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A smile touched her face and filled her soul. She’d really done it. She’d moved to Hilton Head with a strategy in mind—and she’d done it.
She was more relaxed. She enjoyed her life so much more, because she got to live it. She’d found who she was, and gone back to roots she hadn’t known needed re-watering.
“Blake,” she said, and she got to her feet. The pencil dropped where it was, and Lauren knew it would be waiting for her tomorrow. Something always was, and when she was mentally healthy and excited about her tasks, they weren’t such a chore to do.
She quickly changed out of her more casual attire and into a little black dress that was sure to make Blake’s eyes light up the way they did when he wanted to kiss her. It was their three-month anniversary, and he’d promised to take her “somewhere special.”
She’d asked if she’d have to get on another boat with her eyes closed, and he’d promised she wouldn’t. Lauren did love a surprise, and she loved how Blake knew that. He took good care of her, and as she tucked her toes into a pair of lemon-yellow heels, she said, “Maybe you should ask him tonight about getting married.”
They hadn’t talked much about that, but Lauren suddenly heard a huge, booming clock in her head. Tick, tick, ticking away. They hadn’t talked about having more kids either, other than Lauren saying she was too old for such things. She’d started to wonder if she was, though, as more and more women had babies in their forties now.
When she finished getting ready, she still had a few minutes to spare, and she quickly tapped out a text to him.I want to talk about some serious stuff tonight. Is that okay? Or would you rather I waited until another day?
She sent the message without specifying much else, and she tucked her phone into a jeweled handbag. Blake didn’t respond immediately, and he never texted while he drove, so she assumed that was why.
He’d get the message, and he’d respond, either in a text or right to her face. Her heartbeat picked up speed at the thought of that, then immediately quieted when she reminded herself that shewantedto talk to Blake about these things. He was her safe space. The one person she could absolutely be herself with, and it didn’t matter if she was scattered, messy, crying, or upset. He took all of it for her, held her close, and then brought her soup.
Lauren stood at the back windows and looked out into her yard. Chloe meowed and wound through her legs, and Lauren tore her gaze from the sunshine outside. “I’ll feed you,” she said. She got fresh water for her cats, called for Oscar who didn’t come, of course, and looked at the clock.
Blake was late, and he hadn’t texted. Lauren hadn’t even realized what time it was. A spark of concern mixed with irritation fired within her. She didn’t have Tommy’s or Blake’s pin on her phone, and she didn’t have a monitoring app.
Her boyfriend hadn’t responded, and Lauren tapped out another message to him.Are you okay? On your way? Traffic is bad?
Traffic should be a non-issue, as it was a weekday. Tommy wasn’t with Blake during the week, but he could have some needy clients.
“Not at seven o’clock,” Lauren muttered to herself. She didn’t hear from him, and she’d employed a personal rule of cutting him off after a half-hour the first time they’d agreed to get together.
This wasn’t the first time they’d be going out, and Lauren tamped down her frustration and let her concern rise. There had to be something seriously wrong if Blake hadn’t called her or texted her back by now.
She went to her phone, which had seemed like a third hand for so many years. She tapped out a message to Grant, Harrison, and Scott, all of whom knew Blake really well and whose numbers she had.
They all got the same question from her.Have you heard from Blake recently? I’m trying to get in touch with him and haven’t had any luck.
Of course, she hadn’t called him yet either, and the moment the last text was sent, she tapped to do just that. His line rang and rang, and when his voicemail picked up, so did Lauren’s pulse.
She reverted right back to the woman who’d been so excited to go out with him last summer. She’d spent time and energy on her makeup and clothes, choosing things with great care and matching her jewelry just-so. She’d then sat at the restaurant by herself, without a single peep from Blake.
She closed her eyes and drew in a breath through her nose. Her call with Jess had not gone well. She hadn’t heard from him since. Not even a text.
Her mother rarely texted or called, and usually only after Lauren initiated something. Not a peep from her either.
With her eyes shut, the world was dark, and Lauren was so utterly alone. No one to talk to. No one to share her great day with. No one to love, and no one to love her.
Her chest felt hollow and collapsible, like one wrong breath would do her in completely.
Cat claws sounded on the tile floor in the kitchen, drawing Lauren out of the dark space inside her mind. Oscar lapped at the running kitty fountain, then took a bite of his cat chow, finally gracing them all with his presence. In this house, he really liked the spot under the settee in her bedroom, for a patch of sunlight fell underneath it all afternoon, keeping him warm and comfortable.
Chloe jumped up on the couch next to Lauren, and she stroked her absently. She meowed too, probably wanting to go outside and find some innocent birds to torture.
Lauren didn’t move from the couch. She sat there for a long time. Long enough for her stomach to rumble for the want of food. Long enough for everyone she’d texted to say they hadn’t heard from Blake. Long enough for the sun to go down.
When it was too dark for her to see much in the house, Lauren got to her feet. She changed out of her dress, this three-month anniversary bad enough to make tears prick her eyes. She didn’t let them fall, and she bypassed the card she’d picked up for Blake yesterday.
If he ever called her, she’d find out what was going on.
She switched on lights and started making chicken noodle soup. Her father had made it for her when she was a tiny, tiny girl, and she couldn’t believe she still had those memories in her brain. She missed her father terribly, and she couldn’t help wondering how different her life would’ve been had he not died when she was ten years old.
Her mother wouldn’t have gotten remarried. She wouldn’t have moved north, leaving Lauren all alone, hardly able to take care of herself. Her daddy had possessed a big personality, and he wouldn’t have allowed the distance that currently sat between Lauren and Jess.
