Mythe: A Fairy Tale (21 page)

Josh looked decidedly unhappy. “Richard left town this morning. He had to go suddenly and didn’t want to wake you.”

“Oh.” Manda had grown accustomed to his unexpected departures. She should have been relieved that she wouldn’t have to face him today after her minor breakdown last night, but instead she was disappointed. “When will he be back this time?”

“He’s not planning on coming back. He’s left me and Mikey to hold down the fort,” Josh explained reluctantly. His expression was sympathetic.

“Oh,” Manda repeated dumbly. In spite of David’s cautioning advice to be careful—as well as her own repeated warnings to herself not to get too involved—the news that she might never see Richard again was crushing. Wise or not, she’d let her emotions become entangled and now he was gone. Tears stung the backs of her eyes and she carefully schooled her face into a smooth, blank mask. “That’s too bad. I’m sure you can handle anything that comes up, though. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll get dressed and get to the office. They’re probably wondering where I am.”

“Richard called David and Curt this morning and told them you wouldn’t be in today. You really don’t have to rush off, Manda. Let me get you something to eat,” Josh coaxed.

“No, I’m really not hungry. Thank you though. I think I’ll just go home if they aren’t expecting me at work. I’m still pretty tired.” Manda turned back into the bedroom and closed the door before Josh could reply. She donned her own clothes numbly, leaving Richard’s shirt folded neatly on the dresser. When she came back out, Josh was waiting for her.

“Are you okay, Manda?” he asked carefully, as if he feared that the wrong word would shatter her.

“Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?” she answered, in what she hoped was a casual tone. “That’s not the first time I’ve had to pull an all-nighter and I’m sure it won’t be the last.” She didn’t really think that was what he was referring to though. Was she really that transparent?

“
We’re
still friends, aren’t we?” he asked, almost pleading.

Manda’s careful control wavered. “Of course we are, Josh,” she assured him unsteadily. He wrapped her in a firm hug and she struggled to regain control of herself while returning his embrace.

“Well, I’ll be around. Call me if you need anything, okay?” he said when he released her.

“I will. Thanks, Josh.” Manda picked up her purse from the coffee table and left quickly.

The train ride home was a blur, and by the time she walked through her door, Manda was ready to go back to bed. She was emotionally drained, and lack of sleep was still dragging her down. The eight hours of unconsciousness in Richard’s bed had mitigated her exhaustion temporarily, but hadn’t done much to combat the two-weeks of stress and sleep deprivation that had culminated in last night’s physical and emotional crash. Without even bothering to eat or change, she collapsed onto her bed and slept until the next morning, when her alarm clock woke her.

Manda walked onto the elevator at work right behind David.

“You’re running late today, M. Are you okay?” There was no hint of teasing in his question.

“Sure. I’m fine,” Manda lied.

“I’m surprised to see you. Richard called yesterday and said you’d been up all night working on Fieldings and that you were completely wiped out. You should have told me. I could have helped. You’ve been pushing yourself too hard, Manda. You need to take a break.”

“Well, I slept all day yesterday. That should help recharge my batteries,” Manda offered with contrived cheerfulness.

David was quiet for a long time before he spoke again. “I went to dinner with Josh last night. He told me that Richard left. I’m really sorry, M.”

Manda’s throat tightened and she took several moments to compose herself. “It’s okay. I told you, I never had any delusions about that. Can we just not talk about it?” She could function normally as long as she didn’t think about it too much.

“Sure. So, what’s on the agenda for today? I think we’ve got most things almost wrapped up. If we don’t have anything new coming in, why don’t you take the afternoon off and let me cover? You look like you could still use some more sleep.”

“We’ll see,” Manda replied noncommittally. She didn’t relish the idea of an afternoon at home alone, actually. She would prefer to stay at work and keep occupied.

