“Everything is going great, actually.” I smile. “Mom, seriously, I’m really glad I came to Denver.”

“You sure you don’t need anything?” my mom asks me, always concerned about my wellbeing. “Food? Money? Anything? Come on. You must need something.”

“Mom, I want to do this the right way. I don’t want to have to rely on you for everything. You understand, right?” I hold my breath. A few years ago, I would have accepted any offer she sent my way. Now, I want to try this thing on my own. I want to see if I can actually do it.

“I understand,” she says. “Listen, have you met anyone new?”

There she goes. The phone calls always end with her asking if I’ve met anyone yet. She loved Craig, my last boyfriend. He complimented her endlessly and she ate it all up. That wasn’t the only thing he did to try and make me his forever. We used to fight constantly. He used to block my way out of his apartment. He said I couldn’t leave. He said I owed him. Of course, she doesn’t know all of that. She never could understand why I broke up with him.

“No, Mom,” I say. “Well, there’s a man who’s kind of been nice to me, but he’s a little weird.”

“Well, what’re you waiting for? Go out on a date already!” she exclaims.

“We’ll see,” I sigh. “Anyway, I gotta run. I love you, Mom.”

“Love you too, sweetie-pie,” she says. I can imagine her smile and the warmth she exudes. The truth is, I miss her a lot. I miss home. But this is growing up and being an adult is about letting things change into something new. Home will always be home, but I need to settle in my new kind of home.

I just haven’t found my place yet. And, of course, there’s the problem: Soren. He gives me goose bumps, his body is perfect, and he’s pretty much the definition of “man,” but he’s not the guy for me. He looks, well, bad. I don’t think he even has a job. The whole thing was just one crazy situation that got out of hand.

Sometimes you meet someone and you just can’t get them off your back. Well, I think that’s our situation. We both found each other and can’t figure out a way to separate because we’re both outcasts. We’re both on the outside. Even with this place being his home, he doesn’t seem like he has anyone. The waitress said he had a falling out with his brother. I doubt they’ve even put the matter behind him.

We’re both on the edge of reality, waiting for the door to open.

I have to wonder, is there a storm coming through at the end of all of this? I step out onto my porch and call my boss, after listening to a voicemail from him. “Harry?” I ask. “Hey, it’s Emma!”

“Emma!” he exclaims. “Have you moved in alright? Is the house almost finished?”

I laugh and nod my head. “Yeah, it’s great,” I say. “Well, they’ve suspended the construction, but they say they’ll be completely finished by Monday. Anyway, I’m really sorry this whole thing even happened. Such a wreck, right?”

“It’s no big deal. Honestly. These things happen,” he says. “Look, I was thinking you could come on down to the office. I’d like to show you around the place.”

“Sure,” I say. “Why not?”

* * *

It doesn’t take long before I pick my outfit out to look presentable for the new boss. I walk into the modern-looking building and see Harry standing at the entrance, holding a few books in his hand. “Emma, Emma!” he smiles. “Great to see you again.”

“This place is beautiful, Harry,” I look around.

“The Skype interview process doesn’t exactly do it justice,” he chuckles. “Here, let’s start with lunch, okay?”

“Sounds great,” I smile and follow him into a large, white room.

“We have the best chefs in the area,” he says. “You can get just about anything here. How about…” He looks around at the many different options.

“Coffee and breakfast?” I ask him. I think about the diner and wonder if Soren is there right now, eating that steak and eggs breakfast. I quickly push it out of my mind.

“Great,” he says.

We order the food and coffee and it’s not long before we’re handed everything. We sit down, next to a giant column of windows. “So,” he sighs and sits back in his chair, holding a black cup of coffee. Outside the window are cacti, enclosed in a small space. “Have you been going out at all? There’s some cool bars around here.”

“Actually, not really,” I tell him. “I’ve sort of been laying low. I mean, I met a neighbor of mine the other day. He seems alright.”

“A neighbor?” he asks. “I thought the houses next door were empty?”

I shrug. “Well, I think he just got back into town, or something. I’m not sure,” I say.

“Wait a minute,” he says, thinking to himself for a moment. “It’s not Gabe Payne is it?” he asks me.

“No, it’s Soren,” I laugh. “Do you know him or something?”

“I know the family.” He nods. “We all grew up together.”

“Interesting.” I want to ask him more. I want him to tell me what he knows.

“I think you should probably stay away from him,” he says, after a few seconds. “In fact, you might want to stay away from them altogether. The whole family is rife with problems.”

“Okay,” I say, “but what kind of problems?”

“I’d rather not gossip,” he says. “Just take my word for it. Those people are bad news. The father left them alone, a long time ago.”

“Wow,” I sigh. “Okay. Sure. I’ll stay away.”

But now, there are a thousand more questions and I can’t ask any of them because this man is my boss. The rest of the hour, we eat our food and talk about the business, about my duties, and we even discuss my dreams. After he seems comfortable and confident with me, he shows me out of the building.

“Thanks for everything,” I tell him.

“Sure thing,” he says. “Remember, stay safe. Try not to talk to any weird drifters out there.” He winks and I give a fake laugh, but when I’m outside of the building, my back slumps and I heave my body over to my rental car. What’s wrong with the Payne family? What exactly happened? I should stay away, but my curiosity is telling me to keep digging.