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“Seriously…”
Rene spent the rest of the day enjoying herself, as Alice left her for the afternoon, to go be with her boyfriend. A few times, Rene caught herself on the verge of dialing Jesse, just to ask him how he was doing, but as soon as she would grab the phone, she immediately put it back.
Chapter 9
The following week, Parker was staying with his mother, so Rene wasn’t needed at the McGallan household. She was disappointed that she would be making less money than usual, but what surprised her even more was the fact that she missed both Parker and Hyde. She even missed that smartass, Jesse when he’d occasionally drop in.
Rene decided to spend the morning checking up on her emails and other online stuff she rarely had time to read, so she went and grabbed her purse, reaching inside. Rene was as tech savvy as any other woman, maybe even more so. But, she was at the same time, also very old school, which meant that she didn’t save her passwords and important information in her phone or in the browser, but rather she wrote down everything in her little black pocket book.
She always had it with her, in her purse, so it was easy to access.
She rummaged through her purse, which now held less items than it usually did. After a few seconds of futile search, Rene puffed heavily, turning her purse upside down, and spilling all the contents on her coffee table. Her lipstick rolled down onto the floor, but she didn’t pick it up. A pack of gum still lay there unopened. Her extra set of keys was inside, too. A small pocket mirror, which her mother gifted her years ago. It was all there, apart from the pocket book.
“Oh, crap…” she scolded herself loudly, as it hit her that the last time she saw it was at Hyde’s place.
She took it out of her purse, wrote down a new phone number where Hyde could be accessed at work, but she didn’t put it back in her purse. She just left it there on the kitchen table. So, it was there. Today was Tuesday, which meant that she could stay without all her info until next week or she could bite the bullet, call Hyde and drop by to pick it up. It was a tough choice.
It took her only a few seconds to make her decision. Her excuse was that she really needed that booklet, if she wanted to get some work done. Her real reason to call was pure, unadulterated desire. Knowing that Parker wouldn’t be there, she just planned on quickly going in and out. There would be no stops, no casual chit chat.
“OK,” she pep-talked herself, “You can do this, just dial the number and be your casual self.”
She took a deep breath, then dialed. Audible silence opened up before her, until finally she heard the promise of a ring. It repeated itself several times before Hyde picked up.
“Hey, Rene!” he greeted her before she could say anything first. “Everything OK?”
“Yeah,” she replied, quickly glancing at her watch, “sorry to bother you at work, but I forgot something at your place and I know you don’t need me this week, but I really need to pick up my pocket book. Maybe I could drop by later?”
“Oh, yeah, I saw it in the kitchen. I was wondering whether you needed it.”
“I do,” she lied so well that she blushed.
“Sure, today evening is fine. Around 5?”
“Five is perfect. Thanks.”
“No worries. See ya!”
“Bye…”
Her voice trailed off as she replied, then hung up the phone. Her hands were clammy. She felt like the phone was about to slip out of her hands, so she quickly placed it back in her purse. She checked her watch again, completely forgetting that she did it mere seconds ago. It was 2 pm - way too early to start now. She needed to busy herself with something. But, what?
Then, it occurred to her. She would bake chocolate chip cookies, and take some to Hyde. She remembered how much he loved them when she and Parker made them. She wondered if it would be too much, if he would see it as crossing some kind of an invisible line that existed between the two of them. Then, she thought to herself.
Fuck it.
She giggled. She actually cursed. Of course, no one heard it, it was only inside her mind, but it was still fun to do. Alice was right. She was usually right, only Rene was reluctant to admit it often.
Rene went and played herself some 50’s music, the stuff she and her mother used to listen to when they were baking together. She started humming to the tune of some familiar, old song that brought back bitter-sweet memories. She didn’t need to take out her recipe book. She knew most of them by heart.
Cooking was a talent she’d inherited from her mother. Rene inherited her desire for it as well. They both believed that the fastest way to a man’s heart was through the stomach. That worked perfectly with Rene’s dad. A brave military man, who always had that old look about him, even in his youth. Rene was always surprised when her mother would tell him how old he was in a certain photo. Rene herself always thought he was at least 15 years older. Strict but righteous, Rene’s father loved his daughter through a regime of discipline and occasional signs of affection, which she cherished more than anything. Rene always felt like her parents were just two sides of the same coin - without one side, the whole would be incomplete.
Surprisingly, the three hours flew by and she found herself at the door, keys and purse in one hand and a basket of cookies in the other.
“I look like a regular Martha Stewart,” she thought to herself, gazing into the mirror.
A second later, and she was driving her tired Caprice down a recognizable road. She could feel butterflies inside her stomach getting all excited, fluttering to get out. She took a few deep breaths, trying to calm them down, but it was all in vain. That eagerness to see Hyde remained at an all-time high, exacerbated by the fact that he would be alone in the house. If she walked in, then they would be alone in the house together.
She made a deal with herself not to stay, even if he asked her to. Of course, she didn’t want him to. Maybe she did, just a little. Or, maybe he would just see it was her at the door and he’d just bring over the pocket book and wave goodbye, without even inviting her in? All sorts of scenarios started swarming inside her mind, like curious bees.