For the next week she kept herself
very
occupied. She threw herself feverishly into her work. She accepted several new projects and the pace was hectic, though David refused to let her work late. He threatened to go to Curt and tell him she was working too hard when he couldn’t convince her to leave any other way. She came in especially early every day though, and insisted on working through her lunches. When the weekend arrived, she spent all day Saturday and Sunday shopping for Christmas gifts for her friends and family. She found several books that she knew David would like and a cashmere sweater that would look beautiful on Stacey. She shopped until she was exhausted, and bought more than she should have for Katie and Robbie, as well as Emily and Andy.

Manda ran into Josh several times before work. On Monday he’d been waiting for her in the plaza, bundled up against the morning cold. He’d convinced her, with his pleading blue eyes, to let him buy her a cup of tea at the diner. As much as she wanted to, Manda didn’t ask about Richard, and Josh didn’t volunteer any information. Their conversation was pleasant and inconsequential. Josh was his usual spontaneous, friendly self and they soon settled into a routine. Though he no longer seemed to feel comfortable spending his days in the office, every other morning or so Josh would meet up with her and they would have breakfast at the diner—Mikey even came along once—but, in an unspoken accord, no one ever mentioned Richard.

When Manda was able to stay busy she was able to keep her thoughts off of him—mostly. The evenings were another story though. She almost called David’s bluff about tattling to Curt if she tried to work late, but she wasn’t convinced it really was a bluff. Instead she tried to fill the hours between work and bed as best she could—cooking, cleaning, catching up on her household to-do list—but all too soon there always came the time when she had run out of things to distract her, and thoughts of Richard would creep in. She missed him. She missed his dazzling smile and his startling blue eyes. She missed his warm laugh. Mostly she missed talking to him. He had been so easy to talk to.

On Friday night she built a fire in the fireplace on her patio. She couldn’t bring herself to join Josh, David, and Stacey for the evening and she missed her Friday nights with Katie and Robbie. They would have provided a welcome diversion, but she didn’t want to explain to Emily why she was avoiding her friends.

The evening was cold but the night sky was beautiful and clear, and she pulled her chair close to the roaring flames and cuddled up under a warm blanket. The neighbor’s dog had been restless all night and she shushed his barking once more. He probably had a mouse cornered in a drain spout again. He was a huge dog, but gentle as a teddy bear. He didn’t bark often, only when something had him worked up…or occasionally when he chased a field mouse into a tight spot. She appreciated the warning he provided against potential prowlers, but she hadn’t seen anything out of the ordinary tonight. Distracted by the generally well-behaved dog’s agitation, she was startled by the large and unfamiliar dog that edged out of the deep shadows surrounding the circle of firelight on her patio.

Manda gasped in surprise when she noticed him sitting in the flickering glow. It was a large, wolfish dog, with thick, silvery-gray fur and white on his face and throat. His brown eyes shone in the firelight as he sat watching her with his head cocked to one side.

“How did you get in here?” Manda asked, startled. “Aren’t you a pretty dog,” she continued in a soothing voice. She held out her hand toward the dog, palm down. “Come here, boy. Do you live around here?”

The dog watched her, but didn’t move.

“Are you friendly?” she asked in a soft, coaxing tone. The dog wagged his tail but still remained where he was. “Okay. You don’t have to come over here if you don’t want to. Feel free to enjoy the fire anyway.” Manda settled
back into her chair again, stretching her hands toward the warmth of the flames and watching her visitor out of the corner of her eye. Before long, the dog was laying in half-shadow, watching her intently.

For almost two hours Manda and the dog sat by the fire watching each other. She welcomed the distraction provided by her unexpected visitor. Finally, when her eyelids were growing heavy, she stood, wrapped in the blanket, and stretched.

“I think I’ll go to bed now. Time for you to go.” The dog sat up and regarded her with his brown eyes. She walked toward the gate, giving him plenty of room and trying not to startle him. Her assumption was that he had jumped the fence...until she rounded the corner of her house and saw the gate unlatched.

“How did that get open?” she muttered in annoyance. “Well, that explains how you got in, anyway.” She watched the dog trot past her and out, then she fastened the gate.

