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ChapterFourteen
SPENCER
I’m in my back-office cubicle at the library, trying to stay on task, but something’s surfing around inside me. And it’s not the bacon and eggs I scarfed this morning. It’s a poke, poke, poke. This low-grade nagging, but I can’t identify the source. Which makes the sensation even worse.
Over in her own cubicle across from mine, Kayla clears her throat. Neither of us is expected at the reference desk for another half hour. But like me, she always comes in early. It’s one of the many things I admire about my partner: her work ethic.
“Everything okay?” she asks, and I glance her way. Then I quickly avert my eyes when I see she’s turned in her chair, totally focused on me.
“Yep. All good.”
“Hmmm.” Her hum is drawn out. Like she’s not completely sold. “It’s just that I heard you sigh. Like… more than once.”
Yeah. I did it again. “I’m just mulling over a new program I want to pitch to Mr. Dudley.” That’s not the real reason for my sighing, but Kayla doesn’t need to know that. “I’m thinking about a Virtual Reality club. We could have a weekly meeting in the community room with VR stations. It would be expensive, but we could get sponsors. Bring new traffic in. What do you think?”
I glance at her again. She’s still staring.
“I’m not sure we need more traffic, but it does sound amazing. I love VR.”
Something else we have in common.
Since we’re not on the clock yet, I refresh my email and read back over the last-minute instructions Tess sent me. Her message came in at three o’clock in the morning. I was awake too.
“Camp starts today, doesn’t it?” Kayla asks.
I nod, keeping my eyes on the screen. “This morning.”
“So I guess that means you’ll be staying there. Starting tonight?”
“Uh huh.” And now I’m stifling a yawn. Tired already. That is until I imagine Tess sleeping one cabin over. Does she wear nightgowns? Pajamas? A tank top and sweats? Either way, I picture her in pink.
I should stop picturing her in pink. “Tess asked me to tell you hi,” I say. “Well, she didn’t ask. She told me in a text.” This is hardly a big change of subject. I’m still thinking about Tess. When Kayla doesn’t respond, I risk another look at her.
Her head is cocked. “Tess textedyouto say hi tome?Instead of texting me to say hi herself? Has she done that before?”
“Yes. No.” I drag a hand through my hair. “I mean, yes, Tess texted me to tell you hi. No, she hasn’t done that before.” Even as I say this, I realize why Tess did it.
She’s pushing me toward Kayla as a reminder that I’m nowhere near her radar. And that she shouldn’t be on mine either. She got excited on Saturday and hugged me, now she’s backtracking. Big time.
Fine. I can take the hint. I don’t need yet another anvil to drop on my head. Since no one else is around, and Kayla’s too far away to see my screen, I create a new document on my computer and title it P & C: VRK.
That P stands for pros. The C is for cons. VRK stands for Virtual Reality Kayla, but no one else would figure that out. Now I can keep track of the reasons Kayla is the woman I should be trying to date. For real. Unlike the option of trying to trick Frank into believing I’m with Tess.
I start with the pros, trying to keep things vague, in case a meteor hits the library and everything is destroyed except my computer. Then someone might find it, figure out my password, and discover this document.
If it were obvious I’d been pro-ing and con-ing Kayla, that would be bad. So now I’m safe. And I’m sure I can knock this out in the next ten minutes before my shift.
PROS.
1. Timeliness.
2. Respectfulness.
3. Cleanliness.
4. Kindness.
Hmm. I pause to wrack my brain. There must be other VRK pros that are vague enough to be undecipherable but that also don’t end inness.
