Make Time For Me

The woods were not dangerous. There were no dangerous animals in there. Nobody who’d got lost in there in the last two decades had stayed lost. People went there for hikes all the time. There was no reason for her to be jittery.

And yet, they looked forbidding and dangerous to her. She looked at the woods and felt eyes staring back at her.

“What a morbid imagination you have, Olivia!”

She’d hoped that the sound of her own voice would make her feel steadier, but she sounded so shaky. Her voice sounded tinny to her own ears.

Swiftly, Olivia turned around, though she felt unreasonable fear when she exposed her back to the woods, and she walked away, as fast as she could, much faster than she’d got there. She didn’t care if it wasn’t rational.

She needed to get out of there.

Olivia walked home, to safety and welcoming warmth, leaving the strange foreboding behind.

Or so she wanted to believe.

The smile was amused. So, Olivia was running away. Who could blame her? The woods were scary. They were dark and deep. They were meant for those who knew themselves and accepted themselves for who they were.

Most people did not like confronting what they had inside, what they were capable of, the depths to which they could stoop and the heights to which they could rise. That, of course, was their loss.

The biggest reason so many people failed to achieve what they desired the most, in the most secret of their hearts, was that lack. They failed to see what was in themselves. They failed to reach out, grasp and take.

Once you’re comfortable with yourself, you could be comfortable anywhere, even in the woods, dark and deep, as they were. You could relish it, even. Embrace it.

But something was going on. Olivia was keeping a secret. The smile vanished. Eyes narrowed. No, secrets could not be allowed.

Watching Olivia until she was out of sight was habit, and one that would not be broken. Soon, Olivia would be in sight all the time.

Soon.

Olivia met him at the post office because she refused to let him come home and pick her up, obviously. He was already waiting for her.

“You’re early,” she told him, before he turned his eyes on her and her brain scrambled a bit, making her lose her words.

“You’re stunning.”

Olivia’s brain cells had been zapped so hard that she had to look down at herself to remind herself what she was wearing. Ah, yes, a sunny yellow summer dress, because it was finally summer and warm enough to enjoy it, though she did wear a shrug with it, because she was sensible and knew what the breeze could be like on the island.

“Thanks.”

She managed to get the word out. He looked stunning, too. The shirt was the color of the summer sky, and the white jeans should have looked silly on him, but they looked wonderful. They made his legs look long and strong.

“My car is outside.”

She smiled, nodded, and would have followed him, but he took her hand, as if it was the most normal thing in the world to just hold her hand and walk down the street to where he’d parked the car.

Her fingertips tingled, then her whole hand, her arm, as she walked beside him. His thumb moved, stroking her hand a little, and she sighed as a small shock of pleasure shot through her. She could get used to this. She ought to be careful about that.

“I thought we might do something fun before dinner.”

“What?”

“Well, how do you feel about golf?”

Olivia frowned.

“What? Golf? I didn’t know there was golf on the island. I didn’t know there was a golf course. There’s a golf course?”

“Yes, of course,” he told her with a grin, and he shifted his car into gear and set off.

“Really? I thought I knew the island pretty well. I didn’t see it marked on any of the maps. It’s odd that it wasn’t marked on the maps, isn’t it?”

“I’m sure it’s marked. You probably didn’t know what to look for.”

“What are you supposed to look for? A golf course should be marked as a golf course, what else…”

He pulled into a parking lot, and her frown deepened. This was definitely not a golf course. It wasn’t nearly swanky enough, and anyway…

“Mini-golf?”

Jason grinned at her.

“See? Told you the island had golf. The only kind of golf that counts.”

Olivia had to laugh.

“And a good thing, too. I don’t know if you noticed, but I’m about the same height as most golf clubs.”

Jason guffawed, a sound full of such enjoyment that Olivia had to laugh again. It felt good to do that, to laugh with him like that.

Careful, she warned herself – she had to be careful. She couldn’t let herself get in too deep.

“We’ll get you miniature golf, then. Come on, Olivia. Prepare to be destroyed!”

Olivia rolled her eyes at him, but it was hard not to get swept along. And it was nice to take an evening to just not worry about anything – not about her work, not about imaginary threats in the woods, nothing.

She let him pay because he insisted, and she wasn’t surprised to find that she was having fun. It was fun to be with him. And he was competitive, she realized quickly, which made it better.

So was she.

“You dumbass double-dipper of a windmill, I will defeat you. I will vanquish you,” she threatened as she hit the ball, and she stood there, bouncing on the balls of her feet, only to groan in frustration when the windmill knocked it away again.

“It’s your timing. It’s off. I’d offer to help you, which I believe is the whole point of mini-golf dates, but I’m afraid I’m not nice enough to help the competition.”

“I wouldn’t take your help. You’d sabotage me, most likely.”

“I absolutely would,” agreed Jason, making her chuckle again.

She glared at him and decided to play dirty. She waited until he was in position, and had begun to swing, when she yodeled.

He missed the ball and kicked it instead.

“What the hell?”

“It’s the timing, Jason. You should get it right,” she told him smugly as she watched his ball roll into the water trap that had three plastic frogs in it.

“Well, I guess it’s my turn.”

Jason glowered at her, but she was prepared for his distraction as she swung, and this time, she whooped triumphantly as her ball went past the windmill, through the tunnel, and finally got to the grinning mouth that opened and closed ominously. She held her breath and waited, but it was done – she had won that round.

“Yes!” she crowed, doing a little victory jig.

“You play dirty,” he accused, but most appreciatively.

“I play to win,” she informed him, and he laughed.

“You know, this is not an appealing side of you at all.”