The freedom this gives me usually feels amazing.
But right now, I just feel alone.
CHAPTER THREE
FLETCH
The weird tiny woman who smiled at me is in my row.
Nope, not in my row, right next to me.
Great.
I don’tdosmiley people, but even if I did, this earnest little elf of a woman in her green denim jacket, plaid brown pants, and bubbly smile would be … a lot.
Doesn’t matter if she has a knockout smile or hazel eyes that shine way too bright.
In fact, those are part of the problem.
I shove my backpack beneath my seat while she stops in front of our row and drops the handle to her small rolling suitcase.
Then she glances up and wrinkles her nose.
What grown woman wrinkles her nose? Is she straight out of the North Pole?
She looks around her, like she’s checking that the aisle is clear. Then she squats, grabs her bag, and launches herself up, practically throwing it into the overhead compartment.
It’s like watching a clumsy puppy finally figure out stairs. Almost annoyingly endearing.
Almost.
She drops into the middle seat with a satisfied sigh and grins again.
If she starts talking …
I’m about to put in my earbuds when the woman says, “I have a charging cord if you need.”
I look at her in confusion. She smiles and points at the red light on my earbud case.
Out of battery.
I huff. “I’ve got one.”
“Cool. If you need an extra, just let me know.” Her light brown hair bounces just above her shoulders.
“Sure.” It comes out less sarcastic than I intended. Then I look at that absurd smile and can’t stop myself from adding, “Thanks.”
I grab my charger and plug it into the armrest port. But then I check my phone and notice that my downloads didn’t complete. And I only have one bar in here.
Crap.
“What do you like to listen to?” she asks, her voice light, her eyes curious. “I’m Poppy, by the way.”
No way is her name Poppy. Why would her parents do that to her? Was she not this obnoxiously tiny and cute as a baby?
“True crime,” I tell her. “And I’m Fletch. Well, Ollie. Ollie Fletcher.” At that, her eyebrows pull together and her eyes scan my face for just a moment.
“Good to meet you … Fletch? Ollie? What do I call you?”
