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Almost as though she could read my mind and sense my disquiet, my agent Tiffany called. Standing there, I stared at my phone on the table as it rang and contemplated not answering. The problem was that Tiffany knew me too well. I was kind of a recluse. Well…I guess I was a recluse. A twenty-eight-year-old spinster cat-lady without any cats. I was almost always home working, and Tiffany knew that. If I didn’t answer, she’d probably think I had a damned stroke or something. She’d call an ambulance, it would be a whole deal, and I’d be mortified. Shit.
I picked the phone up and answered. “This is Celina.”
“Hey, chick. How’s the book coming? I wanted to do my weekly check-in,” Tiffany said, almost too cheerily.
I sighed and glanced out the window at the brown leaves blowing across the yard. November was in full effect. “It’s…well…not great, actually.”
There was a long pause before Tiffany spoke again. “You’ve got writer’s block? You?”
I rolled my eyes to the ceiling. Great, even Tiffany thought it was weird. Even though we were on the phone, my cheeks blazed red. I hated discussing personal things—even with friends. Years of bouncing through foster homes had given me plenty of baggage, and this was just another piece of baggage.
“Yeah. I can’t get past this one section. I even tried moving ahead and writing a later scene, but I couldn’t come up with anything. It’s kinda crazy, actually. I don’t know what’s up,” I explained.
“Listen, I know how it is. Most of my other clients have dealt with it in the past. You are the exception to the rule. It was bound to happen at some point. Don’t get too much in your head about it. Honestly, you’ve been prolific. You’ve written twice as much as any other author. Don’t sweat it.”
“Okay, well, tell me what your other clients did to get over the hump, or through the forest, or whatever cliché works best in this situation.”
Tiffany laughed. “You aren’t gonna like it. Almost all of them have said the same thing.”
My stomach dropped. I took a breath and asked, “What’s their secret?”
“They all got away for a while. Closed their laptop, stepped away from the typewriter as if they were really old school, and took a week or two away. Cleared their head. Cancun, Bahamas, Paris. Mountain retreat, beach vacay, Las Vegas debauchery. Whatever the heart needs to get the head back on track.”
The thought filled me with trepidation. I wasn’t a traveler by nature. The thought of going to any of the places Tiffany mentioned didn’t really appeal to me. Beaches meant people, lots of people. The same for Paris or Vegas. If I did go somewhere, I liked the idea of quiet. Someplace where I could, maybe, get my act together and get back to work.
Tiffany went on. “Listen, Celina, I’ll call the publisher. We’ll get the deadline pushed back a few months. You’ve busted your ass for them for years. They can give you a little leeway on this one. Figure out where you want to go for your getaway and let me know. A month? Maybe even two? You are way past due for a vacation.”
“Vacation?” I laughed. “What’s that?”
“For real? Girl, you need to get out there and live. When’s the last time you had a nice, hot one-night stand?”
My face went red again, and this time my ears burned. I quickly changed the subject. “You’re right. It’s time to get away. I’ll let you know what I decide.”
“Okay, I’ll call the publisher and let them know. Don’t worry about that. I’ll punch ’em in the balls if they give me any lip about it.”
Smiling, I ended the call. Then, exactly as Tiffany said, I closed my laptop. The sound of it clicking closed was, surprisingly, cathartic. I sank onto the couch to try and figure out where I wanted to go. The usual vacation spots were out. I really just wanted somewhere I could relax. Somewhere quiet and calm. Twenty minutes of surfing the web on my phone for vacation sites and vacation rentals didn’t help. Finally, I got up and went to the large, detailed map of the United States on my wall. I used it when I was plotting out a new book to make sure which state was where and what city was in what part of the state—stuff like that.
I closed my eyes and put my finger out. Even though I was alone, I was still embarrassed, but I followed through. I turned in two circles, then walked toward the map while moving my arm in a circle. After three short steps, my finger came to a rest on the map. Opening my eyes, I raised an eyebrow in surprise. Colorado? Not exactly what I’d been thinking, but…something about it seemed right.
After five minutes of digging through an old box in my closet, I found an old road atlas and opened it to the state of Colorado. It took up two big pages and seemed to have every single city and town on it. I stared at it, trying to figure out where would be the best place to clear my head. Then I decided to do the blind-man’s-bluff trick again. I closed my eyes and slammed my finger on the map.
The moment my finger touched the paper, my lips spread into a grin. It was difficult to explain the feeling I got, but it was a sort of
rightness. I lifted my finger, and looked at the town it had landed on. Lilly Valley, Colorado. Goosebumps prickled up my arms, and warmth seeped through my stomach and chest. I’d never heard of the place before, but…it called to me. This was the place. One hundred percent. This. Was. The. Place.
Another quick internet search brought up available rentals in the small town. Small was accurate. There weren’t many places available, but I managed to find a fully furnished apartment. Without a second thought, I called the lister and rented the apartment, immediately paying the security deposit and two months’ rent.
Once I put the phone down, I clasped my hands in front of my chest. I must have looked like a little girl who’d just walked into the living room to see what Santa brought, but I didn’t care—no one was here to see me. Nothing had made me this excited in a long time. I picked up the phone again and called Tiffany to give her the good news.
“Colorado?” she asked incredulously. “Like Denver or Aspen?”
“No, Lilly Valley. It’s this cute little hamlet. Oh my gosh, it looks amazing.”
“Uh…okay. It’s your vacation and your dime. It sounds a little dull to me, but you do you,” Tiffany said.
“I leave at the end of the week. I paid for two months, but I’ll probably only stay a few weeks. I’m so excited, Tiffany.”
“Girl, I don’t think I’ve ever heard you this worked up over something. Not even when your books sell like hotcakes. Sounds like this is exactly what you need. As long as you touch base with me when you get there, I’ll be fine with it.”
The next several days went by agonizingly slow. I made no progress on my book because every extra moment I had was spent looking up pictures of Lilly Valley. Then I researched restaurants in the area, book stores, and movie theaters—all the things an introvert like me loved. By the end of the week, I was practically vibrating with excitement.
The flight on Friday was blessedly quick. I wasn’t a huge fan of airplanes, more due to motion sickness than an actual fear of flying. I picked up my rental car for the trip and headed to Lilly
Valley. I spent the drive listening to an audiobook and was able to pretty much zone out. But then I crested the hill that revealed the town. As soon as I saw it, the pull became stronger. I smiled as I took it all in.
The leasing office was right on the outskirts of the town. After I pulled into the parking lot and got out of the car, I noticed how fresh the air smelled. Everything about this place was clean and beautiful, and from the way every building seemed to fit the aesthetic of the town, I was certain there was some bylaw that decided the architectural design. It was even better than I thought.
I entered the office and found a lady at the counter. I smiled, but she wasn’t actually looking at me. In fact, she seemed a little frazzled. Pulling my lip between my teeth and chewing nervously, I waited for her to notice me.
