BEAUTIFUL STRANGER by Ruth Wind

Author:Ruth Wind
Language: por
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

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Chapter 9

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By the time she got home, Marissa was in no mood for a walk. Her arm hurt, more than she wanted to admit, and when Ramona called to cancel, citing an emergency, she was relieved. Restlessly she roamed the house, feeling as if her mind was filled with noise—the teacher who'd made her angry, and Crystal's sorrow, and … everything. She found herself in the kitchen, peering into the fridge for something delectable to eat.

It was a startling moment. She only became aware of it after a long minute, maybe two, when she'd been bent, staring restlessly at the contents long enough that her neck got cold.

She closed the door and took a deep breath, closed her eyes. Was it really food she wanted? She tested her stomach—yes, it was hungry. That interesting hollow feeling. She hadn't been feeling that well this morning and had gone light on breakfast. Lunch had been in the cafeteria since it was a duty day—wilted iceberg lettuce drowned in dressing and a truly disgusting rigatoni.

What sounded excellent, then? She was tempted to turn around and look through the cupboards for ideas, but resisted, turning into her hungers instead. Avocados. Mmm, yeah. Cheese—a nice musky goat cheese, maybe. Yes. Wine. Oh, yes. A valpolicella, dense and red. And—oh, siren—focaccia dipped in olive oil.

She opened her eyes and grinned, then turned around to look at the calendar, checking off the days in her cycle. Bingo. In the middle of her menstrual cycle, she wanted this kind of food, dense with fat and nutrients. Resisting only caused a binge, but she also knew it would be a bad idea to go to the grocery store in this state. She'd come home with all kinds of weird things that would look strange tomorrow. Instead, she called the upscale grocer who catered to the ski-lodge set, put in her order and went upstairs to take a shower.

But the phone rang before she made it to the stairs. Raising her cast, with a smile, she picked up the phone and said, "You were right. It's broken."

"I don't know why you don't listen to me."

"I know." With a pinch in her chest, she curled close, holding the phone next to her shoulder. "I guess it's because I haven't seen you in so long, and now you're really going to be here, but I miss you terribly all of a sudden."

"Me, too. I have so much to tell you." She laughed wickedly. "Show you."

"So do I." The doorbell rang and Marissa said, "That's my groceries."

"Save some for me."

"Will do." She hung up and dashed to the front door, swinging it open and grabbing for her purse in one smooth motion. "That was fast!" she said, and then registered who it was standing there.

His hair was down, a thick, glossy curtain falling across one shoulder and down his back, framing that intensely Native American face. He'd showered since she'd seen him last, and put on a clean white shirt, plain as bread, but somehow all the more compelling for that.

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