Fat Cat Liar

I wrestle my phone out of my jacket pocket and see dozens of notifications from Greer starting as early as one-thirty this afternoon.

The Nerd Herd made it just in time before the storm got worse. Hope you are having a nice afternoon.

An hour later— We lost electricity but have a back-up. Are you okay out there?

Lawson? Are you there?

I’m starting to get concerned. The storm is picking up. Do you have food and firewood?

Lawson?

Lawson? Why aren’t you answering me?

Stan said you left a while ago. Are you somewhere with cell service?

It’s dark now. Please let me know you are safe.

I stop reading, tossing my phone on the bed and hugging her closer.

“I didn’t realize I lost cell service. My internet was fine.”

“Where were you?”

“I went to the bed and breakfast in town. They have a coffee shop attached, and I needed to do some things.”

“What kind of things?”

I stall to answer, not wanting to admit I was working. She picks up on my reluctance and pushes back to face me. “What kind of things?” she repeats suspiciously.

“My dad needed some help, and I promised to look over some reports after our lunch today. When our plans changed, I decided to head into town early and knock it out. It took longer than I expected.”

“Is that why he called this morning? You needed to work?”

“I guess you could say that.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because I didn’t want to give you the impression that anything was more important than our date.”

“I would have understood, Lawson.” There’s a sense of relief in her expression, but the fear is still etched on her face.

I thread my hands through the hair at her temple and massage gently. “Baby, tell me what else is on your mind.”

She hesitates, biting down on her lip, and brings her eyes to mine. “I thought you’d left.” Her voice is barely a whisper, but the words slam into me, thundering in my ears.

“This morning, my dad, the Nerd Herd, living in a shack… I thought you’d finally had enough,” she continues.

Is she fucking crazy?

I struggle to hold back my grin while at the same time wanting to beat my chest in victory. “I’m not going anywhere, Greer. Nothing is going to dissuade me from bei

ng close to you. If that means living in the woods, I’ll gladly do it with no complaint. If your dad thought bringing in reinforcements was going to sway me, he’s going to be disappointed.”

She shivers again, tugging the blanket tightly around us.

“Let me start a fire. I let it die down knowing I’d be out all day.”

“No.” She shakes her head.