Total pages in book: 15
Estimated words: 14086 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 70(@200wpm)___ 56(@250wpm)___ 47(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 14086 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 70(@200wpm)___ 56(@250wpm)___ 47(@300wpm)
A loud clap of thunder startled me. It was followed almost immediately by a flash of lightning, which brought the stained glass to life for a split second. I peered through one of the clear panels in the window’s symmetrical, starburst pattern and noticed it had started raining. The street was nearly deserted, except for a lone figure dressed in black, who was holding an umbrella and running down the sidewalk on the other side of the street. When he crossed the road and disappeared beneath the roof of the porch, I realized he was probably the other prize winner.
My stomach knotted with anxiety, for no good reason. This wasn’t even a real date. It was just some silly thing I’d agreed to do, because I was tired of seeing the worry and pity in everyone’s eyes when they looked at me. God, was I tired of that.
A few long minutes ticked by. Finally, the sound of footsteps drifted up the stairwell, and I turned to face the double doors. My back was pressed to the window, so it wasn’t possible to retreat any further. As my heart started to race, I wiped my sweaty palms on my jeans and focused all my attention on whoever was about to appear at the top of the stairs.
I glimpsed spiky, pink hair a moment before the annoying guy from the bar bounded onto the landing. It was like flipping a switch, and I went from panicked to exasperated in an instant. But I could cope with that a hell of a lot better than my anxiety, so in a way, he was the perfect person for this. I already knew I didn’t like him, so the pressure was off.
His face lit up when he saw me, and he exclaimed, “Oh wow, it’s you! I totally remember you from the bar. Do you remember me?” He grabbed the double doors with both hands and swung them shut before hurrying toward me and saying, “I’m Ryan Sullivan. The guy downstairs said your name is Patrick Wilson, but that you like to go by Rick. Is that right?”
Before I could reply, the door locks engaged, and a manila envelope dropped into a wall-mounted basket behind the desk. As the numbers 02:00:00 appeared in red on the digital readout, then immediately changed to 01:59:59 and began counting down, I asked, “Didn’t Benji tell you what happens when you close the doors?”
Ryan stopped in his tracks, and his blue eyes went wide as he blurted, “Oh! Shoot, I forgot. You know what, though? Benji said we can call him on the intercom if we need anything, and I’m sure he’ll give us a do-over.” I held back a sigh and turned toward the bottle of champagne, because this was clearly going to require alcohol.
In the next instant, we both jumped at a loud boom. The room was plunged into semidarkness, and Ryan asked, “What just happened?”
“If I had to guess, I’d say lightning struck a transformer.”
“Is that bad?”
I peered through a clear pane in the stained glass and said, “It’s not great. From what I can see, the traffic lights are out, and all the buildings on the block are dark. But the city’s used to dealing with stuff like this, so the power will probably be back soon.”
“That’s true. No need to panic.” Ryan came closer and smiled at me. “You’re tall. I like that.”
“Not really. I’m five-eleven.”
“Well, when you’re five-foot-seven, everyone seems tall.”
“I suppose so.”
“Sorry I was late, by the way,” he said. “I came straight from work. I’m a barista, and the guy who was supposed to take over for me never showed. I had to beg and plead to get out of there. Finally, my manager said he was letting me go just to shut me up.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“I feel bad about keeping you waiting. Plus, it doesn’t make a very good first impression.”
I decided not to tell him that ship had already sailed, back at the bar. Instead, I muttered, “It’s fine. Really.”
He was dressed in black jeans and a form-fitting black T-shirt, which emphasized his slender body. When he touched his cheek, I noticed his short nails were polished in pale blue. “Normally, I would have done my makeup before a date. I’d have worn something more fun, too. But I was already late, so I had to skip all of that.” He had a soft voice, and a note of self-consciousness crept in when he added, “I hope you’re not too disappointed. I wanted to look nice for you, not so ordinary.”
That insecurity made him seem vulnerable all of a sudden, and I told him, “You look great.” He perked up a bit and flashed me a smile.
Just then, Benji rattled the doorknobs and called, “Are you guys alright?”
I crossed the room and tried the door, too. “We’re fine, but how do we get out of here?”