After Nay heard Gunner’s bike take off, she stood and moseyed around the room. Beneath the TV was a low bookcase, and she read some of the titles. Many of them were historical books mostly having to do with Texas. She browsed about, trying to get a sense of the house’s owner. Nay wondered how he could afford a cabin he obviously didn’t live in on a regular basis.
She shrugged. Maybe he inherited it from his parents.
On the wall were three framed black and white images of Marilyn Monroe. There were no personal photos anywhere. She strode over to the sliding glass door and stared out into the thicket of trees. The moon had finally made an appearance, and it cast an eerie glow over the mountainside. To her right was a partially open door. She pushed it open, switched on the light, and gasped.
Huge monitors covered the far wall. She inched into the room, and her gaze strayed to the assortment of laptops and computer towers on top of and below the room-length desk. When she moved closer, she tilted her head to get a better view.
“What the…”
Nay picked up one of the laptops, turned it over to reveal the make and model, and gaped.
That model was only ever a concept.
She stared around the room. “What in the hell is he doing with this type of equipment?”
Her palms itched when she thought of what she could do with the toys in front of her. She reached over to power up one of the units, but stopped herself. Gunner would be super pissed if she screwed with his things.
Okay, so maybe I won’t turn them on. But nothing’s stopping me from having a peek inside.
Behind her was a black and silver mechanic storage set. She slid a drawer open. Each tool was meticulously placed in its particular spot. Nay’s eyebrows raised.
OCD much?
She glanced back at the towers, biting her lip, wondering if she should risk it. Shrugging, she picked out a couple of tools from the drawer and swiveled back to the desk, and stopped. She scrutinized the desk, trying to figure out what was missing.
There aren’t any keyboards. The monitors aren’t touchscreen, either.
She shook her head, confused. Nay kneeled, pushed the huge desk chair out of the way, and slid out the largest tower. She reached around and disconnected the wires and power supply and then laid the unit on its side. Nay grasped the tool she’d need and aimed it at the first screw, and stopped.
“What the hell?”
She’d never seen that type of screw before. Returning to the drawers, she opened each one to find the correct piece of equipment to remove the screws. There wasn’t one.
Nay put her hands on her hips, gazing between the tool box and tower. She let out a huff of air and picked up the tools from the floor and returned them to their spots, making sure they were exactly how she’d found them. After closing the storage unit, she replaced the wires, and slipped the computer back to its proper spot.
Back on her feet, she studied the room to make sure everything was how she found it. She headed back into the living room and then into the kitchen. In the refrigerator, she pulled out drawers, searching for something to eat. Nay unwrapped a package of sandwich meat and sniffed at it.
“Wow,” she murmured. It was actually the best roast beef and fresh. She found bread and made a sandwich. While searching for a butter knife, she opened every drawer in the kitchen.
Does this man not have anything personal?
It crossed her mind to wander up to the loft, but she dismissed the thought immediately when she imagined Gunner walking in on her while she was going through his underwear drawer. She shrugged.
With her plate, she took her seat back on the couch and switched on the TV. She munched on her sandwich as she watched an old black and white horror film. Full, she wrapped her blanket around herself and sunk into the cushions.