stand to be holed up any longer. She threw on her tennis shoes and snagged the grocery list from where it hung by a magnet on the fridge. “Ma, I’m heading to the grocery store.”
Bea was settled in front of the TV. Some sitcom was blaring, but Bea wasn’t watching it as she knitted a long woolen scarf. “But we went yesterday,” she protested.
“Yeah, but you only got enough stuff for dinner when we had to rush out. I’ll just go grab the rest of the items on your list.”
Bea set down her knitting and hooked her pointer finger through the wire bridge of her glasses to tug them lower as she dropped her head and peered over the lenses at her daughter. “Maybe I should come with you.”
“No ma, I’ll be right in and right out.” Chloe snatched her jacket off the hook and hung it over one arm.
“What if something happens?”
Chloe rolled her eyes, “Like what? I drop a jar of pickles? Clean up on aisle seven.”
The joke was lost on her mother, “What if you have another spell and neither Dell nor I are there to save you?”
Chloe gritted her teeth at the mere mention of his name. She hated how her mother used it so casually in a sentence, like he was part of the family or something. “He didn’t save me mom. ” She jerked open the front door, talking rapidly as she went to keep her mother from cutting in, “Look, I’ll be back in twenty-minutes. If I’m going to take longer I’ll call. Plus I’ve eaten today and slept well last night so I should be fine.” The lies rolled off her tongue smoothly as she stepped out the door and closed it behind her.
Christ! What’s a girl gotta do to get some shopping done? Honestly, the shopping wasn’t her true agenda. She simply couldn’t bear to be in the house any longer. She felt useless just sitting around sulking in her misery. It was even more offensive because she couldn’t stop thinking about her encounter with Dell.
At the grocery store, she winced as she strode past the area where she’d fainted the day before. Images of herself being carried across the parking lot in Dell’s arms instantly flooded her even as she tried to force them back.
Inside s he grabbed a cart and pulled the grocery list out of her purse. She’d made the list herself upon her arrival at her mothers. Her mom had a terrible habit of buying groceries as she needed them rather than stocking up all at once.
Halfway through her shopping, she stopped in the frozen food section. She grabbed a box of frozen waffles and a bag of pre-formed dinner rolls when something had her bristling. Despite the cool temperature of the freezer she stood in, her elbow propping open the door, she was suddenly flooded by a familiar warmth. It was the same warmth that had consumed her the day before. Panic struck, Oh God, don’t do this again. Not now ! S he turned to eye the aisle. Not here! When she turned she tensed. Her escalated breathing fogged the chilled glass of the freezer door. Did I just see what I think I saw?” She lifted a hand and swiped it slowly down the glass clearing the foggy glass to reveal Dell standing at the end of the aisle staring directly at her.
Fuck! She stepped back, letting the door slam closed as she gripped her cart and steered it in the opposite direction. She kept her eyes down, hoping he hadn’t noticed that she’d seen him.
When she cleared the aisle, her arms were literally shaking. She took deep breaths trying to calm herself as she skipped four aisles, opting to put some distance between herself and Dell.
Clearly they’d both not gotten any shopping done yesterday and had decided to finish it up today. Great! She considered leaving and coming back tomorrow, but knew it would heighten her mother’s suspicion so much that she’d be forced to confess to a second encounter with Dell. I am not doing that!
Deciding to stand her
Bea was settled in front of the TV. Some sitcom was blaring, but Bea wasn’t watching it as she knitted a long woolen scarf. “But we went yesterday,” she protested.
“Yeah, but you only got enough stuff for dinner when we had to rush out. I’ll just go grab the rest of the items on your list.”
Bea set down her knitting and hooked her pointer finger through the wire bridge of her glasses to tug them lower as she dropped her head and peered over the lenses at her daughter. “Maybe I should come with you.”
“No ma, I’ll be right in and right out.” Chloe snatched her jacket off the hook and hung it over one arm.
“What if something happens?”
Chloe rolled her eyes, “Like what? I drop a jar of pickles? Clean up on aisle seven.”
The joke was lost on her mother, “What if you have another spell and neither Dell nor I are there to save you?”
Chloe gritted her teeth at the mere mention of his name. She hated how her mother used it so casually in a sentence, like he was part of the family or something. “He didn’t save me mom. ” She jerked open the front door, talking rapidly as she went to keep her mother from cutting in, “Look, I’ll be back in twenty-minutes. If I’m going to take longer I’ll call. Plus I’ve eaten today and slept well last night so I should be fine.” The lies rolled off her tongue smoothly as she stepped out the door and closed it behind her.
Christ! What’s a girl gotta do to get some shopping done? Honestly, the shopping wasn’t her true agenda. She simply couldn’t bear to be in the house any longer. She felt useless just sitting around sulking in her misery. It was even more offensive because she couldn’t stop thinking about her encounter with Dell.
At the grocery store, she winced as she strode past the area where she’d fainted the day before. Images of herself being carried across the parking lot in Dell’s arms instantly flooded her even as she tried to force them back.
Inside s he grabbed a cart and pulled the grocery list out of her purse. She’d made the list herself upon her arrival at her mothers. Her mom had a terrible habit of buying groceries as she needed them rather than stocking up all at once.
Halfway through her shopping, she stopped in the frozen food section. She grabbed a box of frozen waffles and a bag of pre-formed dinner rolls when something had her bristling. Despite the cool temperature of the freezer she stood in, her elbow propping open the door, she was suddenly flooded by a familiar warmth. It was the same warmth that had consumed her the day before. Panic struck, Oh God, don’t do this again. Not now ! S he turned to eye the aisle. Not here! When she turned she tensed. Her escalated breathing fogged the chilled glass of the freezer door. Did I just see what I think I saw?” She lifted a hand and swiped it slowly down the glass clearing the foggy glass to reveal Dell standing at the end of the aisle staring directly at her.
Fuck! She stepped back, letting the door slam closed as she gripped her cart and steered it in the opposite direction. She kept her eyes down, hoping he hadn’t noticed that she’d seen him.
When she cleared the aisle, her arms were literally shaking. She took deep breaths trying to calm herself as she skipped four aisles, opting to put some distance between herself and Dell.
Clearly they’d both not gotten any shopping done yesterday and had decided to finish it up today. Great! She considered leaving and coming back tomorrow, but knew it would heighten her mother’s suspicion so much that she’d be forced to confess to a second encounter with Dell. I am not doing that!
Deciding to stand her
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