Fuzzy Logic (31 page)

“That reminds me. I forgot to show you the picture I took of you.” Michael untangled himself from Jan and crossed the room. He returned with a package of photographs and began riffling through them. “Here it is.” He sat down and handed it to her. “This is how I see you.”

Jan looked down at the photo. It was taken when they went on the horseback ride on the beach. Her hair was swirling around her face from the wind and she was obviously laughing. The late-afternoon lighting was stunning and there was a glow behind her reddish hair. “I had no idea you were such an amazing photographer. This doesn’t even look like me.”

“I think it does. Sometimes when you get really lucky, you capture a moment perfectly. Photography has been a hobby of mine for a long time. I just don’t do it anymore much because of work. When I started in advertising I did a lot of the photo and graphic-design work because we didn’t have many people. Then I moved up into creative direction and account management, so I stopped doing the hands-on stuff. Now so much of it is done on the computer, it’s totally different. So I hung up my X-acto knife and Rubylith.”

“Do you have other photographs that you’ve taken?”

“Sure. You’ve seen them.” He waved his hand toward the room. “They’re hanging up all over the place.”

Jan sat up straighter on the couch. “Those are yours? I had no idea. I thought you’d bought them at galleries.”

Michael grinned. “I have my own little art show right here. There are more photographs in the bedroom, you know.”

Jan rolled her eyes. “If you ask me if I want to see your etchings, I may really throw up this time.”

He gathered her in his arms and kissed her. “You can’t fool me. I know you’re feeling better now. You’re using multi-syllabic words again.”

Chapter 13

T
he drive back to Alpine Grove was far more enjoyable than the drive down to San Diego had been. No more serious conversations, picking fights, or even thinking about the future if she could help it. Whatever was going to happen would happen without her analysis. There would be plenty of time to cry later. And she was going to cry a lot. Because she certainly wasn’t falling
less
in love with Michael. After her unfortunate drunken adventure and subsequent hangover hell, he’d been so kind to her, it was hard not to feel anything but affection for him.

They pulled up in front of Jan’s house and again, she was relieved to be back in her own space. She opened the door and Swoosie ran into the house, rushing around the small space doing her spaz dog routine.

A wave of contentment flowed through Jan as she put down her bag and walked around her home environment again. “It’s so good to be home!”

Michael flopped down on the sofa. “It’s good to be out of the car.” Swoosie leaped up next to him, and settled in, apparently equally happy to be out of the back seat.

“We have to go pick up Rosa, though. I told Kat we’d come by as soon as we got here.”

Michael stretched out on the sofa, pushing Swoosie out of the way. He yawned and Swoosie readjusted her position so she could take a nap alongside him.

Jan gazed at his relaxed form draped all over her sofa. “You drove all the way up here. Maybe I should go get Rosa myself.”

Michael smiled. “Remember how I didn’t get any sleep because of work? Well, I didn’t get any sleep last night, either. But that was your fault. And since you slept approximately 16 hours previously, I’d say you’re well-rested.”

Blushing slightly at the memory, Jan said, “True. I didn’t really think about that. I’ll stop by the library and tell Jill that I’m really here. She’s probably dreading that I’m going to call her and tell her I’m not coming in again.”

Michael closed his eyes. “Uh-huh.”

Jan left Michael and Swoosie to their napping and headed off down the road. She enjoying the familiar trees and fall colors as she wound her way back to Kat’s place deep in the forest.

She drove up to the house and found Kat and Joel outside with many dogs gathered around them. Slowing the car to a crawl, she parked under a tree. Kat walked over, trailed by the gigantic brown dog, the black-and-white dog, and Rosa.

Jan jumped out of the car and crouched down to say hello to Rosa, “Oh, how’s my girl? Look at you, being part of the pack!” She stood up and turned to Kat. “Hi again. I apologize again that I didn’t get here earlier.”

“I’m glad you seem to be feeling better,” Kat said.

“How was your flight?” Joel asked.

“I didn’t fly back after all. Michael drove me.”

“So he’s visiting again?” Kat said. “He seemed really nice. Oh, and you need to tell him that what he said to me about thinking about what clients want really helped. I actually wrote something on the business plan.”

“It’s a miracle,” Joel said with a smile.

Kat turned to him. “Hey, who met her article deadline? And has a check in the mail? Oh yes, that would be me.”

Joel grinned and said to Jan. “Writing is a mercurial thing. When it’s good, it’s very good. And when it’s bad, I leave the room.”

“Sometimes I read a novel and I’m in awe that someone actually sat down and wrote it,” Jan said. “My mind doesn’t work that way. I remember facts and history. It’s hard to imagine being able to just write something out of thin air.”

“Is Michael going to be around for a while?” Kat asked.

Jan looked up at the trees. “I’m, ah, not sure. He’s off from work at the moment.”

“Cool.” Kat clasped her hands in front of her. “I know he’s supposed to be on vacation, but maybe if he has a little extra time, he could give me some more marketing advice. Could you ask him if he’d be willing to help me come up with a name for the kennel? I’d pay for his help. Or you can board Rosa for free. Or his dog, too. You have no idea how bad Joel and I are at brainstorming. I think we’re too analytical.”

Joel shook his head sadly. “We tend to get bogged down in details. It’s not good.”

Jan nodded. “Okay, I’ll tell him. From what he has said, I think he loves doing that kind of thing.”

