Hide Seek Kill - A Thriller Novel || Draft One

Twenty: Elizabeth

"No, that wouldn't work either..." Eliza moans. Why must the Host make things so difficult?

"You use it for light, could that have something to do with it?" Zach leans over the table on the opposite side of Eliza.

"Light...and heat. Which means fire, light bulbs—"

"Light bulbs?" Zach raises an eyebrow.

Eliza rolls her eyes, leaning closer to the candle between them. "They produce heat too, you know. Ever leave a lamp on and feel the bulb?"

Zach chuckles which makes Eliza smile. "You always notice the things I don't," he says. "I both love it and hate it."

"Yes, well, not every man can be as smart as women are. Especially this one," Elizabeth points to herself with a teasing grin on her face.

"Please..." Zach stops for a moment, and Eliza can almost see the gears turning in his head. "Do you know what else produces light and heat?" He gives her a wide smile and looks up to where the sky is, which is beginning to get lighter as the sun starts to rise.

"Stars! Elsher, you're a genius!" She walks around the table and gives him a peck on the cheek.

Stop it, she scolds herself. You don't love him. You can't love him. But I want to...No! Snap out of it!

Going with the flow, Eliza brushes it aside and scans the room. This is an observatory, so obviously there must be some maps of the stars, right? Her eyes fall on Zach and she feels her cheeks start to heat up. Why are they doing that?

She is a grown woman and past all of that lovey-dovey stuff.

If only that is true; how much easier her life would be without the complications of feelings and relationships.

When he meets her gaze, she immediately looks away, embarrassed to be caught staring.

"Maybe there are some constellation maps over here..." She hurries to the shelf on the far wall attempting to hide the pink that dusts her cheeks.

Eliza doesn't hear his footsteps, but she feels Zach's presence behind her. An arm appears out of the corner of her eye and reaches for a scroll on the shelf, causing Elizebeth to nearly jump.

"Sorry," Zach murmurs. "Didn't think I'd startle you."

"You silently walked over here, and you know that I don't like it when you use your stealth on me." Eliza purposely avoids his gaze, instead continuing to search through dozens of scrolls on the large dark oak bookshelf.

"You're pretty smart, you know that?" He moves to stand right beside her, thumbing through the scrolls.

Although Eliza is sure that he's not paying attention to them.

"You are the one that figured this one out, so..."

Elizabeth ignores the comment and pulls one of the papers off of the shelf. She unrolls it and lays it flat on the table before taking a step back to look at it.

"It's definitely a constellation map," Eliza says. "Find any more?"

"Wait...yes. Here." Zach hands her a larger scroll and she motions for him to stand next to him.

They are going to be stuck together for a while, it seems, so might as well let the past go and deal with it.

She can't hide from her true feelings forever.

He helps her unroll the thing and Eliza grabs some books to hold down the curling edges. She turns her head to the side.

What the...