Zari Davis flees Dallas after witnessing her fiancee cheating, with no clear plan on where she's going. After flipping her Volkswagon Beetle, she wakes up convinced that the cute guy that's been reading raunchy novels aloud while she slept is actual...
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P L A Y L I S T
Now You're Gone - Tom Walker
The alarm beeped, and Gabriel wanted to hit the snooze button again, but by the time he ate breakfast and traveled thirty miles to the burn site, he'd be late. Staring into the darkness, he thought of Zari. This was the only time he permitted himself to think about her. Once he got to work, he needed to be clear-headed.
According to the phone crews, if things went well, cell service should be restored by the end of the day in this area. Once it was, he hoped like hell there'd be a call waiting from her. Who was he kidding? By blocking his number, she'd made it clear talking to him was the last thing she wanted. By now, she might remember Perry and be headed back to Dallas. No, she couldn't do that because of her performance contract, unless Dale agreed to let her out of it. Knowing him, he would if she asked.
Gabriel sat up on the edge of the bed and raked his fingers through his hair. Only four days into his two-week commitment. Not enough time to mend his broken heart, but enough to prepare himself to an empty home. Before he left, he had stood in the doorway for the longest time, just staring out into the darkened living room. His house had never really felt like a home until Zari moved in. His dwelling had been bare, his toothbrush solitary. He missed the random bobby pins that collected around the sink, and her clothes in his closet. His heart had found a home in Zari, and the silence without her made the place deafening.
With a curse, he ran his hands over his face and wondered how long he'd give himself this daily pep-talk before he admitted to drowning in misery? He'd always considered himself a patient man, but when it came to her, that virtue was the first to go. The way I loved you. Those damn words rang in his ears like lyrics of a bad country song. If she had loved him, then how could she stop as if she'd flipped a switch? One minute declaring the depth of her feelings and the next driving away. It made no sense. Regardless of her amnesia, if she admitted it or not, what happened between them had been real.
It had taken a while for him to figure it out, but the way she looked at him—touched him. None of that was fake. But was love enough? It wasn't with Rosie, so it might not salvage his relationship with Zari. Did he still have a chance? A future? He wanted answers. Needed answers.
If she'd just give him ten minutes to explain—remind her of how he'd tried to keep his distance. Avoided getting intimate. Get her to see the situation from his perspective. If she could see beyond that one big lie, then maybe she could forgive him. But dammit! For that to happen, she had to be willing to talk to him. He shook his head, dragged his way to the bathroom, and turned on the shower. No reason to torture himself anymore, it was over.
*
Zari spent most of Christmas day watching sappy holiday movies. Bad mistake. They only fueled more tears. She thought after days of crying the waterworks would stop, but every puppy dog, soda, and Subaru commercial had something in them she found weep-worthy. At least her appetite had returned. Well, it had always been there. She'd been hungry, but the thought of food made her sick. What an evil trick of physiology—when craving her favorites turned her stomach. She'd done her best to overcome that. Right along with the sentimental flicks, she'd binged on junk food, only to puke later. That's what she got for mixing popcorn, moon pies, and jelly beans.
