Don't Explain by Audrey Dacey Read Free Book Online Page A

the guys flocked to you, and I was stuck with Greasy Gary. If guys
like that are my fate, can you blame me for taking myself off the market?”
Caitlyn shuddered at the thought of the guy who still wore a name tag and
smelled of sweat. “Besides, this is different.”
    Alexis stood up straight and looked directly into Caitlyn’s eyes. “How is
this different?”
    “We’re friends. That’s all.” Caitlyn bit her lip and broke her friend’s
gaze.
    “Liar. I can’t believe you just looked into my eyes and lied to me.”
Alexis set her mug on the counter with a thud. “I should take my money back.
This is not what I paid for.”
    Caitlyn put her hands on her hips. “You paid for the coffee.”
    “And the gossip. If you’re not going to spill about your life, I’ll find
someone in this town that will.” Alexis grabbed her purse, which she had set
down on the counter, and turned to leave.
    Caitlyn drew in a choppy breath. “Friends is our only option. He lives in
Sacramento. The kiss was nothing. It could have been something, but I stopped
it. I don’t know if I’ll see him again.”
    Alexis put her purse back on the counter. “You could’ve had sex with him?
You have to see him again. Don’t you want to know what it would be like after
all those years of pining after him? You have to get him out of your system, so
we can go out and have some fun.”
    Caitlyn bit her thumbnail. “I want to see him again, but…”
    “No butts. Go get him.” Alexis walked behind the counter and grabbed the
extra apron that was hanging on a hook behind the counter. “I’ll watch the shop
while you’re gone.”
     Caitlyn paced behind the counter. “I don’t know where he’s staying. I
don’t have a car.”
    “Stop making excuses.” Alexis dug into her purse and grabbed her keys.
“There’s only one motel in this town, and I bet Peggy will tell you which room
he’s in and what time his light went out. Take the Porsche.”
    “You’re going to let me drive the Porsche?” Caitlyn asked as she took off
her apron.
    “If it gets you laid, hell yes.”
    #
     
    Michael awoke that afternoon just before one o'clock. He jumped out of
the bed as though he were late, but once he realized that he was in a crummy
motel room, his pulse gradually slowed. He stretched his arms above his head
and closed his eyes. When they reopened, he noticed that a piece of paper had
been shoved under the door. The paper was bunched up and slightly torn after
being jammed through the weather stripping. He opened the door to retrieve the
message in order not to rip it completely. When he unfolded it he saw written
in a familiar print-script combination: “Michael: Come to the shop at three.
Bring your boots. Caitlyn.”
    Maybe he hadn’t completely screwed this up.

Chapter 4
    Caitlyn wheezed a little bit as she moved up the trail. She had not hiked
in a while, and as they neared the top of the mountain, the thin air worked
against her.
    The hike up Wachusett Mountain was fairly easy, and fall was the best
time to make the journey. The cool temperatures were comfortable for the
majority of the hike and carrying a light jacket for the chilly temperatures at
the pinnacle was not as bothersome as hiking in the humid summers. The foliage
had begun to change its color, and the sights were breathtaking.
    Caitlyn had thought when she moved back to the state that she would hike
all the time. This, however, was only the third time her hiking boots had been
laced to her feet since she bought them eight years ago. She and Michael had
hiked almost every weekend when they lived in Tucson, but the scenery bored Caitlyn,
especially nearing the end. Prickly pear and mesquite trees were not her ideal
surroundings.
    They didn't talk much on the way up the mountain. They walked single file
rather than side-by-side, and neither dared to bring up the events of the
previous evening. Caitlyn knew that the hike would allow her to convert her
feelings into the energy