At Rope's End (A Dr. James Verraday Mystery #1)(10)

“Have a seat,” said Kyle, gesturing toward three mesh office chairs that seemed more intended for client visits than socializing.

As they sat down, Maclean gazed at the array of equipment.

“You’ve got a lot of gear,” she commented. “What do you do for a living?”

“I’m a video editor, and I do a bit of animation work too.”

“Sounds interesting. What kind of projects?”

“Ultimately I want to do feature films. But for now, I’m mostly making explainers to pay the bills.”

“Explainers?” asked Maclean.

“They’re short videos, kind of like owner’s manuals, that companies post on their websites and on YouTube to explain how their products or services work. Like how to connect a Bluetooth speaker or do your banking with a mobile app.”

“Too bad they don’t make them to explain why people are the way they are,” said Verraday.

Kyle Davis frowned slightly and sighed. “If they did, I wouldn’t be the guy to write one, that’s for sure.”

He said it like only someone who’s had the stuffing knocked out of him can.

“How long did you know Rachel?” asked Maclean.

“Since June second of this year.”

“You remember the date?” said Verraday.

“It was my niece Tabitha’s birthday,” Kyle replied. “But even if it hadn’t been, it would have been hard to forget it. Rachel had that effect on people.”

Maclean smiled at him gently. “How did you two meet?”

“Actually, it had been a sort of crappy day with a really difficult client. I was on the way to my brother and sister-in-law’s place, and I stopped at this toy store to get something for Tabitha’s birthday. I was feeling stressed ’cause I’d been so busy that week, I hadn’t had a chance to get anything for her. I walked into the store and saw this beautiful girl serving some customers—a boy about six years old and his parents. The boy was comparing these dragons and their different superpowers. The parents looked bored, but the salesgirl was totally into it, having fun with the boy, making him laugh, asking about the superpowers of each dragon, which one was better, and what kind of superpowers he’d pick for himself if he were a dragon.”

Verraday leaned forward in his chair and gazed at Kyle empathetically.

“Rachel must have made quite an impression on you.”

Kyle looked wistful. “Rachel made an impression on everybody. After the boy and his parents left, she came over and asked me if she could help me. I told her about my niece’s birthday, said she was turning five and asked what girls that age like. Because honestly, I wouldn’t have had the faintest clue except that I hoped it wouldn’t be My Little Pony. She asked me a few questions about Tabitha: what she enjoyed doing, what her personality was like. Then she suggested a few possible gifts in different price ranges. She was so into it. Not in the sense of trying to upsell me, but really into it, like she was taking pleasure from thinking about the effect that the gift would have on the person getting it.”

“What did you end up choosing?” asked Verraday.

“Rachel recommended a stuffed tiger that a portion of the price goes to the World Wildlife Fund. I thought it looked a bit ferocious for a five-year-old, but Rachel said to tell my niece that it was a ‘watch tiger’ designed to watch over little girls and protect them when they slept. So I got it for her.”

Verraday smiled slightly. “What did your niece think of it?”

“She loved it. Especially the part that Rachel made up about it being a ‘watch tiger’ that would look after her. My brother said Tabitha took it to bed with her the very first night and it’s been beside her pillow ever since.”

“And how did you and Rachel become involved?” asked Verraday.

“As I was paying for the tiger, I spotted these Mega Bloks. You know, those construction toys that are sort of like Lego? I was feeling good by then, a lot better after talking to Rachel, so I made this dumb joke to her asking whether Mega Bloks were anything like mental blocks. Rachel laughed so hard she snorted. And I just thought, wouldn’t it be amazing if my life were always this good? To have a beautiful, intuitive girlfriend who laughs at my jokes? I tried to build up the courage to ask her out. But I’m really bad at stuff like that. My mouth went dry and my heart started racing. I mean, I’m confident about my work, but I’m sort of on the shy side when it comes to putting myself in situations where people can reject me.”

Verraday nodded agreement. “Risking rejection isn’t exactly my strong suit either.”

Kyle allowed himself a nostalgic smile as he continued. “My stomach was full of knots, and I hesitated. Then I saw this family walking toward the store. I knew once they came in, I’d miss my chance. So I asked her point blank if she’d go out with me. She said, ‘Yes, as long as you don’t have any mega mental blocks.’”

Verraday saw a complex mixture of affection and loss in Kyle’s expression. “And when did you two go out?”

“The next evening.”

“How did the relationship develop after that?” asked Verraday.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean did you see much of each other?”

Kyle looked like he was about to speak, then hesitated, like he was searching for words. “It was a whirlwind. We had sex on our first date. I’ve never done that before. Ever. But she made me feel so relaxed. And so wanted. After that, we were together pretty much all the time. She basically moved in after our second date.”