Suddenly, he had an urge to call Olivia. He just wanted to hear her voice. But he knew she had a very full schedule today and was still trying to catch up from traveling and spending the time she should have been catching up with him, instead.
He settled for telling himself they were okay. Sure, there was some stuff they were going to have to talk about soon, like the fact the distance between his place and hers became more of an issue the closer they got. He didn’t want to move that far from his kids, but he was pretty sure she’d have no interest in living in his neighborhood. But that was a problem that could be solved. He hoped.
Because he didn’t even want to consider the possibility of Olivia walking out of his life. He knew for damn sure he didn’t want to feel the way Grant did right now. They were going to make it work.
Chapter Fifteen
“Admit it, that was a good movie.” Olivia shivered as they stepped out of the theater into air that was a lot chillier than it had been when they went in. Now that they were heading into autumn, anything could happen when the sun went down.
“It was...not crowded.” He laced his fingers through hers as they walked down the sidewalk. “I’m not sure if it’s because it’s a Wednesday night or if it’s because you’re one of only two dozen people who wanted to see it.”
“You’re a reverse movie snob, Derek. If there aren’t any explosions, you think it’s boring.”
“Well, there was one bomb.” He paused until she looked over at him. “That fake British accent.”
She laughed and bumped his arm with her shoulder. “You’re so bad. But thank you for seeing it with me, anyway, and you can pick the next movie.”
“As long as I get to hold your hand and you share your popcorn with me, I’ll watch anything with you,” he said in a ridiculously bad British accent that made her laugh again. “You did promise me ice cream, though.”
Even though it wasn’t exactly ice cream weather, they walked to the ice cream shop and bought two cones—black raspberry and strawberry for him, and orange sherbet for her. Then they found a bench where they could sit and watch the people go by.
“How are the kids doing?” she asked after a few minutes. “Is school going okay for them?”
“Yeah, they’re good. Amber had to have a meeting with Isaac’s teacher already because he reads fast and when they read together, he always reads ahead and doesn’t know where they are if she calls on him. That’s pretty typical for him. And Julia got seated next to a girl who keeps talking to her and getting them both in trouble.”
“Oh, that happened to me once,” she said, laughing. “You raise kids not to ignore people who speak to them because it’s rude, and then you have a classmate talking to you when you’re supposed to be quiet. I feel for her.”
“Oh, you remember Wren? Grant’s girlfriend?”
“His almost fiancée? Of course. I really liked her.”
“I guess that’s over. She broke it off with him and didn’t even tell him why. And then she took off, with no forwarding information.”
“No.” While she didn’t know Grant or Wren very well, she liked them both and she honestly thought they were a genuinely happy couple. “That’s heartbreaking. Is he handling it okay?”
“I don’t think so. He was kind of like an empty shell wrapped in anger last time I saw him. But he was going home to New Hampshire for a few days, so hopefully his family can help him get his head on straight. I heard him telling Gavin he might just pack up and go home for good. I hope he doesn’t, not only because I’d hate to see him go, but he shouldn’t be making decisions like that until the dust settles.”
“They seemed so in love.” She tried not to dwell too much on theloveword, since it had become the elephant in the room whenever she thought about Derek or was with him.
“He was. He was definitely in love with her, and we all thought she loved him, too. But to not only break it off, but the way she did it? He’s pretty messed up.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.” She licked around the bottom edge of her ice cream before it could drip onto her hand. “How’s everybody else doing?”
He talked about work for a while, and then he told her a funny story about the time he had to help a rookie firefighter get out of a tree while the cat he’d been trying to rescue watched them from the ground. He was a good storyteller and she never got tired of listening to his voice when he told them. Luckily his job and the people he worked with offered plenty of tales for him to tell.
When they reached her building, he squeezed her hand. “I should go.”
“It’s notthatlate.” She felt a twinge of guilt because, even though he didn’t have to be at the fire station early tomorrow morning, it would take him a while to drive home. She’d known from the beginning that being in a relationship with somebody who lived on the other side of the city would be tough, but the deeper in they got the more difficult it became. And maybe it was time for just stay over, but not only was she getting up early, but Kelsey was showing up early, too. It wasn’t a work night for him, but it was for her.
“You told me you have a meeting earlier than usual tomorrow because it’s the only time the guy could fit you in,” he said, echoing her thoughts. “If I go upstairs with you, you’ll stay up late again and I know it’s an important client you want to get.”
Looking up into his face, with the streetlight shining behind him, it was so tempting to tell him she didn’t care. So she’d be a little tired in the morning. He was worth it.
“Stop looking at me like that,” he said, his voice low and rough. “I’m trying to be a gentleman and you’re making it hard.”
Her mouth curved into a smile as she raised an eyebrow. “Am I?”
“Oh, you know you are.” He cleared his throat. “You’re making it rough on me, trying to behave over here.”
