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“Great. I’m sure he’ll be thrilled.” Emily chuckles and waves as she heads off to Sweet Tooth Bakery, leaving me alone behind the counter. Jake has disappeared somewhere for his lunch break, and I decide to do the same. There’s a sandwich place nearby that does a mean BLT. I head out of Heavenly Cakes, about to cross the street, when I hear my name coming from somewhere nearby. I frown, peeking around the side of the cake shop. Jake is talking to somebody on the phone, holding a cigarette in one hand as he leans back against the store wall. I could swear he just said my name, but I’m about to leave him to it when I hear it again.
“Well, right now I just have to listen to this Daisy chick tell me what to do,” Jake says into his phone. “Honestly the job sucks ass.”
I frown, staying as still as I can as I peer at him from around the corner of the building. There’s a pause while the person on the other end of the phone says something. It makes Jake chuckle.
“Hell no, dude. I don’t date fat chicks. She’s just the bitch I have to work with. I mean seriously, like I need some girl telling me how to frost a cake. It’s like she thinks she’s some kind of expert just ‘cause she clearly eats a lot of fucking cake.”
Another chuckle. Another pause while his friend speaks.
“Yeah,” Jake continues, “well, I said I don’t date fat chicks, doesn’t mean I can’t screw ‘em. On a one-night basis, obviously.”
My heart is thumping as I listen. My stomach churns, but I don’t move. I keep listening.
“Oh yeah, motherfucker?” Jake says defiantly into the phone, obviously annoyed by whatever the person on the other end just said. “Well, hey, if you don’t believe me then how’s this? I bet you twenty dollars I can hook up with her by the end of next week. Hell, make it thirty.”
Another pause.
“Fine. Forty bucks. You’re on.”
I want to round the corner and punch that smug, stupid face. I want to scream and holler and tell him that he’s a disgusting, sexist piece of shit. But I don’t. I’m too shocked. Instead, I automatically start to walk to my car, my hands shaking with rage as I get in. I start it up, feeling sick to my stomach as I drive away from Heavenly Cakes. I don’t know where I’m going. All I know is I can’t bear to be within a hundred feet of that slimy asshole. He seemed normal. Kind of unenthusiastic maybe, but a nice enough guy.
Crap.
I’m starting to wish I’d stayed and slapped that smirk off his face. I should have told him I wouldn’t touch him with a ten-foot pole and to shove those forty bucks up his ass.
Why is it always so easy to think of things to say after the fact?
I wasn’t driving with a destination in mind, but my hands are automatically guiding me to Snowfall Ridge. The mountain path twists and turns through the trees, but I stop before I reach my brother’s cabin. Instead, I find myself slowing down before that, near the Marion Retreat. I know Lincoln lives in a cabin around here somewhere, though I’m not sure where exactly. I don’t know why I came up here. I’m upset. Not thinking straight. I have to be back at work in half an hour. But for some reason, I find myself wishing I was with Lincoln. Something about him feels so safe. So comforting.
I should head back down the mountain and go to work. I need to handle whatever the hell just happened. But instead, I get out of the car and start to walk into the woods.
A walk, that’s what I need. A walk through the forest to clear my head.
I’m bullshitting myself, and I know it. With every step deeper into the woods, I’m on the lookout for Lincoln’s cabin, my eyes peeled. I don’t know why. Heck, what am I going to do when I find it? Knock on the door and tell him…what, exactly? That I had a bad day at work? That my colleague is an asshole? It’s not like Lincoln is my boyfriend. And I’m not a little kid anymore; I can’t expect him to fight my battles for me like he did when he yelled at those boys calling me Daisy Donut. I’m a grown woman. I need to act like it. I won’t let some asshole guy make me feel bad about myself. I’ve been working so hard on learning to love myself, and I can’t let Jake derail all my progress. I’ll confront him. Then I’ll get his ass fired.
Feeling braver and more determined than before, I stop walking and turn on my heel, ready to get back into my car and go back to Winterdale. I take a step forward, and suddenly, something grabs my left ankle, tightening around it. I yelp with shock as I’m pulled to the ground, landing hard on my back. The fall sucks the breath out of my lungs, and my head spins as I look down at my leg.
What the heck?
A thick rope is looped around my ankle, digging into my exposed flash. I try to pull away, but the harder I pull, the tighter the rope squeezes my leg. It looks like some kind of trap or snare. I reach to untie the knot but it’s too tight, and my fingers keep slipping. Panic is starting to claw at my chest as I reach inside my pockets, trying to find something I can use to cut through the rope. But there’s nothing but a gum wrapper and a crumpled receipt.
Shoot.
Turns out Jake talking shit about me at work is going to be the least of my problems today.
I push myself up into a sitting position, careful not to pull the rope any tighter around my ankle. Then I take a deep shuddering breath and scream.
“HELP!”
5
Lincoln
It’s been a long morning. My job for the Marion Retreat is always rewarding, but today, I’m struggling to focus on it. Ever since I walked into that cake shop yesterday, all I can think about is Daisy. Her thick curves, her sweet voice, her pretty doe eyes. Talking to her last night only made me want more. I want to hear all about the last ten years, about what she wants now, her hopes and dreams, if she’s happy.
I feel like I might be going crazy. It’s not normal for me to be this affected by a woman. It’s sure as hell never happened before. I’ve always been a loner where women are concerned. Love, relationships, all that shit, it’s just never been on my radar. I figured I was just one of those guys, the kind of guy who stays alone, and I’ve always been fine with that. Hell, more than fine. And now, of all people, my best friend’s little sister is making me question everything I thought I knew about myself.
With a frustrated sigh, I abandon my work and head for the kitchen. Working from home most days sure has its advantages—I can fix myself a sandwich whenever I want. I reach for the bread when a noise makes me pause. A kind of keening, like an animal crying out in the distance. I strain to hear, peering out of the kitchen window. All I can see are the thick fir trees of the forest that surrounds my cabin. The noise comes again, still far-off and muffled, but clearer than before.
