Chapter 1756


    Maja couldn''t help but chuckle as she hooked her arm through his and they headed for the car.


    As long as Abner and Shirley hit it off, her matchmaking wouldn''t have been in vain.


    Upstairs.


    After Ian''s teasing remark, Abner had straightened up in his seat.


    He nced at the barely touched dishes in front of them and picked up a rib with the nearby cutlery,


    cing it onto Shirley''s te.


    Shirley had nned to linger, but her phone chose that moment to buzz. It was her mother calling.


    She pressed the answer button with a hint of resignation in her voice.


    "Mom, I really got held up with work at school, I didn''t stand him up on purpose. I know, okay, I''ll


    meet him in an hour."


    Ending the call, she stood up.


    "Abner, how long do you n to stick around Greenfield? I have a training out of town for the next


    few days. Next time you''re in Greenfield, can we grab a meal together?"


    Her mother had set her up on a blind date, and she couldn''t bail on the arrangement.


    Abner also got to his feet. "Let me walk you out."


    "I drove here."


    "So, can you give me a lift?"


    Shirley was speechless.


    Eventually, they both climbed into the car.


    Shirley took the driver''s seat, punched in the hotel''s address into the GPS, and realized that it was


    only a mile from her ce.


    Was he really so close and never thought to call her?


    All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org.


    She lowered hershes, hiding the flicker of disappointment within.


    Abner, sitting in the passenger seat, cycled through several conversation topics in his head but


    couldn''t seem to voice any of them.


    "Abner, where did you go to college?"


    Abner had left right after finishing his exams, and she had no idea where he had gone.


    Shirley had tried to find him, but that first year, he had simply vanished.


    "In North America."


    "You graduated a year ago, right? Thought about working back here in Greenfield?"


    In Shirley''s eyes, Abner was still that quiet, awkward boy, and she couldn''t imagine the dangerous


    games he yed behind the scenes.


    "Haven''t thought about it."


    A smile lit up Shirley''s face as she drove. "Remember when you found out I wanted to be a teacher,


    you said you''d be one too."


    Realizing she had perhaps said too much about the distant past, something he probably didn''t


    recall, she changed the subject.


    "Let''s drop it. Ian mentioned you''ve got someone you fancy. Is it true?"


    Abner''s back stiffened instantly, and he had a sudden urge to throttle Ian.


    He didn''t respond, and Shirley wisely let the subject drop.


    The car pulled up to the hotel, and Abner didn''t immediately exit. He dawdled for three whole


    minutes before saying, "I think I left my phone on the table."


    Ian, it seemed, had inadvertently provided him with the perfect excuse.


    In this day and age, you were helpless without your phone.


    Shirley was immediately concerned. "Let''s head back and look for it."


    The car made a U-turn and headed back.


    At a crossroads, Shirley suddenlyughed.


    "Abner, remember this ce? It''s where I took you for your first birthday with me. I came back from


    schoolte and forgot I promised to buy you a cake. I freaked out when I couldn''t find you at home,


    worried you''d met with trouble. Then the bakery owner called, saying you were standing in his shop


    refusing to leave."


    Abner swallowed hard, his gaze drifting to the store, his lips pressed into a thin line.


    "Yeah, I remember."


    "What were you thinking, standing there not saying a word? They thought you were mute."


    Shirley chuckled, her eyes crinkling with amusement.


    Abner watched her from the corner of his eye, noting her hands on the steering wheel, bare of any


    nail polish.


    Shirley''s parents were both teachers, and she grew up pampered as an only child, never wanting


    for anything.


    If there was a time she suffered, it was probably during those years with Abner.


    With that thought, Abner felt a pang of sadness and turned away.


    Shirley tried to keep the mood light, but he was as much of a closed book as ever.


    Back at the hotel entrance, Abner made to leave but Shirley caught his arm.


    She took off the scarf around her neck and draped it around his.


    "Did you also forget your jacket? It''s chilly out, keep this on."


    He had indeed handed his jacket to the driver and forgotten to retrieve it.


    "Mm."


    After he stepped out of the car, he felt awkward and clumsy.


    Not until he was in the elevator did he look down at the scarf around his neck.


    The scarf was warm, a camel-colored cashmere.


    He twirled it in his fingers and lifted it to his nose.


    It carried a faint, sweet scent, and his ears flushed with heat.