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Several people glanced my direction, giving me curious looks, but either she was already out of earshot, or she was purposefully ignoring me. Light gleamed through the expansive windows lining the front of the lobby.
I stared after her as she strolled out into the snowy morning.
A sense of this being a crossroads packed around me so tightly as I stood there, staring after her and trying to orient myself with what had just taken place.
Anyone else would have written me off as an idiot—and she’d done so before. But this time, she’d helped me. She’d been sweet, soothing, and distracting.
She’d opened herself up to me?—
And she wanted nothing to do with me.
“I should have told her I’d text her,” I said, strutting toward the abstract statue in the lobby’s center. It was of a pair of steel bars twining upward.
Maybe when I did, she’d start replying again.
Tinkling music played from the overhead sound system, chiming in the festive wishes of the season. I stared at themassive Christmas tree that was as tall as the statue and a thought wafted through along with the jolly melody.
Ella worked for me. She’d been so close all this time, and I hadn’t known.
She wanted her distance, but I’d have to at least find out where she worked and set things straight.
Which department did she work for, and why on earth were they operating on Christmas?
ELEVEN
hawk
I didn’t havetime to dive into the many mysteries Ella presented to me. Not right this second, anyway. She may not want a date with me—but I was more than eager to keep my current coffee date. It was with a woman I’d loved for as long as I could remember.
A woman who’d been a part of my life evenlongerthan I could remember. So what if she was old enough to be my grandma?
Don’t worry—this wasn’t that kind of date. Just breakfast. A casual meet-up to keep in touch and see how one another were doing.
Faye rose from the bench she’d been sitting on near the doors—while waiting for me, presumably—and shuffled her way toward me by the fountain. She ran her fingers through the chlorinated water as though she was considering reaching for a handful of the loose change floating around inthe bottom level of the pool.
I wouldn’t put it past her.
My godmother had always had that childish quirk about her. I often saw her doing things people either didn’t think to do or had outgrown after the age of twelve, like dancing on bubble wrap just to hear the popping noises or buying coloring books and crayons just because she felt like coloring.
I blamed the crazy women she hung out with. They called themselves the Godmother Gals—or GGs, as the case may be—and were known to do outrageous things for the sake of fun.
“Faye,” I said, causing her to lift her hand and let it hang over the water.
Small beads of water dripped from her wrinkled fingers.
Her face bloomed into a lined smile that always made me squirm a little inside. We weren’t blood-related, but that smile spoke of her pride in me, and the gratification from it swirled into my stomach.
If only Ella had stuck around. If I ever needed someone to vouch for my character, Faye would be the one to do it.
“How’s my favorite godson?” she said in her tired but good-natured voice.
“Aren’t I your only godson?”
“So far,” she said with a shrug.
“You sound like you expect to be asked for the honor again sometime soon.”
“Anything can happen,” she said. “Some of the GGs have more than one godchild. Are you ready? It’s cold outside. I need my coffee.”
