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CARLISLE
Watching Shandie walk across the office reception area stirred a mix of emotion. Carlisle wasn't the biggest fan of working with her, but he did like when Colin was happy with her site and with the performance of the matchmaking. All of that credit had to go to Shandie.
Throwing off Shandie’s game just came as a perk to having to deal with her. He threw her off her snooty and stuck up beeline for the office any time he was nice to her. Nothing wrong with that.
Rhoda, the other assistant in Colin’s office, approached Carlisle. “What did the Code Witch say? Was she nice this time?” She flicked her fingernails into the air, little droplets of water spraying from her fingertips. She must have just washed her hands.
Carlisle shook his head. He didn’t like talking bad about people, whether they deserved it or not. “Oh, she was fine. She must be having a rough day or something.” He was set to leave in another twenty minutes. He never understood why Shandie came at different times or that Colin had demanded they never be interrupted. Carlisle never got that consideration.
He tried talking to Shandie a couple of times, but she shut him down every attempt. He had checked her employee file. She wasn't married or in some weird religion or anything that prevented her from talking to men. Colin said she was just shy, but the sense of panic he gathered from her expression when he looked at her, suggested it was more than shyness that held her at arms’ length.
Time to go home came and he knew better than to knock on the office door to interrupt. Even though he’d love another chance to “stab” at Shandie’s shell, he left. Rhoda was right behind him, shadowing his every move.
“Should we get drinks or something?” She batted her fake eyelashes at him, the long black eye-wigs fluttering as if with great effort.
Carlisle couldn't help but smile. Rhoda’s persistence was flattering but also concerning. How many times did he have to say no before she’d get the hint? “Thanks, but I'm heading to the gym.”
She raked her gaze over his form and arched her eyebrow. “Looks like it's working.” She wiggled her fingers at him and headed out the door. He wasn't sure how long she would continue to try but he could definitely say he was not interested in her. He wasn’t into one night stands or women with an agenda.
Not when she came in every Monday and Thursday talking about her exploits with the men at the bars from ladies’ night. That fact should say something considering the only bars in Sandpoint barely had room for a pool table and a sports television.
After Carlisle put in a hard workout at the gym - leg day with lunges were his least favorite thing, he hurt for a couple days afterward, but the pain was better than nothing. He usually pushed hard, intent on tackling anything that got in his way.
As he gathered his gym items to head home for a night of uneventful activities, the gym manager, Maurice, approached him. “Hey, Carlisle, I can see you’re headed out, but would you be able to take on an extra class tonight for basketball? We had six extra kids show up and Johnny can’t make it in to help coach that one because his wife is finally in the hospital giving birth.”
Carlisle smiled. “Of course. You know I love helping out.” He put his bag down and rubbed his hands together. “Who do I get to torture tonight?” He ended on a laugh.
Maurice smiled back. “You're the best coach we have, we’re pretty lucky to have you.”
Without having to search too hard inside himself, Carlisle knew it was the other way around. He was lucky to have a family there at the gym. He didn't have time to go home and change so he took a shower at the gym after basketball practice and headed to the soup kitchen.
He didn’t eat at the soup kitchen. Carlisle loved serving and what a great way to meet people. Walking inside, he grabbed his apron and put a hairnet on. Washing his hands thoroughly, he jumped online between Timothy and his wife, Tamera.
Timothy bumped Carlisle with his shoulder, his hands extended over the mashed potatoes and gravy as he waited for the next guest. “I'm surprised you're here. Weren’t you supposed to be getting married today? Or did I get you confused with the people you work with? Seriously, you work for a matchmaking company, get matched already.”
Tamera hushed her husband, “Psht. You be nice to him.” As they scooped up some food and smiled at the people they served, Tamera leaned toward Carlisle. “He's right though, you have to find a nice girl and if you won’t do it here, consider someone abroad.”
Softly shaking his head, Carlisle smirked. “I'm not looking for any girls. I'm just trying to get through this life with my heart intact.” He couldn’t survive another heart break. He loved helping in the industry he worked in, matching people for their happily-ever-afters, but he wasn’t fooled into thinking he wasn’t doomed for less.
The night passed quickly and after serving, he couldn't come up with anything else to do to stave off his lonely night at home. He wended his way through the small town streets until finding himself in front of his apartment door. The walk was way too fast for his taste.
Grabbing his mail of bills and sales fliers from the small box hanging beside his door, he slouched inside. Setting the mail on his counter, he went into the small kitchen and very methodically pulled a TV dinner from the freezer to slip into the microwave. While he waited, he tapped his foot and hummed softly to himself to cover the silence of the apartment.
He was all alone. That's what he had to cope with. Being alone. But it was better than going for someone who was interested in him that he wasn’t interested in – like Rhoda.
After dinner and watching Alaska the Last Frontier, Carlisle settled on the couch, waiting for sleep to claim him. On his TV, a Facebook messenger window popped up. A group of ex-prisoners he used to know were in a chat and they'd tagged him on who the better team was – Mariners or Red Sox. He joined in the conversation, but just so he wouldn't feel like he was ignoring his old friends. They had different interests and pursued different goals.
Before he fell asleep an email notification dinged on his phone. The message was official from Colin. “Meet me in the morning at Brewed, I have a new project for you to start.”
He liked new projects. He liked things that were different. But he also liked routine. He went to bed, cautiously excited about the next day.
