Page 104 of Over the Line
“It’s not awful, but I mean, c’mon. Even you have to be sick of looking at these same walls.”
“As a matter of fact, I like being here.”
“Sure.” Once she’d started the show, Vanessa turned up the volume.
When she’d insisted she could become even more obnoxious, she’d been right.
“Must be bad,” Vanessa shouted over the racket as she glanced around.
She knew what her friend meant. Her home was immaculate. She’d dusted and vacuumed twice yesterday. Swept and mopped three times.
“Not even an empty container of ice cream is in sight. Which answers the question you keep avoiding.”
Trying to keep up, Sydney shook her head.
“You haven’t had breakfast. And I’m guessing you didn’t have dinner last night, either. So we’ll have a real meal, junk food—of course ice cream—and alcohol. All of that is on today’s agenda.”
“No. Thanks, though. But I’m good.”
Creepy music spilled from the television’s sound bar, rocking the walls and shaking the floor. The last thing Sydney needed after hardly sleeping for two and a half weeks was nightmares of someone trying to break into her house.
But Vanessa was even more diabolical. She’d selected an episode about murders that happened in the Rocky Mountain wilderness. “Oh hell no. Nope, nope. No,” she insisted.
“We’re spending time together.” Vanessa narrowed her gaze at Sydney. “So we can either get the hell out of here or we can watch this. There’s a whole bunch of episodes. Twelve, at least.”
A full day’s worth of fear-inducing shows?
“I’m happy either way. I love this shit. And we can just order in some food in while we enjoy each other’s company.”
“Look, Ness, I appreciate what you’re trying to do—”
“Not what I’m trying to do. What I am doing. The only choice you get is whether we have a happy time together or a miserable one. Either way, you’re stuck with me.”
After wrestling the remote control from her friend’s death grip, Sydney turned off the TV. “With the way I’m feeling, I don’t need your version of merry sunshine around here.”
Vanessa grinned, a big, fat, happy smile. “Well, you got it anyway.”
The fact Sydney glared daggers at her didn’t alter Vanessa’s demeanor.
“I got a bonus at work, and I need to spend part of it on something frivolous. So after all that food, we’ll do some shopping. Have lunch, then go to a bar and get the largest beer they have and drink it while we cry in our figurative pretzels.”
When she didn’t answer, Vanessa was undeterred, and went on. “I’m looking for a sage bundle. You know, something I can take to work with me. I’ve got a new coworker who is as annoying as hell, and I’m hoping that burning some can banish his energy.”
“You say sage can get rid of someone’s energy?” Not taking chances, Sydney buried the remote between the seat cushion and the sofa’s arm before leveling a pointed look at Vanessa. “In that case, I need sage as well.”
Vanessa snapped her chin up in a show of fake indignation. “That wasn’t nice.”
“It wasn’t meant to be.”
“You know, Sydney, you’d be a lot more pleasant if you had a big cup of coffee.”
“The way you’re bouncing off the walls, you’ve already had more than a few.”
“But not an iced one with caramel blended in and whipped cream on top.”
Sydney winced. “You just gave me a cavity. I know it.”
“Do you want to pick out your own outfit? Or do you want me to do it for you? I’m starving.” Without waiting for an answer, Vanessa stood, then skipped down the hall.