Page 30 of Her Wicked Plan

“That makes sense.” I sip on my drink, the liquor warming my body, making me realize it is early January and cold out. Scarlet is only wearing her dress. She must be freezing. “If I had a jacket, I would offer it to you.”

“Don’t worry about me, Leo.” She smiles, the tip of her finger coming up to play with the rim of her cup. “I’m used to colder weather.”

“You aren’t from Washington?”

“Nope,” she answers with a shake of her head. “I’m from Alaska. This weather feels like Summer to me.”

“The summers here for you must suck.”

She tosses her head back, laughing with me. “The summers here make me feel like I could melt away to nothing, but it’s nice to experience the heat.”

Scarlet keeps her eyes forward, giving me the perfect opportunity to get another look at her. The slope of her nose. The plump of her lips. The dark green of her eyes. She might be perfect.

Knowing she might sense my eyes on her, I force them away to realize we have come up to the lake. A bench sits along the edge, pine trees lining the perimeter of the large body of water.

Glancing over my shoulder, I spot my office window. The place where I see the view of the lake every day, but being out here, standing before it, it’s not the same from inside.

From my window, the frame paints the lake as a picture—a piece of art that I’m only allowed to look at with my eyes, but out here . . . it’s different. The moon cascades down on the still water, making the scene look surreal.

I underestimated how big the lake was because I assumed it was smaller that you could easily walk around, but . . . this lake was massive. From the window in my office, it appeared big, but now, standing next to it, it looks like it never ends.

“Wow.” The word slips past my lips in a whisper full of wonder.

“I know,” she agrees. “I love coming out here whenever I can.”

“After dealing with the chaos all day, it’s gotta be peaceful out here.”

“It is. This is a safe space for me, somewhere that I can clear my head. If I have a rough day with one patient or multiple, I like to come out here and forget my day,” she tells me, sipping more of her drink.

“Are you liking it here so far?” Scarlet asks, taking the flask from my hands with a smile.

“I am,” I respond with a grin. “I’ll be honest; I was nervous as hell to work here. It’s way different from the office I was at in the city, but I knew this would be good for me—a change in scenery.”

A long sigh leaves the woman beside me. “The city life has to be chaotic. I could never live there.”

“It’s not all that bad.” I shrug, adding a little more to my cup. “Yeah, it can get loud and overwhelming with all the people, but all the great food places are within walking distance.”

“That is a plus.” She smirks. “Were you living with someone?” My head turns toward her, and she expresses fears that she may have overstepped. “I’m sorry. That was probably too personal of me to ask. I was just wondering because if so, it must have been hard leaving them to come here.”

“I had a roommate. His name is Myles, and he’s my best friend,” I tell her. “It was hard to leave him since we haven’t been separated since we found each other in college, but I still talk with him daily.”

“That’s cute,” she states with a playful smile.

“Are you making fun of me, Scarlet?” I twist my body to face hers.

“No! I would never!” She fights the smile, tugging at her lips. “How you talk about him sounds like he is your partner, not just a friend.” Her head whips in my direction. “I’m not saying that would be a bad thing! If you were gay... I mean... oh my God, I need to stop talking.”

“It’s cute when you ramble.” I chuckle. Great. The liquor is making me brave enough to flirt with her.

“You might be the only one to think that.” She bites at her cheek. “Sorry. When I drink any alcohol, the words won’t stop from spilling out of me.” Scarlet takes her phone from her small purse to look at the time. “It’s getting late. We should probably head back. Hide Edith’s flask before someone sees it.”

“You’re right. I’d hate for it to get confiscated.”

With that, we head back inside. The coast is clear in the lobby; luckily, Edith left the safe open the tiniest bit. I slide the flask back inside, shut the door, and hit the lock button.

“Thank you for the tour,” I tell her when I turn to face her.

Her hand comes up and smacks her forehead. “I didn’t even give you the proper tour. I’m sorry, Leo. Whenever I go outside, I immediately head for the lake. I wasn’t even thinking.”