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“Yeah. This is my glamorous life.”
The corner of his mouth hitched into a partial smile. He liked her dry tone, sensing the sarcasm was strong with this one.
“You probably get a good discount.”
“Ah, yes. A girl living alone always needs meats and paper products in bulk.”
He perked up. Had she intentionally mentioned she lived alone? “I hear you. Well, now that we’re neighbors, maybe we can barbeque together some time. I can handle my fair share of beef.”
Her expression shuttered, and the energy shifted, telling him he’d crossed a line. But he wasn’t clear how.
“Vegetarian?” he asked, uncertain what offended her. “I grill a mean vegetable kabob, too.”
Her brow lowered. The energy still wasn’t right. Where had he gone wrong?
He laughed nervously. “I’m just kidding.”
She looked for the next customer, as if willing them to arrive sooner. “I like working here, because I don’t have to deal with people. Customers are usually in and out.”
As far as hints went, it was anything but subtle. “Got it.” So much for being neighborly. “Well, I guess I’ll see you around.”
She gave a tight-lipped smile. “Probably.”
Had he done something to make a bad impression or was this her norm? He wanted to watch her interact with someone else to see how she behaved with others. For a tiny thing, she sure had her guard up, and by guard, he meant huge freaking fortress.
He shoved the cart away, glancing back to see if she was watching him. She wasn’t.
The bulky coat swallowed her figure but not enough to hide the way her posture slouched as she massaged tension from her neck. She moved her head from side to side, and when she let out a breath, a cloud of vapor passed her lips.
He frowned, wondering what would make her so overwrought?
That night when he got home, he found himself searching out his neighbor on social media, but Maggie Harris didn’t exist online. Her mysterious secret identity only peaked his interest.
He found himself peeking out windows, trying to get a glimpse of her. He looked for any clue to fill in the puzzle. Around eleven that night, just as he was lying down for bed, a dim flash caught his eye. And then another.
He stood and went to the window, staring at Maggie’s dark house, seeing nothing out of the usual. He was losing his mind.
Turning away, something flashed again and he pivoted back to the window. A light from the second floor illuminated lace curtains then the window went dark. Ten seconds later, it flicked on again—then off.
He frowned. “What the heck?”
On, off, on, off, on. It flickered back and forth every thirty seconds.
Should he go over there? Maybe it was faulty wiring. Was she even home? He didn’t see her bike. What if she was home and something was wrong and she was sending a signal for help?
He knew the pattern for SOS in Morse code and that wasn’t it, but maybe…
It went off again and he waited. The window stayed dark for some time, making him believe everything was fine. He needed to mind his own business and get some sleep.
Returning to bed, he mentally added curtains to his shopping list. Lying back in the dark, he folded his arms on his bare chest and stared at the ceiling. He should get a TV for up here.
The light flickered again, just as he was about to pass out. “All right, what the hell is going on?” He sat up and scowled at the window as the light went out. Was this going to happen all night?
He went downstairs and shouldered into a flannel shirt he’d tossed over the railing. Using the front door, something he rarely did, he skipped down his front steps and nearly broke his neck trying to manage his way up hers. Did she know her front porch light was out?
He knocked, glancing at the fixture. Maybe she couldn’t reach the light to change the bulbs.
“Come on,” he grumbled, stuffing his fists in his pajama pants and huddling into his flannel against the wind. He knocked again and the door opened.
Maggie looked up at him and frowned. “Yeah?”
“Are you okay?” He hadn’t meant to snap, but it was colder than a witch’s tit outside.
“What?”
Shivering, he jerkily pointed toward the second floor on the side of her house facing his. “I saw your light flickering. I didn’t know if you were trying to get my attention or needed help or something.”
Her freckled cheeks tinged with pink. It was the first time he saw her without her wool cap, and he couldn’t help but admire her dusky brown hair that tumbled far past her narrow shoulders. There was so much of it. It swallowed her petite form, exposed in a worn white tank top and a pair of baggy cargo pants. No bra.
