Page 27 of Isolated (Harper Security Ops #21)

Iris

Five minutes.

If Landen was the kind of guy who was always on time, I had five minutes left before he’d be here. A thrill of excitement slithered along my spine.

It was Friday evening. Landen and I were going to be going on our first official date since admitting our attraction to one another. I couldn’t wait.

But since I had some time and one thing nagging at me, I figured I could use these few minutes wisely before he arrived.

Without another moment of delay, I picked up my phone, found the name I was looking for, and tapped on the screen. Two rings later, Flora answered, “Hello?”

“Hi, Flora.”

“Hey, Iris. How’s it going?”

So much had happened since she was last in Steel Ridge, it was hard to believe it was only a week ago when she and Eleni had come to visit with me.

“It’s been alright,” I lied. I had no intention of telling her any of the sordid details about my nightmarish week. “How’s everything going there?”

“Pretty good. I had a busy week with work ever since I got back here, so I’m in a bit of disbelief that it’s already Friday.”

Well, at least one of us wasn’t dealing with nonsense when it came to work. I didn’t doubt Flora had moments that were trying, but it didn’t seem that she’d experienced anything like that this week. Not only had mine started horribly, but it also hadn’t gotten much better.

There hadn’t been any new or major developments at work, thankfully. But the feelings of being ostracized grew with each day that passed. While nobody had come right out and said anything truly terrible to me, I could see the changes in so many of those I’d worked with for years.

It made things challenging. Because where I’d grown accustomed to my colleagues seeking me out as they worked on various projects, nobody did that over the course of the last five days.

The interactions I’d had with anyone besides Steph or Kasey had all been initiated by me, and the discussions were always brief and completely related to whatever work-related topic was being addressed.

To say I was frustrated was an understatement. I could only hope that with time—and no additional missteps—everything would eventually return to normal.

“Funny. It felt like this week dragged along for me,” I shared. “Maybe that’s because I was so excited to get to today. ”

“Oh? What’s going on?”

My lips twitched as butterflies took flight in my belly. “Remember Landen?”

She gasped. “The guy from the pub?”

“That’s him.”

“Are you seeing him tonight?”

“I am. He should be here any minute.”

Flora practically squealed with delight. “Oh, I’m so happy for you, Iris. I hope you have a wonderful time. This is so exciting.”

Laughter escaped. “Thanks, Flora. I’m looking forward to seeing him again. Believe it or not, though, that’s not the reason I called you.”

“There’s something more exciting than that?”

“I wouldn’t say it’s exciting. But it is important.”

Several beats of silence passed between us, and I had a feeling Flora knew where the conversation was headed. She eventually confirmed that was the case when she guessed, “Is this about Eleni?”

“I’ve called her all week, and she hasn’t returned any of my calls.”

“Really?”

I couldn’t decide if her surprise at that made me feel better or worse. “I’m serious. I’ve left her a handful of voicemails, and I’ve sent a few texts. I don’t understand what happened or why she won’t talk to me.”

Flora sighed. “Well, you know how she is. Eleni gets like this sometimes.”

“I know she does,” I assured her. “The problem is that whenever she gets like this, she typically gets over it within a day or two. Did she say anything to you on the way home last weekend? ”

“Honestly, she didn’t. I think she knew I’d try to talk to her about it, and before I even had the chance, before we even made it off your street, she told me she wasn’t interested in talking about you.”

My shoulders fell with disappointment. I thought I’d always done my best to be understanding with her, but I was at a loss at this point. “What about since you’ve been back? Have you talked to her this week?”

“Actually, I haven’t. I’ve been so busy with work this week that I haven’t had a chance to reach out to her.”

This was beyond frustrating.

And unusual.

“I’m worried, Flora. Eleni has always had her moods over the years, but it’s gotten worse lately. Please tell me you see it, too.”

“I do. It’s just that…”

“What?”

“Nothing. Nothing. It’s just that she’s only ever that way with you,” Flora murmured.

Didn’t I know it?

“I swear, it’s like she hates me for moving.”

“How about I call her tonight?” she offered. “I’ll try to talk to her and see what’s going on.”

I thought it was awful that it even had to be done.

We weren’t toddlers anymore. We weren’t even teenagers.

There was no reason that Eleni couldn’t just talk to me about whatever it was I’d done that bothered her.

But since she refused, I had no other option but to take Flora up on her offer.

“If you wouldn’t mind, I’d love to know whatever it is that I did to her. ”

“I’ll see what I can find out. Now, you should stop worrying about this and have a wonderful time on your date tonight.”

The moment the words were out of her mouth, I glanced out the window and saw Landen pulling into the driveway. “He just got here, so I’m going to go.”

“Enjoy yourself, Iris.”

“I will. Just promise you’ll call and talk to Eleni tonight. I’ll reach out to you later this weekend.”

“I promise.”

Flora and I said goodbye and disconnected our call.

Not even a full minute later, my doorbell rang.

I smoothed my hands down over my hips and thighs before I moved to the door.

I didn’t think it’d be too difficult to do, but I was going to take Flora’s advice and thoroughly enjoy my evening with Landen.

I wasn’t going to think about work problems or a sister who was holding a grudge for some unknown reason.

I deserved a night of fun with a handsome guy I’d been crushing on for months.

And when I opened the door, I couldn’t miss the look of appreciation in Landen’s expression. The sight of it made any lingering bits of frustration from my week melt away. “Wow. Wow, you look amazing.”

My lips curved into a slow smile. Not a negative thought to be had. “Thank you. You don’t look so bad yourself.”

And he didn’t.

