Chapter Eight
Eliza
“Good morning, sleepyhead.”
I woke up and saw Mae’s smiling face in front of me. She was holding two cups of coffee, and she climbed into bed to sit with me. It was so strange to think that we’d only just met, because having her sitting in bed with me felt normal. I’d been hoping to talk to her when I got home the night before, but she had been fast asleep.
“Morning. Ah, thank you. How come we’re having coffee now?” I asked. Then I looked at the time and gasped. “It’s so late already. What’s going on? Aren’t we going to work? You were supposed to wake me!”
Mae chuckled. “Nah, I called John and told him that we needed the day off.”
“What? But I only just started working. He’s not going to like that.”
“He was fine with it. I told him that you had only just arrived in Arizona and that you needed a day to get yourself settled. Neither of us realized that you had come straight to work for us from California like that. Also, he’s cool with days off as long as there is no immediate work to be done. And he knows we worked most of Saturday getting things ready for that fundraising thing.”
“Are you sure?” I asked.
She nodded. “I’m sure. So today I can show you around the city, and take you to any shops that you need to go to.”
“Thank you. And maybe I can go apartment shopping.”
“You don’t have to. I honestly don’t mind having you here.”
I shook my head. “No, you’ve already done so much for me. I’d rather not overstay my welcome. And anyway, it would be nice to get my own apartment. I haven’t lived by myself in such a long time. I think I need to get to know myself again.”
“That’s a good idea actually. So tell me about this Raymond guy?”
I groaned. “He wasn’t a good guy, Mae. Not at all. And yet I stayed with him. I really hoped that things would get better. But they never did.”
“How did such a strong person like you end up with such an idiot?”
“Good question. I think it was because he wasn’t like that when I first started dating him. Also, he’s super charming. He charmed the pants off my mother. And I guess he did the same to me. Sometimes, when he has the charm switched on, it’s hard to believe that he can be anything other than that.”
“I’ve known some guys like that. They’re the worst because you just never know when they’re lying or not. I’m glad you’re out of it, Eliza. There’s nothing worse than seeing a woman being controlled by a man.”
“Tell me about it. I’m so happy that I left. And I’m so happy that I met you. I cannot tell you how easy you’ve made this transition for me. I mean, Gunner was saying that to me last night. He couldn’t believe that the two of us had only just met. He figured we were old friends.” I took a sip of the coffee and smiled. “Ah, this is good. Thank you.”
Mae nodded and took a sip of her own coffee. She looked like she wanted to say something but kept changing her mind. I could see the cogs turning in her brain, and I wondered why she didn’t just come right out and say it. Finally, I decided to just ask. She was clearly dying to speak her mind.
“What’s going on? You look like you want to say something to me.”
“Well, it’s just this Gunner guy. I mean, that’s a weird name, don’t you think?”
I laughed. “Yeah, but it’s only his nickname. Everyone in that club has a nickname. His real name is Ian. And how come you haven’t asked me about the date yet?” I’d thought that it would’ve been the first thing that she would’ve asked me. I’d half expected her to be waiting up for me when I got home, or at least come bouncing in this morning to ask me about it.
She sighed. “I don’t know, Eliza. I feel weird about you going out with a guy like that.”
“What do you mean? You’re the one who left me alone to talk to him at the pub. If you didn’t want me going out with him then why did you let that happen?”
“Yeah, that’s true. I regret that now.”
“Why?” I didn’t like the way this conversation was going.
“Well, because I don’t want to see you getting hurt. You already had a guy hurting you, and you’re too nice of a person for me to want to see that happen again. And I know we’ve only just met, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t want to see you with a nice man. The last thing I want to do is to see you get so hurt again.”
“But why would Gunner hurt me? Do you know something about him that I don’t?”
She shook her head. “No, I don’t know anything about him. But, I’m just worried about him being a part of that club. I’ve heard some crazy stories about those guys. And I know he seems nice, but what if he’s really some crazy dude? Or another abusive guy?”
“Thanks for worrying about me, Mae. It’s been a while since anyone has done that. But, I really don’t think he’s abusive. I know that I’ve only just met him, but I don’t get that feeling from him at all. He’s nothing like Raymond.”
“I know. But you didn’t think Raymond would be like that, either.”
“True.”
The two of us didn’t say anything for a while. We just sat there drinking our coffee in silence. She had a point, and I couldn’t deny it. I’d been fooled once before.
“So,” I finally said. “Just how bad are these guys? Because they seemed pretty nice at the fundraiser to me. You even said so yourself. And they were raising money for some lady who has cancer. That doesn’t exactly scream crazy or abusive.”
“They did actually seem nice,” Mae admitted. “But I’ve heard bad stories in the past. But who knows, they might just be stories and nothing else. I don’t know, though. I’m just always so wary of people like that. Will you just promise me that you’ll be careful?”
“Of course I will. Trust me, after what happened with Raymond, I’m going to be the most cautious person in the world. Anyway, there’s nothing going on, so there’s nothing to even worry about. I didn’t even kiss the guy.” On the cheek, but that didn’t count.
“Well, that’s good to hear. But are you seeing him again?”
“I honestly have no idea, Mae. I’m not looking for a guy right now, so I’m not thinking about him at all.” That wasn’t exactly true. I wasn’t looking for a guy at the moment, that part was true. But I couldn’t say that I wasn’t thinking about him. Gunner was hard to forget. But Mae didn’t need to know that. And there was nothing wrong with having someone to think about. At least it took my mind off Raymond.
“So, what do you want to do first today?” she asked, clearly keen to change the subject.
“Food first. Always food first. Then apartment shopping. Will you come with me?”
“Of course I will!”
Mae and I spent the rest of the day apartment hunting. I didn’t think I’d find anything that day. I knew how saturated the market was in California, and I wasn’t exactly rolling in money. But, as it turned out, luck was on my side that day. Either that, or things in Arizona were different than what I was used to. But I managed to find an apartment the very first day I started looking. It was small but airy, and it made me feel instantly at home.
“This is the one,” I said to the lady who was showing us around. It was a strange feeling. I’d been living with Raymond for such a long time that I didn’t know what it felt like to choose a place that I liked. I’d figured I’d find fault with everything that I saw. But the moment I saw the place, I felt a sense of freedom with it that I’d never experienced before.
She grinned. “You’re the first person I’m showing this to today. If you take this, then this will be one of my quickest rentals ever.”
“And this is the first apartment that I’m seeing today. I feel like people would tell me to look around in case I find something better, but I also don’t want to miss out on this one. It’s exactly what I’m looking for. And I just feel happy here.”
“It’s all about the way a place makes you feel,” Mae agreed. She looked around and smiled at me. “I like this place.”
“You know what? I’m going to take it!”
The woman clapped her hands in delight. “Wonderful. It’s yours! I know the owner personally, by the way. She’s great. She’ll be happy that it went so quickly. The previous tenants looked after the place, and I know she was looking for someone that would do the same. Clearly, you are the right person for it.”
“Oh, I’ll definitely look after this place.”
I took the forms, which I promised to send back by the end of the day, and made my way back to Mae’s house.
“I cannot believe you just found an apartment. I thought I was going to have you for a few more months.”
I grinned at her. “You might’ve gotten sick of me. I mean, I would’ve demanded coffee in bed every day.”
“Well, I’m glad I got you for a few days at least. I’m happy for you Eliza. This is the start of a brand new life for you.”
“New apartment, new job, new friend. Yeah, I think life is finally looking up again.”