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It was no wonder hashtags still gave him nightmares, or why women all over the Big Apple had started throwing their drinks at him while getting in and out of taxis. When the hate mail started showing up at work, clients began to pull away.
“But what if your plan backfires?” he asked Will. “Our company can’t survive another derogatory publicity hit.”
“Don’t worry, I’ve got a whole team working on a way to bring you back without torching every bridge we’ve built. Because while it’s great that we found a way to have you work remotely, it’s definitely not as convenient as having you here.”
“Tell me about it,” Isaac muttered.
“Look, just keep encouraging the team to go after as many bids as possible and keep your head down a little longer,” Will said. “If we’re lucky, this whole thing could be cleaned up by Christmas.”
“Christmas?”
“Or maybe Halloween. Hopefully sooner.”
Isaac raked a hand through his hair. How had one short relationship managed to go so wrong?
Isaac struggled the remainder of the evening with restlessness. Thankfully, it was Thursday—the one day he allowed himself a reprieve from the Island o’ Manning. At eleven o’clock each week, he jumped in his Ford Escape and did precisely that: escaped from Bourbon Falls. Twenty miles to the west sat Grissom’s Market, a mom-and-pop grocery store that surprisingly stayed open all night and had most of his essentials. What he couldn’t find there, he simply ordered online and had shipped to his door.
Truthfully, he could have had his entire order delivered, but these weekly trips held benefits that were twofold: one, they helped support the local economy, and two, it gave him a legitimate excuse to get back out into society, if only for a little while.
No, it wasn’t exactly “keeping his head down,” but it was the only way Isaac knew to keep from going completely stir crazy. Plus, the store was generally empty that late on weeknights, and he always made sure to go unshaven and wearing his ballcap nice and low.
Tonight, eleven couldn’t come fast enough. He had his shoes on and laces tied at five til, counting off the seconds until his departure. Silly? Undoubtedly. But then, so was this entire arrangement. All he could hope for now was that Will and his cleanup team knew what they were doing…and were doing it as quickly as possible.
By eleven-thirty, he was strolling through the aisles at Grissom’s, in no hurry to find the items on his meager list. Dog food and milk were his only absolute necessities this trip, but that didn’t stop him from cruising every aisle and stopping to consider each sale advertised. He slowed before the next sea of “sale” tags, trying to figure out what exactly they were advertising.
“Too many options to choose from, huh?”
Isaac spun to find Del approaching, a smirk on her perfect pink lips. “Uh, no. Just lost in thought, I guess.”
“Yeah, it happens to me in this section, too.” She glanced at the brightly colored packages of maxi pads, her smirk growing.
Of all the sections she could have found him in. And heaven forbid he actually have a decent comeback to her teasing jabs. What was it about this woman that seemed to scramble his thoughts every time she drew near?
Tonight, he would blame her subtle lavender perfume.
“What are you doing here so late?”
“I’m here for Seyfert’s cheese puffs, oddly enough. Grissom’s is the only place in the area that still carries them.”
He scanned the empty aisleway. “Wow, you must really love your snacks.”
“They’re not for me,” she laughed, the sound brightening his sour mood. “I’m using them as incentive for a friend to come by tomorrow. They’re her weakness. It’s kinda my version of that line fromField of Dreams—if you buy them, they will come.”
“It takes bribery to get her to visit?”
“No, but I need to be extra sure she’s there. I’m gathering all the brightest minds in town to help brainstorm ways to save our bookstore.”
Isaac grimaced. “I take it the verdict came in?”
The smile on her face dimmed. “Yeah. Twenty-five grand to remove and replace the roof, along with a few rotten beams.”
“Oh, man. Sorry to hear that. Insurance won’t cover it?”