I had a feeling that Landen was one of those guys who could wear just about anything—or, perhaps, nothing at all—and he’d still be handsome.

But it’d been a unique experience to finally see him outside of the gym last week and in regular street clothes.

It was something I’d appreciated just as much as he seemed to welcome the sight of me in my dress.

His eyes were still roaming over my body as he shared, “I’m serious, Iris. I don’t think I mentioned it that night, but I haven’t been able to get the sight of you in a dress out of my mind since we danced at the pub. You looked so beautiful that night. And you look just as stunning tonight.”

Heat bloomed inside me. “You’re being sweet. I think this is a bit strange for us, because we’ve really only ever spent time together in the gym.”

He nodded. “Yeah. And I’m realizing now just how foolish it was for me to waste so much time by not asking you out on a date sooner.”

“Well, maybe we shouldn’t delay ourselves any longer,” I suggested. “I’ll just grab my purse, and we can go.”

Landen waited by the door for me, and after I locked up, he didn’t hesitate to place his hand gently on the small of my back as he guided me to his car.

Unsurprisingly, we didn’t make it there before a familiar voice floated in our direction. “Who is this guy?”

I glanced up at Landen and grinned. “Care to meet my neighbor?”

“Sure.”

We took a detour and came to a stop in front of Walter. “Hi, Walter. How are you doing tonight?”

His eyes were fixed on Landen, and it seemed a real effort for him to tear his attention away. “I’m perfectly fine. In great physical health. Who’s this guy?”

I bit the corner of my lip to stifle my laughter. Even Walter’s voice sounded different. It was as though he had given himself the role of being my protector, who needed to assess whether Landen was worthy of me.

“Walter, I’d like you to meet Landen. Landen, this is Walter.”

Landen extended his hand to the crotchety old man. “It’s nice to meet you, sir. I’ve heard a bit about you.”

Begrudgingly, Walter shook Landen’s hand, but he found a way to get a dig in. “Funny. This is the first I’m learning about you.” Walter shifted his attention to me. “What’s the special occasion?”

“I’m going on a date.” Not even Walter could miss the way I stood a little taller as I answered him.

“A date? With him?”

If it had been anyone but Walter, I might have been offended by his tone. Like he couldn’t imagine why I’d ever dream of doing something as blasphemous as going on a date with a nice guy.

Ignoring his unnecessary distress, I nodded and smiled brightly, hoping it offered him some level of reassurance. “Yes.”

“Where did you meet him? How long have you known him?”

Reaching out for his hand, I curled my fingers around his. “Relax, Walter. Landen’s a good guy.”

Walter gave Landen another once-over. I didn’t know if he found whatever it was that he’d been looking for, but he finally said, “There’s nobody like Iris, so you better take good care of her.”

Landen didn’t miss a beat. “I’m aware, and I fully intend to.”

When his eyes shifted to mine again, there was something that looked a lot like dread lingering there. And when he spoke, his voice was strained. “Have a good time.”

Something warm washed over me at the same time I felt such concern at the change in his demeanor. “I will. See you tomorrow, Walter.”

Landen and I said goodbye to my neighbor before resuming our journey to his vehicle, with Landen opening my door for me once we were there. As soon as we were both inside, he asked, “Is he normally like that?”

Slowly, I shook my head. “That’s difficult to answer. Because yes, he’s often very much like that. Being nosy and asking a lot of questions. But I honestly don’t know if he’s alright. He’s never looked at me like that before. I think he’s just lonely.”

Landen directed his attention out the front windshield, his eyes narrowing slightly as he watched Walter make his way back to his front door. “That felt like something more than just loneliness.”

I knew what Landen meant, because I’d felt it, too.

I just wasn’t quite sure what had come over the old man.

“Maybe. Though I’ve never experienced anything quite like that before, he does have these moments from time to time.

When my sisters were here last weekend, he saw us when we came back from an afternoon of shopping.

And it quickly went from a nosy inquiry to him running off into his house again, clearly upset. ”

As Landen backed out of the driveway, he asked, “What caused him to run off?”

“Gertie and Rachel.”

“I thought your sisters were Eleni and Flora.”

I laughed. “Yes. But Gertie was Walter’s wife, and Rachel is his daughter… ”

For the remainder of the drive to the restaurant, I talked to Landen about Walter’s reaction last weekend and the things I knew about his personal life that had him responding to me the way he had.

Of course, I didn’t hesitate to reveal a bit more with him about the ways in which I tried to cheer Walter up ever since I’d moved in.

Like when I’d shared some of my birthday cake with him before heading home to Grouse to celebrate with my family.

Before I knew it, we arrived at The Ridge.

I might not have been on any dates since before moving to Steel Ridge, but I’d heard about The Ridge.

If there was an easy way for a guy to communicate how serious he was about a girl, taking her to The Ridge would have been it.

Though I didn’t want to seem too presumptuous, I couldn’t ignore how much I liked knowing that Landen chose to bring me here.

Once he parked, he reached over and placed his hand on my forearm, sending shivers along my spine. “Wait there while I come around to open your door for you.”

Feeling the flush creep over my skin, I tucked my chin toward my chest and offered a small smile. “Okay.”

The man was handsome and a gentleman. It seemed far too soon for me to fall in love.

But as Landen got out of the car and rounded the hood, I watched him and felt another thrill move through me.

This night was something I’d been waiting to have with him for so long. And now that it was here, I was going to savor every single minute. I was looking forward to whatever the next few hours with him would bring, excited to learn more about the man who’d caught my eye .

Maybe we’d really hit it off. And if I was truly lucky, Landen might kiss me before the night was over.