Page 27 of Abdominal Snowman

“Dick?” Sage asked, a furrow between her brows as she walked the small bowl of finished crema to the table. He lowered her beer to the table next to her seat when her voice filled the room. “How do you know Dick?”

Busted.

He fiddled with the label on his own beer. “So, something about me… I have excellent hearing,” he told her, then held his breath.

Color rushed to her cheeks, but it wasn’t anything less than she suspected.

“He’s… He was my boss. Asshole.” She opened the bottle up for a sip and shook her head.

“So he’s… not a boyfriend?” Soren asked.

Sage’s head whipped around to him so fast he feared she gave herself whiplash. She was silent for the longest moment before her cheeks puffed out. Eyes glittering, she erupted into laughter.

“Oh god, Dick? Absolutely not. You need to be careful with that super hearing shit. You’re gonna get yourself into trouble one day with assumptions like that,” she scolded.

“Got it,” he said, trying to hide his embarrassment. “I just wanted to make sure there wasn’t a prince charming coming to rescue you from the mountain beast.”

“Nope,” she answered. “This princess is all on her own.”

Her dark gaze warmed as their eyes met. Clearing his throat, Soren continued bringing plates over, but once they were settled, Soren asked a question he couldn’t stop thinking about. “You say he was your boss. What happened?”

“I quit,” she replied and began assembling her tacos. “Same old, same old. Dick really liked the other dicks he worked with, so he always put his guys’ stories first. I finally got sick of it and told him to find someone else.”

Soren frowned and leaned an elbow on the table, tacos momentarily forgotten. “Why didn’t he like your stories?”

Rolling her eyes, Sage took another sip of beer before answering. “He’s a misogynistic pig. Thinks that just because I’m a woman that I can’t write entertainment like his guys.”

Frustration on her behalf rumbled in his chest like a warning before an avalanche. “That’s not fair.”

“Tell me about it. I put up with it for half a year. Gritting my teeth. Biting my tongue.” She let out a little groan of frustration. “Fuck that guy.”

“Fuck that guy,” Soren echoed.

Sage blinked over at him in surprise, a half smile curling her lips. “That’s why I came out here, ya know?”

“What is?” he asked.

Her brown eyes glittered at him as she answered. “I wanted a change of scenery. Something different.”

Now she was staying with a monster. “Seems like you found it.”

She smiled at him and leaned back in her chair. “You know, I’ve never seen snow.”

Soren spit out the beer he’d been sipping and coughed while she giggled in the background. “What?” he asked, appalled at the idea.

“Yeah, I’ve always lived in Florida, and it doesn’t snow there. If it did, it had to be when I was little and I don’t remember it.”

“That’s… insane,” he finally remarked, still coming to terms with the idea.

“Well, have you ever been to the beach?” she questioned.

“No,” he answered abruptly. “I don’t like the heat.” The beach? All open space and no relief from the sun? No thanks.

“Well, see? Not that weird,” she interjected.

“Do you enjoy the heat?” He had to know.

Her lips twisted into a grimace. “No. I don’t like sweating and walking out of my house into a blanket of humid, hot air. Ugh.”