“I guess he wanted you to pay for the ticket I saw on the desk yesterday while he was there.” There’s nothing my brother doesn’t notice. Of course, he already knew about it.
“Yep. I told him you had to sign off on it. He took it and I guess he’s paying for it himself.”
“As he should.” Pierce pulls out his phone and taps on the screen a few times before showing me the radar. “But yeah, we’re probably heading out early. I don’t want any of us to get stuck in the storm. They’re calling for tornadoes.”
That’s the last thing I want to hear. “I should probably pull all my candles out when I get home just in case we lose power. Are the backup generators ready to go here?”
“Yeah. I’ll probably stay here tonight in case anything goes wrong. Do you want to help me get these orders packed up so we can get them sent out before it hits?”
Not really. Packing orders means I’ll be stuck with my least favorite family member. But he’s right. We need to get these orders out unless we want angry customers. “Sure.”
I cross my fingers, hoping he doesn’t say anything else. Storms make me uneasy as it is, and the last thing I want to do is get into another argument with my brother.
The sky is dark and the winds are already picking up when I pull into my driveway. We managed to get all the orders shipped out and I’m grateful Pierce let us go home early. I need to mentally prepare for tonight.
As soon as I’m inside, I grab my phone out of my bag. I may be avoiding him a bit lately, but I need to make sure he’s aware of what the weather is doing.
Piper
There are supposed to be bad storms this afternoon into evening. Please tell me you’ll be home before they hit.
It only takes a few minutes for a response to pop up.
Beau
Yep. We’re leaving in about an hour or so. I should make it home with time to spare.
Piper
Good. Be safe on the roads.
Beau
I will.
Now, I need to find all my candles. I haven’t been home as much and haven’t had them burning like I usually do.
It doesn’t take me long to go through all the rooms and gather as many candles as possible onto the coffee table. The lighter is sitting to the side of them should I need them. I hope the power doesn’t go out. Living in the middle of nowhere with neighbors at least a mile apart, it can get very dark without any sort of light source. I may or may not have grown out of my fear of the dark.
A few moments later, I pull the mega bright flashlight my grandpa gave me out from under the sink. Between this and the candles, I should be set. A small part of me wishes I would have gone to one of my brothers’ houses for the night. But I’m still annoyed with them. Pride will be the death of me, I swear.
Food is next on the agenda and I preheat the oven to cook a frozen pizza. It’s a comfort food, and I don’t have to worry about it going to waste. It’s also quick and doesn’t dirty many dishes. A double win for me.
The leaves on the trees outside my kitchen window are swaying in the wind. I can hear them brushing against each other, and the house, and I know it’s going to be a bad storm. After sliding the pizza into the oven, I get any other supplies I might need.
The blanket from the foot of my bed, my pillow, and a stuffed animal Beau won for me at one of Asheville’s festivals. I’ve had it since high school, and while it may be well loved, it never strays far from me when I sleep. A small flashlight from my nightstand gets moved to the bathroom for a light source since it’s at the end of the hall.
Ding. My dinner is done and I rush to pull the pizza out of the oven and slide it on a plate. Once it’s sliced the way I like it, I grab it and a bottle of water before heading to my sofa.
With my phone plugged in and the TV playing one of my favorite romcoms, I dig in. The only thing that would make tonight less stressful is Beau sitting beside me and making fun of me for taking so many precautions. It’s all in good fun and I miss it.
No, Piper. You need to stop focusing on Beau. My intrusive thoughts are right. The only way to keep thoughts of kissing my best friend at bay is to look for a date. I grab my phone and open one of the dating apps. The first guy to pop up is one I’ve been on a date with before. I really need to remember to block the duds. He was nice enough. We didn’t really have any chemistry, though.
As I’m swiping through, a crash of thunder sounds around the house. That strike of lightning must have been close. Another boom and the front door swings open. What the hell?
I move to go close it and make sure it’s locked, but Beau is standing in the doorway.
“What are you doing here? I thought you weren’t leaving for another,” I glance at my phone. “Thirty minutes.”
