They Canceled My Ticket, I Canceled Them novel · Chapter 3 of 24

Chapter 3: Nobody Lies Until Tuesday

Nora and Wes fly north on his one rule. The four are locked out on the porch, and Josh says Lacey swore Wes would never come near.

The call ended before Josh could say another word.

Wes looked at the phone, then at me.

"That was Lacey," I said.

"I know her voice."

"She knew it was me before you said my name."

"Then she's guessing faster than either of us."

I put the new phone away. I had a decision to make, and I did it the new way, out loud.

"I want to see their faces when they find the house locked."

"Good," Wes said. "I'd like to see mine."

There was one more flight to Traverse City that day, at 4:50, with two seats left.

He bought his. I bought mine on my own card, and neither of us said a word about it.

On the plane, he took the aisle and gave me the window without asking which I wanted.

I had always taken the window, and he remembered.

Neither of us said so.

Somewhere over Lake Michigan, he turned to me.

"I have a rule," he said.

"Of course you do."

"I don't guess. I never have. If you ask me something, I'll tell you the truth, and if I don't want to answer, I'll say that and stop there."

"That's two rules."

"It's one rule and its exception." He leaned his head against the seat. "Nobody lies to anybody until Tuesday. That's when your booking would have ended. Then you can go back to guessing."

"I'm done guessing."

"Then it's an easy rule."

I looked out at the water going gold.

"What have you been doing for nine years?" I asked.

"Dams. Three countries, one very big pipe." He shrugged. "I called home on holidays and Josh didn't say much about you."

"Did you ask?"

"Once. Lacey answered for him."

I kept my eyes on the window.

"Ask me something else on Tuesday," he said. "Anything. I'll have an answer."

I didn't say anything, and for the rest of the flight, I felt him not pushing.

We landed in the dark.

He had a rental car waiting, a muddy blue truck with a bad heater. The road wound through pines for forty minutes with nothing in the headlights but the white line.

Neither of us talked, and it was all right.

Calder Point came up around a curve: a long low house on a bluff above the water, porch lights burning.

Under the lights, four people had gathered around a pile of suitcases.

Meg sat on one with her scarf over her hair. Brooke sat on another, holding her phone up, filming.

Lacey stood on the top step with her phone at her ear, saying "yes, I understand, but I'm the one who booked it."

Josh paced on the gravel, and a few neighbors had come down to their own docks to watch.

Wes parked behind the rental SUV and cut the engine.

"Stay in the truck if you want," he said.

"I don't want."

I opened the door.

The gravel was uneven under my sneakers, and I stepped wrong.

His hand came under my elbow before I tipped.

It was a plain, warm hand through my jacket, and it did nothing else.

I felt it all the way to my shoulder.

"Thank you," I said.

"Anytime."

He didn't let go until I stood straight.

We walked into the light together.

Lacey saw me first, and her whole face changed.

"Nora! Oh, thank God." She came down the steps with both arms out. "You came! It was the worst glitch. Everyone's so upset, we've been calling and calling."

"My phone was off," I said.

"I know, babe, I know. Somebody must have hit a button on the account."

Nobody had hit a button.

Behind her, Meg looked at her shoes, and Brooke's phone dipped.

Josh stopped pacing.

He looked at Wes, then at me, and then at the truck I'd just climbed out of.

"Wes," he said. "Lacey told me you'd never come near this house if Nora was in it."

On the step, Lacey's smile did not move, and her hand went still on my sleeve.

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