Page 72 of Fun and Games

My thumb hovered over the keyboard.

I didn't know what to say.

Sorry I freaked out?

Sorry I've been ignoring you?

Sorry that I'm still not over my dead fiancé and the thought of seeing you makes me want to rip my heart out of my chest so I never have to feel anything ever again because if I have to live one more day with this pain and confusion and anxiety and doubt and agony—

I forced myself to inhale slowly, then exhale.

Sorry I'm a complete fucking wreck?

I put my phone on silent. I went back to the sofa. I sat down in the butt groove I'd created over the last few days. I pulled the damp pillow to my chest.

I stared at the paper and the rings sitting on top.

Two silver rings.

Twenty-Eight

It should have beenweird to be in a stranger's bed, in someone else's bedroom, but I'd moved so often over the last few years I'd gotten used to it.

I actually found it interesting, looking at the various ways people decorated their rooms, whether they made the space warm and cozy or whether they kept it simple and sparse. I always sort of wondered about the people whose apartments I'd taken over. Why had they left? Why were they subletting? Maybe they were off on their own adventures like I was.

* * *

My butt was turning numb. I turned from laying on my back to being on my side. I tucked one arm under a pillow. I was facing the closet. The closet with my suitcase. The closet with the box of David's notes.

My heart seized up.

I rolled onto my other side. This time I was facing a window. It was cloudy outside with the threat of rain. Soft rumblings sounded from the distance. Thunder, or just a truck passing by outside? The noises were similar.

I forced myself to keep my mind occupied with mundane thoughts. Any time I let myself wander off and think about the package from David's mom and the contents I'd found within, my burning chest ached and my hollow stomach churned with acid.

A knocking sound came from the hallway. One of the neighbors dropping something to the floor, maybe. Or perhaps one of them had a visitor knocking at the door. I waited for the sound of a door creaking open and closed, but it never came. Only more knocking, louder this time, more insistent.

My brow furrowed. The knocking was loud, and sounded close. Too close?

Then there was a rapid pounding and I knew it was coming from my door.

I lurched from the bed, sitting still until the blood rushing to my head settled and I no longer felt dizzy. I'd been spending a lot of time lying down in bed after having called in sick to work for half the week.

I made my way out of the bedroom and to the front door. There wasn't a peephole to see who was on the other side.

My heart leaped, wondering if it was Mason. I hadn't responded to any of his texts. Was he the type of guy to show up randomly at my doorstep? Maybe. Or maybe he knew enough to give me space while I was dealing with… whatever it was he thought I was dealing with. I hadn't exactly given him any details.

The knocking continued as I grabbed the doorknob and opened. My whole body flinched.

It was my sister Sheila.

Her hand was still raised to knock again. I stared at her. She lowered her hand and gave me a wavering smile. Her dark hair was slightly frizzy from the dampness in the air, much the same as mine got.

"Hey, Bree," she said.

"How did you…" I started to ask.

"Darlene gave me your address," she replied, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear nervously.