At First Sight - Nicholas Sparks [54]
“Wow,” she said, her voice raspy.
“Yeah,” Jeremy agreed. “Wow.”
“I’m sorry,” she said, seemingly as dazed as he felt. “I don’t know what happened there.”
“You cried,” Jeremy said.
She shot him a look; with puffy eyes, it didn’t have quite the same effect as it usually did, though.
“Did you find out anything about Rachel?” he asked.
“Not too much. Except for the fact that Rodney’s pretty sure she didn’t leave today. He thinks she left after work yesterday. They’d had an argument on Thursday night, and according to Rodney, she told him it was over and that she never wanted to see him again. Later, when he passed by her house, her car wasn’t in the driveway.”
“He was spying on her?” Jeremy prompted, glad he wasn’t the only one.
“No, he wanted to smooth things out. But anyway, if she left on Friday after work . . . I don’t know, maybe she’s planning to be gone the whole weekend. Still, it doesn’t explain why she didn’t call Doris to tell her she wouldn’t be in this morning, and it still doesn’t tell us where she’s gone.”
Jeremy thought about it, remembering that both Doris and Lexie said she’d never mentioned friends from out of town. “And she wouldn’t have just headed to the beach or something? Maybe she wanted to be alone. Or at least away from Rodney for a while.”
“Who knows.” Lexie shrugged. “But even before this . . . I don’t know.” She seemed to be trying to choose her words carefully. “She’s been acting strange lately, even with me. Almost like she’s going through a midlife crisis.”
“She’s too young for that,” Jeremy pointed out. “Like you said, it probably has something to do with her relationship with Rodney.”
“I know . . . but it’s more than that. Like she’s being secretive. Normally, she talks all the time, but when we went out shopping for her bridesmaid’s dress, she didn’t say much at all. Like she was hiding something.”
“Maybe she’s been planning this weekend for a while.”
“Maybe,” Lexie said. “I just don’t know.”
For a long moment, neither of them said anything. In the silence, Lexie tried to stifle a yawn, looking sheepish when she finished. “Sorry,” she said. “I’m getting tired.”
“Crying for an hour will do that to a person.”
“So will pregnancy,” she said. “I’ve been tired a lot lately. At work, I’ve even been closing my door so I can rest my head on the desk.”
“Well, take it easy. You’re carrying my baby, you know. And you should probably head home so you can get some sleep.”
She arched an eyebrow at him. “Do you want to come over?”
He thought about it. “I’d better not,” he said. “You know what happens when I sleep over.”
“You mean we don’t actually sleep for a while?”
“I can’t help it.”
She nodded, suddenly serious. “You sure you’re not staying here because of—”
“No,” he said, cutting her off with a smile. “I’m not mad. Now that I understand what’s been going on, I’m all better.”
She kissed him, then rose from the bed. “Okay,” she said, stretching. He noticed her belly didn’t flatten as much as it once did, and his gaze settled there for an instant too long.
“Don’t stare at my fat,” she chided, sounding self-conscious.
“You’re not fat,” he said automatically, feeling pleased. “You’re pregnant, and you look beautiful.”
She watched him as he answered, as if wondering again whether he’d been telling the truth about the reason he wasn’t coming over, then seemingly thought better of rehashing the conversation. Jeremy rose and walked her to the door. After kissing her good-bye, he watched as she made her way to the car, replaying the entire evening in his mind.
“Hey, Lexie?”
She turned. “Yes?”
“I forgot to ask