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THE LAST WEEK WENT by in a blur as they both hammered out work like crazy. Damond was extra moody those first few days as he fought his way to the end of book one. She’d patiently let his testier than normal attitude slide, and tried to cater to him until he finished. Like dropping food off in his office, so he wouldn’t skip eating, and needling him to take a few much needed breaks. Whenever normal measures didn’t work she lured him away with sex. Once he’d typed the metaphoric “the end” they celebrated by taking that evening off after dinner. Playing downstairs, catching a movie before making love all night long.
They were doing that more often in fact, making love that is. As he started book two at a less frenzied pace, she finalized her work and their intimate time changed. Sex for them turned into long caresses, light touching, teasing kisses, giggles and sighs as hips met each other like they could spend all day at the activity. She loved it! But it also felt bittersweet.
But time didn’t hold still, and even though they were both working less and spending more time together, her day to leave arrived. She woke to breakfast in bed and ate it to please him even though she wasn’t hungry. For Damond’s part, he tried to joke as a distraction, but she didn’t even feel like doing their verbal sparring either. After a while he started getting just as distant as she was and left to “take care of a few things”.
At noon, she did a full sweep of the house, trying to make sure she hadn’t left anything. Only to almost end up crying at the memories in each space. She didn’t though. Reality was back standing on her doorstep and Professor Janae Williams Ph.D. didn’t have time for tears, there was more work to be done.
Dragging her bags into the hall after putting on her coat, she ran upstairs to run her eyes over her office one more time and to avoid the inevitable. Damond knew she wanted to hit the road at 12:30 and it was almost that time. Finally coming back down Janae saw him waiting at the bottom. Standing with his legs apart, hands stuffed in his sweatpants pockets, not much different than the first time she’d seen him fully dressed.
“Did you find anything up there?”
“No. I’m pretty sure I have everything.”
“And if you don’t, I’ll make sure Amanda gets it back to you.” Damond thought he was reassuring her. But the way her mouth dropped open before quickly shutting told him he’d made some kind of misstep.
“Okay...thanks, I guess. I should be going, it’s supposed to start snowing around six and I want to make sure I beat it. It could come early.”
“Yeah, it might. You shouldn’t have to stop, I mean gas wise.”
“Thanks again for doing that.” He’d gone into town and brought back enough gas to fill her tank yesterday morning.
“Don’t let me hold you up Professor, drive safe.” Damond nodded at her bags then looked at the door.
Janae’s head snapped back at his blasé tone. Gripping her keys so tight they hurt. “You're not even going to take my bags out to the car?”
“Why should I? You got them in here on your own, I figure you can get them out.”
Was she out of her social science loving mind? Damond didn’t plan to lift another finger to help her leave here—or him.
“Asshole,” Janae muttered.
“What did you say?”
“I said you’re an ass-hole.” Janae fairly shouted in his face, her voice ripe with anger. “Was that clear enough for you?”
“Yeah, that I heard.” He put his hands on his hips, just as pissed. “You ever wonder why?”
“I’ve concluded it’s part of your DNA. I’m not sure I could figure it out, if I had all the time in the world Damond, and right now I have to go.”
Janae turned away hurt. She hadn’t expected some romantic movie of the week goodbye, but he could at least pretended he might miss her a little. Given her a damn hug.
“Or...” Damond broke into her thoughts. “You could stay another week.”
Whipping around so fast she tipped over one of her bags, she gaped at him. “You know I can’t do that!”
Damond only crossed his arms. “You can.”
“My book-”
“Is in the editing stage. You can do that from here.”
“True...but why should I?” Janae probed, even as her heart lifted.
“Because I want you to.”
“Why should I care what you want?” Janae asked coolly.
“Because you want the same thing, to give us a little more time. One week, then we’ll cut the strings and make a clean break.”
Bundled in her thick winter coat she searched his face for answers. “Ask me to stay nicely?”
He didn’t hesitate. “Janae, please stay...give us one more week.”
“Okay, I’ll do it...just one more week.” An unrestrained smile split her face as she embraced him. “But you’re putting my luggage back in my room.”
“You mean our room.”
* * *
OVER THE NEXT WEEK they worked every day, but only five or six hours tops. The rest of the day they spent sleeping in, watching TV or movies. At one point she even let him try teaching her pool. Crazy as it sounded they took walks outside, had another snowball fight. Even competed to see who could make the best snowman in fifteen minutes. Janae won only because her decorations were better.
But just like the week before, it went by quicker than either of them wanted. She had gotten a call in the middle of the week from her parents who she had totally forgotten to inform about the extra time away. Then her cousin was leaving dire messages to give her a call “asap” when she returned. It looked like she was missed and needed back in her real life. The morning of her departure they woke to make love then repeated the act in the shower. Janae had so much sex in the last 48 hours, she was sure to be sore long after leaving.
Oddly, she was looking forward to that reminder of her time with Damond. But deja vu was starting to set in when she passed the suitcases in the hall this time around. As breakfast came to an end, Janae looked across the table at the handsome, complicated grumpy man sitting across from her.
“So I’ve been thinking, and maybe I want a few strings.”
When he didn’t say anything, she threw a strawberry at him.
“Damond, did you hear what I said?”
“Yeah, I heard you.” He pushed back from the table only to stare. “You want to know the problem with strings Professor?”
“No I don’t, but tell me anyway.”
“Strings are unwieldly and eventually get tangles. I don’t like tangles.”
“No one likes tangles.” She gave him a perceptive look. “But if you handle the strings with care...you don’t get pesky knots.”
“See! Even you know it goes from tangles to knots, a downward spiral is what it’ll be.”
“As much as I find this allegorical tennis match we’re doing fun. I want to be clear. I don’t want our relationship to completely end when I leave here. Now you tell me what you think about that.”
Damond rubbed his jaw. “I think...things get hectic and complicated outside these cabin walls for two people like us.”
“I agree. Complicated but not impossible...right?” Hope dripping in her voice.
He gave her a long searching look, and let out an even longer sigh. “I write fiction for a living. So no, nothing is impossible.”
“So what do you want to do?”
“I’m willing to keep a few strings going between us. Let’s keep in contact, we can start there.”
He wrote down his email and phone number on one of his prized notebook pages. She took it, gently folding it before putting it in her pocket.
“I think that’s a great place to start. Let me go use the restroom and then I really do need to hit the road.”
Coming out a few minutes later, her bags where gone.
“Look Damond, I don’t have time to play. I need to get going. What did you do with my bags?”
“I took them out to the car, your purse too.”
“Oh, that was nice.”
Damond kissed her quickly on the top of her head, before pushing her away.
“Get out of here, drive safe.”
“Thanks.” She quickly put on her coat, car keys in hand before turning back one last time.
Damond gave her a little wave. “Bye, Professor.”
“I prefer see you later. Good luck on the rest of your work.”
“You too.”
She had known this was going to be hard and it was. Janae also knew they could keep up this banter all day. So without another word she walked out the door, closing it firmly behind her.