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Authors: Alexandrea Weis
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when someone suddenly disappeared, or worse…died.
That was the real crux of it for her. Recalling the terrible day when her father and sister had been killed, Rayne had been home alone when the police had knocked on her door. She had been the one to break the news to her mother. After being told, her mother had curled into a ball on the living room floor, sobbing like a child. At seventeen, Rayne had become the adult, spending her time caring for a parent who was no longer emotionally capable of making any decisions.
Shaking off her memories, she stood from her stool. Those days were long behind her, and even though every now and then the heartache still stung her eyes with tears, Rayne was convinced she was over it.
“Maybe, this is a new chapter for me.” She rested her black iPhone on the countertop.
The sound of a tail thumping on the floor made her glance down at Frank’s eager face.
“Come on, monster. Let’s get something to eat.”
***
The following evening, while whipping torrents of rain poured from the black skies above, Rayne ducked in her back door. After checking on Bob, she had returned home disappointed she was unable to take her horse out for a trail ride. Just as she was locking her back door, her cell phone began belting out its musical ringtone. Eagerly grabbing for the phone in her backpack, Rayne was anxious to hear his voice on the other end. All day long she had been looking forward to the call.
“Hi, Trent.” She punched in her alarm code.
“Are you home yet?”
“Just walked in the door from the stables.” She looked out the window in her back door. “But it’s pouring down, so I couldn’t ride.”
“Raining here, too.”
“Where are you?” She headed down the short rear hall to her kitchen.
His frustrated sigh poured through her phone speaker. “I’m sitting at a desk on the thirtieth floor of some nondescript office building in downtown Dallas. The rain is smacking against my window, and as I look out I can see flashes of lightning in the dark sky.”
“Is that where you work?” She entered her kitchen and patted Frank’s head as he came loping up to her.
“I’m doing a consulting job for an oil and gas firm I work for every now and then, Propel Oil and Gas. The CEO, Tyler Moore, is a good friend. He hires me to do QA for him.”
“What does that entail?” She slung her backpack on the breakfast bar countertop and went to the refrigerator.
“Safety protocols mostly. I assess whether or not industry safety standards are being maintained on gas and oil wells.”
“Is that what you do? Safety inspections?” She took the orange juice carton out of the refrigerator.
“I’m a safety engineer who specializes in the petroleum industry. I mostly do consulting work for big oil companies. Tell them what they are doing right and wrong, so they can keep the feds off their backs.”
Rayne swallowed a few quick mouthfuls of the orange juice. “Do you like what you do?”
“Why do I hear slurping?” Trent’s voice rumbled through the speaker.
“I was drinking orange juice. I always drink orange juice when I get home from the stables.”
“Out of the carton or in a glass?”
Rayne giggled, feeling flirty. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“It tells me a little something about you.”
She replaced the orange juice in the refrigerator. “What? That I’m a slob because I drink it out of the carton?”
“No, that’s the way I drink it, too. See there? We have something in common.”
“Hardly a reason to pick out china,” she ribbed, shutting the refrigerator door.
“Well, at least we won’t have to worry about the glassware.”
Rayne’s unexpected laughter surprised her. It was the first time she could remember laughing, really laughing with happiness in a long while. She stood by her kitchen sink, a little mystified that Trent had done that for her.
“I like the sound of that,” Trent remarked. “You’ve got a great
That was the real crux of it for her. Recalling the terrible day when her father and sister had been killed, Rayne had been home alone when the police had knocked on her door. She had been the one to break the news to her mother. After being told, her mother had curled into a ball on the living room floor, sobbing like a child. At seventeen, Rayne had become the adult, spending her time caring for a parent who was no longer emotionally capable of making any decisions.
Shaking off her memories, she stood from her stool. Those days were long behind her, and even though every now and then the heartache still stung her eyes with tears, Rayne was convinced she was over it.
“Maybe, this is a new chapter for me.” She rested her black iPhone on the countertop.
The sound of a tail thumping on the floor made her glance down at Frank’s eager face.
“Come on, monster. Let’s get something to eat.”
***
The following evening, while whipping torrents of rain poured from the black skies above, Rayne ducked in her back door. After checking on Bob, she had returned home disappointed she was unable to take her horse out for a trail ride. Just as she was locking her back door, her cell phone began belting out its musical ringtone. Eagerly grabbing for the phone in her backpack, Rayne was anxious to hear his voice on the other end. All day long she had been looking forward to the call.
“Hi, Trent.” She punched in her alarm code.
“Are you home yet?”
“Just walked in the door from the stables.” She looked out the window in her back door. “But it’s pouring down, so I couldn’t ride.”
“Raining here, too.”
“Where are you?” She headed down the short rear hall to her kitchen.
His frustrated sigh poured through her phone speaker. “I’m sitting at a desk on the thirtieth floor of some nondescript office building in downtown Dallas. The rain is smacking against my window, and as I look out I can see flashes of lightning in the dark sky.”
“Is that where you work?” She entered her kitchen and patted Frank’s head as he came loping up to her.
“I’m doing a consulting job for an oil and gas firm I work for every now and then, Propel Oil and Gas. The CEO, Tyler Moore, is a good friend. He hires me to do QA for him.”
“What does that entail?” She slung her backpack on the breakfast bar countertop and went to the refrigerator.
“Safety protocols mostly. I assess whether or not industry safety standards are being maintained on gas and oil wells.”
“Is that what you do? Safety inspections?” She took the orange juice carton out of the refrigerator.
“I’m a safety engineer who specializes in the petroleum industry. I mostly do consulting work for big oil companies. Tell them what they are doing right and wrong, so they can keep the feds off their backs.”
Rayne swallowed a few quick mouthfuls of the orange juice. “Do you like what you do?”
“Why do I hear slurping?” Trent’s voice rumbled through the speaker.
“I was drinking orange juice. I always drink orange juice when I get home from the stables.”
“Out of the carton or in a glass?”
Rayne giggled, feeling flirty. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“It tells me a little something about you.”
She replaced the orange juice in the refrigerator. “What? That I’m a slob because I drink it out of the carton?”
“No, that’s the way I drink it, too. See there? We have something in common.”
“Hardly a reason to pick out china,” she ribbed, shutting the refrigerator door.
“Well, at least we won’t have to worry about the glassware.”
Rayne’s unexpected laughter surprised her. It was the first time she could remember laughing, really laughing with happiness in a long while. She stood by her kitchen sink, a little mystified that Trent had done that for her.
“I like the sound of that,” Trent remarked. “You’ve got a great
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