AROUND THE HEART IN 80 DAYS

Thirty Three

The floor seemed glossy, the very first thing he noticed as he stepped in. Ah, she mopped. And turned on the heater. Good. He wondered about them both shivering while having a confrontation.

Slowly taking off his suit jacket, he started to glance around the interior, wondering where she could be.

Not in her usual sitting position in the dining, sketching a caricature of a cake idea or writing out new ingredients. Her room? Did he dare go to her room?

"Hey, hey. Good evening." Her voice was from... the living room. She sat up and he saw her head from behind the couch's backrest. Her bonnet was on again, its black elastic stretched across her forehead. He never understood why she wore that. "Welcome."

His hand moved to the knot of his tie and he hummed something inaudible. She. Was. In. His. Living. Room. On the couch directly opposite to the picture of his dead girlfriend.
She left the small library space at the end of the room and chose to stay in the main living room?
He didn't know what it was but that evening, everything was getting under his skin.

She lay back down so her head settled on the top of the armrest, her legs stretched to the opposite one, socks hiding her feet. Socks on HIS couch. She didn't notice his analytical evaluation as her eyes played before the dull light from her phone. "Guess who just scored seven thousand, six hundred and two followers on her IG page. Me! Can you believe it? Jack Attack is getting noticed. Maybe I should do a vlog just like Lo." She sat up again and lay her forearm at the top of the headrest.
"I never asked, do you have an Instagram account? So you can follow me. Then whatever friends you have can see me and like me too?" The smile on her face stretched so hard, her cheeks looked shiny.

Words failed him, his state of mind so muddled that he couldn't control himself.

"Edrei Rideau. What's wrong this time?"

"Guess who's around."

She wore a quizzical complexion that told him she wouldn't even try.

"Garrett. Garrett Fitcher." He walked to the couch and, as it was low, he sat at the farthest end of the headrest and gave off such a dry bark of laughter. "He just came in today."

If he was expecting anything that would be her reaction, it was not he poker-faced gaze she returned. She kept quiet a while, then flopped back down to her previous position and swiped away at her phone. "Ok. That's nice."

He too, kept silent for a while. "Nice? Just... ."

"What do you want me to say? That's very nice? That's cool? It depends on what you want to hear."

He felt the air shift instantly. "You can say what the hell is going on. I think I deserve to know it now. Tell me what is happening. Your brother, my rival, is at the office and his sister is in my house."

"When you say it that way, it does sound pretty shady--"

"Did Garrett send you here? Did he, I don't know, did he conjure everything?"

She sat up again and clicked off her phone. "Conjure every what? That I act as some kind of bait that sneaks into his rival's house and lure said rival to... to tell me secrets or something about world domination?"

"I refuse to believe this is coincidence, Jacq--"

"Then don't believe it, for God's sake! I thought we were over this. The major arguments we ever have has to do with Garrett Fitcher, I should be the one questioning things."

"Put yourself in my shoes. See things from my perspective. He's back and I am reminded that his sister, his relation, is housed under my roof and I already allowed myself to be seduced--"