9
Call Me Crazy
Collin
Noli is sitting in my passenger seat, but I can’t get her to look at me. I’m driving us downtown, where we’re meeting everyone for dinner at Romeo’s, a pizza haunt that’s a favorite among locals.
It didn’t take long for us to get Noli moved into my garage apartment, because she doesn’t have that much stuff. I don’t know what I was expecting, seeing as how I’ve never lived with a woman or spent much time in a woman’s space, but I assumed there would be more frills. More extras. More of anything.
Noli pretty much had the contents of her desk and her clothes. I now understand why she was thrilled the apartment came furnished.
“Did you get settled?” I ask her. We parted ways for the remainder of the afternoon. I want her to feel like it’s her own space, but I’m anxious to hear what she thinks of it.
“Yep.”
“I hope the apartment will work okay for you.”
“It’s fine.”
“Right. Fine.” I fight back a swell of annoyance. Is it too much to ask for her to show a little appreciation? I thought I was making some progress with her. She seemed less stony. Less like she was so high above me she had to deign to stoop to my level.
I saw her pause and smell the candle I put out on the table in the kitchen. When she didn’t think anyone was watching, she ran her hand over the plush blanket I left on the back of the couch. She definitely noticed my add-ons, and I thought she liked them.Anyone else would have gushed with gratitude—or at least voiced their appreciation.
Not Noli. With her, nothing comes easily.
I count to ten and focus on driving. As soon as we get to Romeo’s, I’m going to have to act like I’m falling in love with the woman sitting next to me. It wouldn’t be so hard to do if she would let her dang guard down. Maybe crack a smile. A little less Oppenheimer, a little more Barbie, ya know?
My phone vibrates in my pocket as I pull into a parking spot on Main Street.
“I’ll grab your door,” I say out of habit.
“That’s not necessary.” She opens it and is outside before I make it around the hood of my car.
“Do you have to be difficult?” I snap, fishing my phone out of my pocket. I stare down at a message from Katherine in a group text with some of the other police officers and comms team members, asking what everyone is up to tonight. I pound out a response that I’m having dinner at Romeo’s and anyone is welcome to join. I thought this would sort of be like a double date with us and Poppy and Mack. And Rose, of course. But I wouldn’t hate if my friends popped in. A buffer from Noli would be welcome, given her attitude.
I stow my cell, and when I finally glance up at Noli, her eyes are downcast. She must sense my gaze, because she looks up at me, barely lifting her chin. Her blue eyes, while not glossy, are pooled with a new emotion.
One I’m not used to seeing from her.
It’s a timid look. A hesitating one. Her eyes are filled with a hint of remorse.
“I’m sorry,” she says quietly.
“I—” I begin before I know where I’m going with that sentence, so I cut myself off. “What?”
“I’m sorry for being difficult. I’m bad at this. But what I should be saying is thank you. For…” She pauses andlooks down before her gaze hops to mine again. The cerulean in her eyes is streaked with darker blue, and her irises look like waves. If only I could figure out how to navigate those waters. “For all of it,” she finishes.
Oh.
Well.
Shoot.
Now I feel like a heel for inviting my friends to crash our pseudo-date.
I don’t say anything right away, and Noli takes a deep breath and continues. “It’s hard for me to let my guard down, and I don’t know how to accept help or kindness from most people. Especially not from you. But I’ll do a better job, with everything. I promise.”
My phone is going off in quick succession in my pocket, but I ignore it, completely focused on the woman in front of me. Because this…thisis something. This is a person I can work with. She’s moving snow around with her boot, and her gaze has been fixed on my sternum instead of my eyes since she made that promise.