She went upstairs, hoping she was tired enough to fall asleep immediately. She wasn’t. She lay in bed missing Richard for far too long, and when she finally did find sleep, dreams of him followed her.

After shopping again all day on Saturday, Manda went to dinner with Emily, Andy, and the kids. Katie asked her if she’d seen Josh lately, and Manda answered honestly that she’d had breakfast with him a couple of times that week. Emily noticed that she didn’t mention Richard, but when she asked about him Manda simply said that he’d been called out of town. Sensing that Manda didn’t want to talk about it, Emily didn’t pursue the subject any further.

By the time Manda got home it was late and she went right to bed. On Sunday evening, after another day of shopping, she stopped and picked up Chinese take-out and ate in front of the fire on the patio. It was a warmer evening, though still chilly. She was almost finished with her dinner when the rattle of the gate latch startled her. Alarmed, she very quietly put down her plate and picked up the fireplace poker, then crept carefully to the corner of the house and peaked around it toward the gate. Her heart was pounding nervously. No one should be prowling around her house at this time of night.

Manda laughed in surprise and relief when she saw the silver shape of the dog through the slats in the fence. He bumped up the latch with his nose and trotted through when the gate swung open.

“So it was you!” she chuckled, sagging against the corner of the house. “Aren’t you clever! Well, come on back. The fire is nice and warm.” She returned to her chair, setting the poker down on the ground and pulling the blanket back up over her lap. The dog followed her, lying down on the opposite side of the fire from her chair. “Are you hungry? I don’t like egg rolls, so you can have mine if you want it,” Manda said, speaking in a soothing, friendly voice and extending the egg roll in question toward the dog. She didn’t know if dogs liked egg rolls, but she wanted to gain his trust so she could check for a collar and tags. He cocked his ears toward her with an expression that she could only describe as a grin, but he continued to keep his distance.

Every night after that the dog returned, each night sitting a little closer to the fire. After several nights he was close enough to her that she was able to get a good look at him in the firelight. His coat was smooth and glossy and he appeared well fed.

“Well, you can’t be a stray. You’re too well cared for. Does your owner know you’re sneaking out at night?” He still wouldn’t come near her, and since he didn’t seem to be lost, she gave up on trying to get close.

Manda viewed his nightly visits as a welcome diversion but by Thursday evening the dog’s presence had become routine and was no longer enough to distract her from thoughts of Richard. As she gazed into the flames she was overwhelmed by the sadness that had shadowed her since his departure; it wasn’t fair that she should miss him so much after knowing him such a short time.

Manda didn’t even realize that the dog had approached until she felt the brush of his fur against her skin. He nuzzled her hand and then put one paw on her leg. As she looked down into his brown eyes a teardrop dripped off of her chin onto the fur of his paw. He whined softly, as if in sympathy, and on cue the floodgate opened on
Manda’s tears. She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her furry companion, burying her face in his thick coat and crying quietly.

By the time the tears eventually spent themselves, the fire had died down to glowing coals and the night was cold. She wiped her eyes with the edge of her blanket and scratched the dog behind the ears. “Thanks for the shoulder to cry on,” she said, with a short, unsteady laugh, “but I guess you’d better get home. It’s getting cold and the fire’s about gone. I’d invite you in, but somebody would probably miss you.” She walked to the gate and the dog followed on her heels, trotting out hesitantly when she opened it. He looked back at her as she closed it behind him, and when she glanced out her bedroom window a short time later, she could just make out his gray outline sitting in the shadows of the house across the street.

“Well, I guess you have enough fur to keep you warm,” she sighed. He would go home if he got cold enough. Manda slipped into bed and quickly into sleep, where dreams of Richard once again waited for her.

Chapter 14

M
anda didn’t see Josh the next morning. She got to the office well before David arrived and quickly buried herself in work. In addition to the Raines project, she had projects for a number of other clients that needed her attention. At David’s insistence, she had allowed him to take the lion’s share of work over the last week, but that still left plenty to keep her busy—which was just as well, since it didn’t leave her any time to indulge in self-pity.