Maya
Present Day: When Maya showed up at Lola and Olly’s Parents’ house.
Lola’s mom encouraged me to sit down, so I did. I was still trying to process the last 12 hours and felt light on my feet. “Thank you, Mrs. Martin.” I cleared my throat. “Sorry to interrupt. I just…”
Normally, whenever I was in the same room with Olly, I felt anger and jealousy. Today, when he answered the door, my mind was so focused on one thing that I didn’t initially register that it was him. My full focus was on talking to Lola.
“Here.” Lola set a glass of water down in front of me. My friend sat down next to me and reached for my hand. “Maya, what’s wrong?”
My head was down, and I could feel my whole body shaking. Her family was circled around me. The pressure of telling Lola everything that happened last night increased with each passing second. It was possible they were going to think I had gone off the deep end. I could see it now; not only was I bitchy, but I was also batshit crazy.
Lola’s mom placed her hand on my shoulder. “It’s okay, Dear. Whatever you say will not leave this room, unless you want it to.”
“Um, well, I’m not sure if it’s a big deal.” I took a drink of water. “I keep telling myself it was all a dream.”
Lola squeezed my hand. “Just start at the beginning.”
Beginning, huh. Well, I was here, and there was no way I was going home. When I left my apartment, I filled Mocha’s bowl with her dry food and made sure she had enough water. She knew something was up because she ran away when I tried to say goodbye. I’ll have to buy a year’s worth of her favorite treats to get back on her good side when this is all over.
“Right, okay.” Then I just started talking. When I finally reached the end of the story, I lifted my head, prepared to find that everyone had disappeared. Instead, they stood there staring at me.
“Maya.” Lola placed the palm of her hand on my cheek. “Sweetie, did you call the cops?”
“Honestly, with how many times Mocha scared me, I thought it was all a dream.” I paused for a beat. “Until I saw the car again, and I was definitely awake.” I shook my head. “It all feels too crazy. The cops don’t need me bothering them. They probably get enough of that on a daily basis.”
“Benny.” Marie sounded worried.
“On it.” Mr. Martin left the room.
“Dad has a friend, his son is a cop.” Lola smiled. “Let’s make sure it was just a dream.” She rested her hands on my thighs. “Oh, and you’re going to have house guests for a few nights, too.”
“I am?” I scowled. “Who?”
“Me.” I noticed how Lola’s eyes moved over my shoulder to someone behind me. “And Ryan.”
“You don’t have to do that.” I sighed. “I can grab Mocha and stay in a hotel for a few nights.”
“Nope.” She slapped her hand on my thigh. “This is not up for discussion. Plus, what if he was really there and shows up again tonight?”
“He’s on his way.” Mr. Martin announced as he walked back into the kitchen.
“Who is he talking about? The cop?” I felt a mix of emotions wash over me. Relief, guilt, fear. I leaned closer to Lola. “Do you know this cop?”
“Yup.” She winked. “If nothing drastic has happened, he used to be hot, too.”
“Lola.” Mrs. Martin said her name with her stern voice, but you could see her lips trying to hold back a smile. “He’s a good boy. Been on the force for a few years now.”
I looked at Lola. “This sucks.” I shook my head. “I’ll try not to meet a guy online ever again.”
“This time, will you mean it?” She turned her head to the side and rolled her eyes.
“Whatever.” She had every right to ask me that question. This would be the third time I attempted to swear off online dating. I leaned back in the chair and let out a heavy sigh.
The doorbell rang, startling me.
“Maya.” Mr. Martin called for me.
“Come on.” Lola grabbed my hand and tugged me toward the front door.
“Maya, this is Billy.” Mr. Martin stepped to the right to give me a full view of the man standing in the doorway. Just like every other time I’ve seen him, my brain turned to mush. “You can talk in the living room if you need some privacy.”
“Thank you, sir.” Billy nodded and took a step toward me.
He had been in my donut shop several times. Billy was not hard to miss, with his stunning teal-blue eyes. Every time he came in, I stayed in the back to avoid talking to him. It was something I had been doing for years now. Probably since we were in grade school. The man made me tongue-tied. And now I had to sit down next to him and talk about what happened.
“Hi.” He smiled and reached out his hand. “I remember you.”
AUTHOR NOTE:
Finally, it’s happening. I can’t wait to see Maya and Billy’s relationship slowly evolve. EEP! Okay, tell me, does Billy remember Maya from the donut shop (since she was always in the back, hidden), or will he share a silly story from high school?