Tahoe (A Jeremy Renner story)

Change Of Plans

Lisa tugs at her shirt as she walks into the kitchen. Sam and Dave were still messing around with the things they were making for lunch. She turns around scanning the room, but there was no sign of Jeremy. Sam turns her head watching Lisa as a slight smile creeps up on her face.

"He went out back." She says as she turns back to the boiling pot in front of her.

"Oh." Lisa turns to the back doors as she continues to tug on the base of her shirt. Stepping out onto the porch she notices him about 20 yards off the back porch. He was on his phone in some sort of heated debate, or argument, she was not getting most of the dialogue.

Stepping down a couple of steps, she sits down, watching this man pace back and forth. He was smoking a cigarette, but with how much he was trying to get a point across it was mostly just burning in his left hand. A cheeky giggle slips from her as he turns and almost trips from a root sticking out of the dirt.

He hangs up the call, turning to her sitting there, trying his best to force a smile. "Funny huh?" He takes a seat next to her on the steps.

"I mean I'm a huge Klutz. I trip over air all the time." She looks down at her hands that were clasped in her lap.

"Hey" His left hand brushes her chin, pulling her face to look at him. "You are perfect. Just the way you are." He leans over pressing his lips against hers, but there was a slight sense of tension.

"Everything ok?" She pulls back looking into his eyes. Trying to find some sort of answers as to why things had changed so drastically.

He leans back on the stairs, running his hand though his hair. Breathing in a deep breath, he pauses, before breathing out a long sigh. "I don't want to do this, but I forgot I had a prior engagement this evening."

Her eyes drop to the wood beneath her, and then they close as she tries to remember that things were not always what she wanted them to be. "Ok." She whispers ok.

"Don't..." He whispers back with a pang of guilt in his voice. "How about this? I won't be busy all evening. I could come back and pick you up after I manage to get free." He places his hand on top of hers, rubbing his thumb across the back. The contrast of smooth and rough was sending chills up her arm.

"Don't feel rushed for me. You have things you have to do, I understand." Her voice was quiet and withdrawn.

She stands up and brushes off her pants while turning around to take a step up toward the cabin. His hand grips her left wrist as he stands up, pulling her into his arms. He wraps his arms around her, rubbing them up and down her back.

"I promise you." He whispers into her hair as he kisses the top of her head. "My word is gold. I will be back later." He pulls back to look her in the eyes as he leans down to kiss her on the cheek. Taking a step back he pulls her right hand up to his lips, kissing it before turning to step down the stairs.

She stands there for a moment as she watches him walk around the side of the cabin. The air feels like it was sucked out of her whole body. She collapses onto the stairs, as the back door swings open. She doesn't flinch to the sound.

"Hey Lisa, where did Jeremy go? I just saw his truck speeding up the driveway." Sam steps out onto the porch, taking a seat next to her.

"He said he had some prior engagement. I don't know." She was staring out over the water as she tried to keep her emotions in check. While she was lost in her own head, there was a faint ding from her pocket. She pulls out her phone and looks at the notification. It was a text from him. As she opens it, her heart skips a beat, maybe two. There, staring her in the face was a picture of him in his truck, with a text below it.

I don't want to leave you right now, trust me! If I had a way out of this I would still be there. I promise I will be back in a few hours, so we can finish what we started ;)

Lisa stares at the screen, not even noticing that she was holding her breath.

"Lisa? Hello?" Sam was waving her hand between her phone and her face.

"Huh?" Lisa turns to her, taking in a large shaky breath.

"I asked if you wanted to eat?" She had stood up and was holding her hand out towards her.

"Yeah. I guess I could eat." Lisa stands back up, looking down at her phone one more time before she stuffs it in her pocket. Grabbing Sam's hand she follows her into the house to do everything she can to keep her mind off of this for the next few hours.