Chapter Fifteen
The next afternoon, Ridley pulled into the first available space she could find in the underground parking garage of MacArthur Center Mall.
Katie had the kids, so she’d decided it was high time she got out of the house. It felt like high school all over again when she’d picked up the phone to invite Mara to lunch. She’d never been that outgoing and after everything that had happened, she wouldn’t have been surprised if Mara wanted nothing to do with her. But in the end, Mara had seemed pleasantly surprised to hear from her again and more than happy to meet her at the mall during her lunch break.
Mara worked as an administrative assistant twenty minutes away in the city of Norfolk. She’d suggested that Ridley drive over and meet her since Norfolk had the closest shopping mall to New Haven anyway.
White-knuckling her way through traffic in an unfamiliar area wasn’t her idea of fun, especially while driving the ultra-expensive Audi coupe Jackson had insisted she take. It was a small triumph that she’d managed to get there without causing any accidents or getting any scratches on the paint. It had been incredibly kind of Jackson to offer her the use of his car in the first place.
They’d spent the previous night tiptoeing around each other. Even though he’d mentioned the industry party again, she doubted he really wanted to take her. He was just too polite to disinvite her. She sighed.
He was probably counting the days until she left.
She threw her purse over her shoulder carelessly and hopped out of the car. She made a note of where her car was parked and set off.
The smell of pizza, hamburgers, and Chinese food hit her as soon as she entered the mall. Using her nose and a quick glance at the mall map, she was able to find the food court where she was supposed to meet Mara, relatively soon. Spotting Mara sitting alone at a Formica table in the center of the room, she hurried over and plopped down across from her. Her apology for being late died on her lips when she saw the look on Mara’s face.
“Is everything all right? You look like you just lost your best friend.”
Mara shook her head at the comment, seeming to compose herself in seconds. “It’s nothing. I’m just ready to shop. Let’s check out the sales in the department stores first.”
Bouncing up with renewed vigor, Mara gathered her purse and gestured for Ridley to follow. Ridley got up slowly, unsure of how to respond to the sudden change in atmosphere.
Oh well, if she wants to tell me what’s wrong, she will. If not, then maybe shopping will cheer her up.
Ignoring the calls of pushy salespeople hanging out of their shops, they headed straight for the department store closest to the food court. Known for having excellent sales, today was no exception. Signs proclaiming everything thirty percent off seemed to raise Mara’s spirits. She made a beeline for the lingerie department.
“So, I was a little surprised to get your call.” Mara flipped through a rack of skimpy negligees. “I figured we’d hauled over enough clothes to last you until the apocalypse.”
“I just felt like shopping. This has been a crazy week.”
“Tell me about it. Hanging out with the guys has never been this much fun!”
Ridley couldn’t resist smiling at the other woman’s antics.
“So, are you shopping for anything in particular? You need something else for your date with Jackson?” Mara asked.
Heat flooded Ridley’s cheeks again but she just shrugged. “It’s not a date. He just needs a companion for this dinner and I’m convenient. I already know what I’m going to wear. I just wanted to get out of the house.”
“Uh huh. Well, maybe if you take one of these home tonight, being in the house won’t be so boring.” Mara held up a nightgown with the nipples cut out.
“Mara!” She glanced behind her. “Put that thing down.”
Mara winked. “Are you kidding? If you won’t get this, then I will.”
Ridley picked up a pair of panties from the display table next to her. She flipped them over to see the price tag and then whistled.
Mara looked up. “Oh, yeah. I know. I hate those stupid boy shorts where half your ass cheeks are hanging out.”
A girl browsing next to them giggled. “Glad I’m not the only one.”
“See! I’m just speaking the truth,” Mara declared.
Ridley shook her head and watched as Mara held up nightgown after nightgown, each skimpier than the last.
“I was actually talking about the price. I just can’t imagine paying so much for something that doesn’t cover anything and feels like a shoestring up your ass.”
She flipped through the rack in front of her, then crossed to a table display of panties. It wasn’t until she picked them up that she could see the gaping hole in the crotch.
“If you’re getting that crazy nightgown you might as well get these, too.” Ridley glanced over her shoulder but saw she was all alone. “Mara? Where did she…”
As she turned back around, she caught a flash of movement in the floor-to-ceiling mirror in front of her. A man two rows back staring right at her.
She whipped around. The man now had his back to her and was pawing through the rack of clothes in front of him. It’s just another clueless guy shopping for a present for his girlfriend. Even though she knew it was ridiculous, her heart was still banging against her ribs when Mara appeared from behind a rack of floor-length silk gowns.
“These are so cute,” she said. “Not that I have enough cleavage for them, but still.” When she saw Ridley standing in the middle of the aisle, still holding the black lace panties to her chest, she stopped in her tracks. “Are you okay?”
“Fine. I’m fine. Just seeing things, that’s all.” Ridley stuck the garment back on the table and followed Mara to the other side of the store. When she looked over her shoulder again, the man was still looking at the same rack of clothes. He turned then and looked directly at her.
Her blood chilled.
“I think I need to get some air,” she whispered. Mara immediately put down the nightgown she was holding and followed her to the escalators.
“Ridley, you are being so weird. What’s going on?” In an effort to keep up with her, Mara pushed past a young couple holding hands, muttering a quick “sorry” over her shoulder as they passed. “You look like you just saw a ghost.”
“I’m not sure what I saw. This guy was staring and it kind of gave me the creeps. Is there a middle-aged man with dark hair and a leather jacket following us? I don’t want to keep looking.”
As they stepped onto the escalator to go down to the first floor, Mara turned and leaned against the rail, looking around her casually. A second later, she turned and faced the front.
“Yeah, there is. He was by the jewelry counter.” She turned and looked again, then whipped around. “Um, he’s on the escalator behind us now. And I think he saw me looking. Who is that?”
Ridley gripped her hands together so tightly she almost winced. “I have no idea. I don’t know what to do. What do we do?”
“At the bottom of the escalator, let’s go to the left through the formal wear. It’ll be easier for us to hide behind those racks. Then we can make our way back to the parking garage and get the hell out of here.”
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