“Fantastic!” Kat said. “If he could help me figure that out, it would be a huge load off of my mind. Let me go get Rosa’s stuff for you.”

Jan leashed up Rosa and loaded her into the car and thought about what Kat had said. When she got back home, she told Michael about the conversation. “It seems like you’re good at your job, even when you’re not at work.”

He wrapped his arms around her waist. “I suppose I can’t help it. I’ve been doing this type of stuff for a long time. I look at a magazine ad and think of twelve ways it could be improved. A lot of it is just human nature. People hate to feel like they are being sold something, but they love to spend money.”

“I never thought about it that way. I guess that’s true. So will you help Kat? She said she’d even pay you.”

“Sure. Although first I’d like to spend some time enjoying Alpine Grove again.” He bent his head down to kiss her. “Starting with you. I feel much better after my nap.” He kissed her lips and her neck, walking her back toward the wall.

Jan’s back touched the vertical surface and he pressed his body to hers, running his hands under her shirt, up the sides of her body. Gasping for breath, she said, “Maybe we should move to the bedroom?”

He paused and looked into her eyes. “Good idea.”

She smiled. “And maybe you could put your dog in her crate, too.”

“That’s an even better idea.”

Over the next few days, Jan and Michael settled into a routine. Michael got up early and went running with Swoosie. After they returned and the dogs were fed, Jan made breakfast. They ate together and she went off to work at the library with Rosa. At some point during the day, Michael did the dishes. She didn’t know exactly when, but the kitchen was always clean when she got home. He often went out with Swoosie and his camera for a hike somewhere. Sometimes he’d appear at the library in the afternoon and they’d eat lunch together. The dark circles under his eyes had faded and even Swoosie seemed more relaxed. She hadn’t eaten or destroyed anything in days. Jan was even starting to like the fuzzy dog and looked forward to seeing Swoosie’s happy, smiling polar-bear face when she got home at night.

After Michael had been there for a week, Jan started to get anxious about when he was going to leave. She’d promised herself not to think about the future, but he’d been there far longer than just the “last weekend” they’d discussed. And now she didn’t want him to go anywhere. But she really didn’t want to talk to him about it, particularly because they had been getting along so well. The fact was, she
never
wanted him to leave. But the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach reminded her that it was only a matter of time.

They were curled up on the sofa watching a movie when the phone rang. Jan jumped up and ran to answer it. “Hi Bruce. Yes, he’s here.” She held the phone out to Michael. “It’s your dad.”

Looking startled, Michael got up off the couch and took the phone from Jan. “Hey Dad. Is everything okay?” He raised his eyebrows questioningly at Jan. “Yes, Angie told me that, but I’m fine. I’m just taking a little vacation, that’s all....Really? I guess I should call them back, then. Okay. Yes, you can do that if you want. Thanks for letting me know. Talk to you soon.”

Jan raised her hands, palms up. “What was that all about?”

“He wanted to find out if I’m okay, since according to your mom, my aura is cloudy. And I guess some of the agency clients have been trying to reach me. I have an unlisted number, so they called my dad to try to track me down.”

“Really? I’m reminded again why I would never want your job.”

“He called to let me know they were looking for me and to find out if it was okay to give out my home number to people.”

“Why is it unlisted?”

He shook his head. “Sometimes clients can be demanding. Particularly if they’re in other time zones. There was one guy a few years ago who started calling me at home in the middle of the night every time he had a new brilliant idea. I was already working insane hours. So I changed my number and made it unlisted.”

“I think I’m liking your job even less than I did before. And that’s saying something.”

Michael shrugged. “It’s what I do. I’m good at it.” He looked thoughtful for a moment. “I really must be good if people are calling my dad to find me. I should probably call them back. Can I use your phone?”

“You’re going to call people now? It’s eight at night. Way past business hours.”

“It’s eight in the morning in Moscow. They’re just getting up.”

“You want to call the other side of the world?”

“Yes. They make vodka.” He grinned. “You know, the stuff that almost killed you? Not everyone has that reaction to it.”

“Fine. Could you crate your dog? Rosa and I are going to the bedroom. I’ll be reading. She’ll be sleeping.”

“Okay. See you later.”

The next morning, Jan woke up and discovered Michael wasn’t in the bed next to her. She heard movement in the living room, got up, and found Michael packing his things. Swoosie was circling around, excited about the prospect of another road trip.

Jan had read somewhere that the term heartache was based on a feeling of intense sadness that could cause a literal ache in the chest. It turned out to be true. She clenched her hands in front of her, digging her nails into her palms. “So you’re leaving?”

“Yes. I need to go home and deal with some stuff. And the vodka people want me to fly to Russia.”

“What?”

Standing up, he smiled. “I’ve always wanted to go to Russia.”

“How can you work with clients if the agency is closed?”

“I’m going to work that out. That’s why I have to go. These guys still need to sell their vodka. I need to help them figure out how they can get out of their contract with Derek.”

“I see.”

Michael reached out to take her in his arms. “This trip and this time with you have been incredible. I needed to clear my head. I feel so much better.”

Jan hugged him and put her head on his shoulder. “It was a great weekend. Even though it was much longer than just a weekend. I’m going to miss you.”

He gently pushed her away from him and looked into her eyes. “I’m going to miss you, too.”