Page 110 of Where Roads Lead

I closed out of my email and switched over to the tab I’d been writing in. My personally imposed deadline was closing in on me, which was the only thing forcing me to work tirelessly on my manuscript.

Once the three months were over, I’d cut my losses and move onto the next phase of my remodeling my life plan. It wasn’t like I had any other choice, really. I’d be out of money for rent by then, anyway.

But God, did I want to at least finish this before I left. This was the only thing I was letting myself do for me, and if I couldn’t accomplish that, then it would feel like I’d given up on myself and my dreams.

With the date on the calendar surging me forward, and a cup of disgustingly decent instant coffee to caffeinate me, I sat down at the kitchen table to write.

When I’d left Ellie and Hugh, they’d been in the middle of one of their arguments. They had them a lot, mostly because they were the most exciting part to write about.

I could get into each character’s headspace pretty easily, figure out the driving force behind each of them. Their dialogue came naturally, their banter second-nature.

I laughed as they got closer and closer to each other’s faces, both adamant on standing their ground against each other.

And then he leaned his head in and kissed her—

“Wait, what?” I said, fingers pausing as I stared at the words I’d just written.

Backspace. Backspace. Backspace.

“Okay, that was weird,” I muttered, trying to figure out what would possess me to even consider that for them.

I shook the thought of it out of my head, fingers coming down against the keyboard to write them off in a different direction at the same moment a faint thud came from outside.

I paused my fingers, listening intently, but all was quiet.

Resuming position, I typed another sentence right as the noise started back up again.

Once more, I ceased typing, trying to tune into what the hell was making the thudding noise in the distance.

I knew it wasn’t Creamsicle wreaking havoc somewhere, because he was curled up on the chair beside me.

But infuriatingly, the noise stopped once more in sync with my own pause.

I waited a moment, then two, and slowly brought my fingers down to the keyboard to type, snatching them away right before they hit the keys, at the very moment the noise picked back up again.

“Aha!” I jumped to my feet in victory before running to the kitchen door. “I knew I heard something. Trying to make me feel crazy.”

I threw open the door, taking the time to shrug on a hoodie and slippers before running out to the yard to investigate the noise.

The source became immediately evident.

“I should’ve guessed.” I laughed dryly at the sight of Will scaling the side of my house. “Can I ask why you’re on a ladder?”

When he turned to look down at me, the headlamp strapped to his forehead nearly blinded me.

“Geez.” I threw a hand up, squinting at its brightness. “Don’t mind my eyes. Not like I need them for life or anything.”

“Go back inside,” he said before turning back to my roof. “It’s cold out.”

“Right,” I said, wrapping my arms around myself. “Which is why I’m wondering what you’re doing out here in the dark like a creep?”

“I’m cleaning your gutters.”

“You’re cleaning my—what?” I nearly stuttered at the absurdity of it all.

“They’re pretty backed up,” he said. “I figured I should take care of it before it gets too bad.”

“Isn’t that a job for, I don’t know, the daylight hours?”