nestled into the pillow. But Gunnar haunted her.

Frustrated, she rolled to her back. Was she romanticizing him, attributing to him some sensitive consciousness he didn’t in fact possess? What if he wasn’t as remorseful as she thought, and his declaration of guilt was merely the warning he pronounced it to be?

She might simply be reacting to the gravitational pull inherent in dynamic people like movie actors or rock stars. As a girl, she’d been as susceptible as anyone, but now, in the real world, she should be immune to that. She shouldn’t require a reaction so powerful it couldn’t be overlooked before she was drawn to someone.

As it was, she found it hard just to muster the enthusiasm to accept a dinner invitation. Oh, Tessa dated attractive men—when she dated—but most weren’t interesting enough to warrant more than a sigh of relief when they walked her to the door. Which might be the reason she’d had a total of three second dates in her whole life.

Until Scott. Looking back, she couldn’t remember what she’d seen in him. They’d dated for a year, but each time they were together had felt like a second date, never progressing in drive or emotion. She had started to believe she was defective.

But Gunnar effectively squelched the worry that she couldn’t feel anything for a man. Psychologically, things were murky, but physically…wow! He didn’t even have to touch her to have a firestorm of sensations raining down on her.

She wished she could define their relationship. It wasn’t a friendship in the conventional sense, and they were unquestionably more than acquaintances. Apart from basic human attraction, kinship might be an apt label for what they shared. Although not immediately evident, she and Gunnar shared a common bond—a sense of disconnection, she from her parents, and he from everyone else.

How did the man exist? So vexed, so explosive. The only time he seemed remotely at ease was at his shop. Thinking back, it astounded her to consider the talent and skill required to transform ideas into substance in such a way.

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