Chapter 27: S2 Cole: A Cowboy's Fan

Ava Johansson

The incessant ring of a phone resonates. Ava rolls over and covers her head with a pillow, which does little to drown the unrelenting noise.

"Tessa, answer your phone."

The device continues to ring.

Ava huffs, tosses the pillow at her feet, and then sits on the couch.

The light shining through the window makes her squint.

Rising, she stomps over to the desk in the living room to answer the phone, but the cradle is empty, which isn't a surprise.

"I love ya, Tessa, but you'd lose your head if it weren't attached to your shoulders." The phone keeps ringing. "For the love of . . . Man, If I'd slept at Pop's house," she shouts, "I'd still be asleep right now."

Paint. She didn't go home because there's a fresh shade of God knows what color on the walls in her bedroom.

Her father, Benjamin Johansson, decided to paint her room yesterday of all days. Exactly what had possessed him to do it, while she was stuck on a six-hour flight, is beyond her.