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“Yeah.”
“You’ve got a lot of thinking to do, so I’ll get out of your hair.”
I stood when he went to leave. “Thanks for coming by.”
“You’re welcome.”
“You weren’t really in the area, were you? For work?”
With his hand on the doorknob, he turned back, his smile widening. “On a Saturday? No, I wasn’t.” He went out, closing the door quietly behind him. A few seconds later, the sound of his truck starting up rumbled through the parking lot, fading away as he headed back towards Esperance.
On my own again, I flopped onto the bed, curling up on my side. I definitely felt less miserable and less hopeless, but maybe more confused. And exhausted. And completely emotionally drained. Letting my eyes drift closed, there was one thought that was top of my mind as I tumbled into sleep.Jake.
* * *
“Fuck.” It was mid-afternoon when I woke, looking around at the drab hotel room for a moment, trying to figure out where I was.Jake.Without giving it a second thought, I reached for my phone, groaning in frustration when I saw that it was dead.
Did I even have the charger in my purse? Yes! Thank Christ. I quickly plugged it into the wall, my hands shaking as I waited impatiently for it to charge enough for me to make a call.
My heart was hammering in my chest when the screen finally lit up and I could bring up Jake’s number. I pictured him at home, on his own, missing me, and had to swallow around the guilty lump in my throat. He answered on the third ring.
“Emma!”
I sank to the floor at the sound of his voice, leaning against the wall and hugging my knees. “Hey.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I am. I’m so sorry that I ran out on you like that. I was just really…I don’t know, actually.”
“It was a lot to dump on you, and I’m sorry for that…I…I don’t know either.”
“I just wanted to hear your voice.”
“What do you want me to say to you, Em?”
“Anything.”Liar.There was only one thing I needed to hear him say.
A long silence, where I could picture Jake running his hand through his hair, making it all messy. “Did you see the Knight’s won yesterday’s game?”
I laughed softly. “No, I didn’t watch it. Who scored?”
“Hastings, of course.”
“Of course.”
“Might have pulled his hamstring, though.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah.”
Another long pause. “Are you playing tonight?” I’d been so looking forward to watching him and was planning burgers at the diner after. It seemed like I’d made those plans a lifetime ago.
“I guess so.”
“Well, good luck.”
“Thanks.”
