Writing A Wrong (Write Stuff 2)

"You're having dinner with her again?"

"Yeah, she needs a test dummy to try out her new recipes. Me being the dummy."

"You don't say," I repeated, laced with a noticeable amount of sarcasm. "I thought you were too busy studying and working to do much of anything else."

"Candace quizzes me during dinner."

"Well, how nice. You get a chef and a study partner."

"What?" he asked. By his tone, he saw no reason for me to be concerned.

"Nothing. It just seems like Candace is being awfully helpful now that I'm out of town."

"I thought you had no problem with it?"

"Should I have?"

"Absolutely not. You know Candace and I have been friends for years. We've finally matured enough that we can have a civilized conversation and meal together. That's it."

I grumbled a reply under my breath.

He chuckled over the line, fanning my flames. "You're cute when you're jealous."

"I'm not jealous," I lied.

"Yeah, you are, but that's cool. Don't think I don't have my own worries to deal with. By now that guy Greg has probably figured out a way to have the two of you sharing hotel rooms."

I flushed. He was unaware of how accurate he was. I didn't need to turn around to know that Greg was paying attention to our conversation.

"You still there?"

"Yeah, I was thinking about how I already got the hot cover model, so anyone else pales in comparison. You have nothing to worry about," I said loudly. I was speaking for the benefit of all of us—Alec, me, and our eavesdropper.

"I miss you, sugar lips."

"I miss you too," I said, feeling moisture forming in my eyes. The last twenty-four hours had set me in a tailspin. I could have used some time in the healing embrace of Alec's arms.

"I have to head to my next class," he said regretfully. "Call me when you're all settled in for the night."

"I will."

"Love you."

"Love you more," I said, disconnecting the call.

The tear that had welled up in the corner of my right eye slowly tracked down my cheek. I annoyingly wiped it away. My right eye was the weak one. It could never hold its shit together. I walked to the small bathroom in the RV to keep my face averted from prying eyes until I could gather myself. Somehow everything had gotten so screwed up. I had done my best to solve the issue with Greg. Hopefully he would get over it so the rest of the tour wouldn't be a total nightmare. As for Alec, all I could do was trust him. I had no other choice from hundreds of miles away.

***

The next week and a half was like living in the seventh realm of hell. Greg had taken to ignoring me, which I embraced at first, until I realized how vital he'd been at keeping the tour entertaining. I hadn't taken my spot back in the front passenger seat and Monica, Tina, and Michelle spent the majority of the time typing away on their laptops. I felt insanely jealous that they were able to write while if I even tried to look at my phone for longer than thirty seconds I would begin to feel carsick. And that was with me taking the Dramamine every day. The only bright spots were the signings, but those were always over before I knew it.

My insecurities about Alec were at an impasse. His studies pretty much consumed his time, making each of our conversations quicker than the last. I knew it was unfair to pile my woes on him, so I filled our phone chats with embellished chitchat about how well the tour was going.

Thankfully, each mile that disappeared behind the RV brought us closer to the end of the tour. January went out with a bang as a blizzard in Virginia kept us buried and stuck for a couple extra days.

"This is nice," Michelle said, sipping her coffee as she sat down in an easy chair next to me.

I nodded in agreement. As soon as it started snowing, I'd gone down to the lobby of the hotel and claimed a spot near the large bay windows that overlooked a pristine lake. I hated being stuck, but this was the type of snow I had hoped to see in New York City. Big flakes steadily floated down, covering the ground in a beautiful white blanket. When I made myself comfortable in the chair, I planned on getting some work done, but the snow was more of a distraction than I anticipated. Coming from Florida, I was fascinated by the large flakes that almost looked fake. "I planned on cranking out a couple chapters, but I can't seem to stop watching the snow fall," I said to Michelle.