I spent the rest of the day working in the same rooms as Darren. No one seemed to like talking to him, either. I suppose that’s why we were bonding; neither of us could bond with the others.
By the time my horrible first day of work was finally over, I hurriedly left and went down to the police station. They took my statement that there was a large wolf hunting by nearby houses. The officer at the front desk looked uncaring as she wrote down the information. She said the Wisconsin Wildlife department would take a look. The bored-looking woman also informed me that from living in Wisconsin I should be accustomed to coyotes and should know the difference between that and a wolf since grey wolves weren’t known to frequent this area. I didn’t say anything, for the woman wouldn’t believe the truth.
During my drive home, I spent my time thinking the woman probably wouldn’t have been so rude if she had known what kind of monster was lurking in the woods. Whatever it was we had seen the night before, I knew it was no coyote. There was no rational animal it could have been, either. I nearly drove all the way home, forgetting I hadn’t picked up Simon from work. I swore loudly as I made the nearest turn to head back to the resort. After forty-five minutes of driving back and forth while having to listen to a very annoyed Simon all the way home, I finally parked in the driveway, relishing the idea of a shower. My brother went up to his room to most likely sit in front of his flatscreen playing on his PlayStation 4 the rest of the night.
I collected sweet-smelling soaps and shampoos from the downstairs hall closet and proceeded to the bathroom. Maybe washing my hair and watching the soapy suds run down the drain would provide relief as if I were washing this bad day away. I started stripping my shirt off before I realized I had forgotten conditioner. Knowing Simon never ventured to the downstairs area because he solely lived on the third floor of the house where his bedroom and bathroom were, I knew I wouldn’t come across him while wearing my soccer ball bra. I snuck out of the bathroom and went to the hall closet. The bottle of conditioner was unfortunately on the highest shelf that was far above my reach. Standing on my tiptoes didn’t help. I had to use a towel to whip it down. My makeshift lasso worked but only to propel the bottle off the shelf and into a heavy fall. Right before the full bottle could smack me on the forehead, a large hand caught it midair.
Instant recognition hit me the second I looked up at the pale-faced owner of the large hand. It was my brand-new supervisor, the one I disliked even more than the one who called me a butthole.
Matt.
I didn’t dare move as the breath locked in my throat. I had far too many questions buzzing through my mind, but for once, I was rendered silent. Matt didn’t say a word, either. He looked different when he wasn’t dressed in his navy long-sleeved polo and khakis. As he stood in front of me, he was dressed in a crisp royal blue long-sleeved shirt and simple jeans. The color seemed to make his powder blue eyes pop more than they already did. We seemed to be locked in an undisclosed staring contest as neither of us said a word to each other. Dimly, I could hear Miranda’s voice in the background. I couldn’t process anything other than my own severe shock and embarrassment that of all places and situations, Matt was somehow in the hallway of my house staring at me as I wore nothing but ugly khaki pants and a bra that looked like soccer balls where the cups were. I wasn’t necessarily fat, but I wasn’t thin by any means. I had too large of a love for Doritos and Oreos to be such. I filled out a bra nicely, but this wasn’t a situation where I wanted a guy to see me in such an undressed state. It was as Matt’s eyes drifted down to look at what I was—and wasn’t—wearing before staring into my eyes again that I escaped. I jumped into the closet and shut the door behind me. Luckily, there was enough room to fit me. I wanted to hide away from this embarrassing moment, but it was probably made worse that I had jumped into a supply closet where I had to hold it closed to prevent it from opening.
Miranda’s voice could be heard closer than ever, but I didn’t leave the closet until I no longer heard the quiet voices of her and Matt.
By the time the voices were gone, I ran for the bathroom and threw on my long-sleeved work shirt. Then I made my way toward the living room, where I heard the voices of Miranda and Matt. I needed answers. Coming into view of the two, I was dismayed to find Matt was sitting on my family’s white leather sofa while Miranda was offering him a refreshment. He was merely sitting there as if he were a guest and this entire situation didn’t seem outrageous or completely absurd.
“Heyyy, you found a shirt.” Miranda giggled as she held a tray of glasses. That comment showed Matt had told her about the incident. While Miranda chuckled as if the situation had been funny, Matt respectively sat silent on the couch, not even cracking a smile. For that alone, I was grateful. I flushed furiously as my elder sister continued to laugh. My irritation only grew as Miranda set down the tray and took a seat on the chair across from the sofa where Matt sat.
“What is he doing here?” Those were the only words I could think of saying.
Miranda stopped her guffaws as she offered Matt a glass of lemonade. “Matt is picking me up, and I offered him some lemonade before we leave.”
Many questions instantly began firing around in my mind as I struggled to come to terms with what was being said.
“Are you guys in a relationship?”
Miranda looked between Matt and me as she seemed to silently piece things together. She deflected the question with a question. “Do you guys know each other?”
Matt shrugged. “Sort of—”
“He’s my supervisor,” I interrupted grimly, thinking of a few other rude adjectives that I’d like to say to describe him.
Miranda’s mouth opened into a small o of surprise. “That’s right, you work at The Forest, Everly! I met Matt when my company held our end-of-the-summer meeting at their conference center a few weeks ago.”
My teeth snapped together roughly. That explained how these two would have met in the first place. Miranda noticed Matt and I were still watching each other. Matt still sat silent while I glared.
“Are you guys in a relationship?” I asked again, ignoring the question. I had yet to tell Miranda how horrible my first day at the new job had been. Even though Miranda had no way of knowing how horrible my first day had been, it still felt like a betrayal that my older sister was dating someone who had been so very rude to me my very first day.
Matt said no at the same time Miranda said yes. The latter blushed profusely. “This will be our second date,” she explained hastily.
I balked. “You couldn’t find anyone better to date other than my new jerk supervisor?” In a way, I knew I shouldn’t be surprised. Miranda had always been the smartest and most talented of the Davis siblings. But she unfortunately had a knack for dating guys who were narcissistic or obnoxious. Maybe it was because she was pretty with her long strawberry blonde hair and brown eyes. Maybe, being so gorgeous with her long legs and slender frame, she always attracted the guys and just happened to catch more jerks than normal girls. Whatever the reason, Miranda never struggled to find dates. She caught them as easily as a bug zapper caught flies. From a young age, Miranda always looked like she belonged in a modeling catalog or on a runway in Paris. She was one of those lucky people with great looks who went from being a cute kid to a good-looking teen and then to an even better looking adult. It was always entertaining for Simon and me when Miranda brought a new guy home. First in middle school, she had a penchant for high-school-aged boys. Miranda usually brought home the best-looking ones who were the fullest of themselves. One came over every day after school and polished off any snacks our dad brought home from the store. The lack of Oreos made everyone except Miranda and our mom very upset. Simon and I still curse that boy.