When Stars Collide (Light in the Dark 2)

Anna heads straight for the elevators. There are four total, two on each side.

The doors on one slide open and we step inside. Anna swipes a card and then pushes the floor button.

“You have to have a card to operate the elevators,” she explains. “So no one from the streets can wander up to your door. Several players on your team live here as well, if you choose this place,” she tells me with a smile. “It’s one of the more popular buildings. It’s central to everything downtown and has excellent views.”

She continues to rattle off various facts about the building, but I’m only half listening. Instead, I’m watching Thea for any signs that she’s uncomfortable. After her reaction yesterday when I told her about the realtor, I worried I’d pushed her too far. It’s not that I’m desperate to move out, but with the added addition of her mom, it has grown crowded in the house. If she doesn’t want to move, I’m cool with that, but I do think we need to see what’s out there and talk about it.

There’s a lot we need to talk about. There are only a few weeks left until Thea’s back in school and then my game season is going to start.

The summer’s been well and good, but adulthood is about to smack us square in the face and we have a lot to figure out.

The elevator doors slide open and we enter into a long hall.

Anna leads us to the last door on the right. “This is a corner space, so lots of windows and natural light.”

She unlocks the door and it swings open into a small foyer.

“Door to your left leads to a powder room,” she explains, opening that door and turning on the light so we can see. “And this do

or is a closet.” She points to the one on the right.

Thea opens that door and pokes her head inside.

Anna leads us through the archway and it opens into a large living space.

“This would be your family room and dining area, and the kitchen is there to your right, open to this space. It’s an excellent place for parties,” she says exuberantly like this is a major selling point.

“I like the floors,” Thea comments, pointing at the shiny black wood floors. “And the view is nice.”

It certainly is. The whole left and back wall are solid windows, overlooking the city and mountains in the distance.

I head to the window and nod. “Yeah, the view is amazing,” I agree.

“Bedrooms are this way.” Anna claps her hands together to get our attention.

Thea and I follow her down the hall and see another bathroom, guestroom, and master bedroom.

“What do you think?” Anna asks us, leading us back through to the front door.

I shrug and look at Thea, waiting for her to speak first.

“It’s nice,” Thea hedges, and Anna beams. “But cold. It doesn’t feel like a home.”

Anna’s smile falls but then she quickly goes into sales mode. “You can make it a home, though. Your home.”

She shrugs and looks at me. “This doesn’t feel like our home to me, does it to you?”

I shake my head. “No, it doesn’t.”

Anna’s shoulders slump, but she puts on a winning smile. “That’s okay. That’s why you have me. We’ll keep looking.”

We see three more places after that, each one worse than the last.

We part ways with Anna and it’s easy to see she’s feeling a bit frazzled that we haven’t liked anything. But they were all too modern and not us.

Thea and I start down the street, back toward where I parked my truck, but I spot an ice cream shop and pull her inside.

She smiles widely. “Ooh, ice cream.”