We made it to the corner when I saw Lisa walking in our direction on Seventh Avenue. She was wearing a tight running tank top with leggings that hugged and accentuated all of her soft curves. Her hair was pulled back into a long ponytail. Her cheeks and face were flushed. Every part of her body that was exposed was covered in a glossy coat of dewy sweat. She was glowing.
I slowed down to make sure we’d reach the corner at the same time, which meant we would have to walk in the same direction toward our houses together.
That’s not creepy, right?
I didn't have time to let those thoughts process because she was a few feet away from us.
"Hey?" she said, glancing at CJ, and it sounded like a question.
"Hi." I tried to keep my cool, but I couldn't focus on anything except how sexy she looked in her running gear. I imagined peeling her out of those leggings, putting my face between her legs, and tasting her sweat mingled with her arousal.
Okay, that was definitely creepy.
I had to also remember that she hated me, and that wasn't going to change any time soon. It took a Herculean effort, but I focused on her face with its big brown eyes that were flecked with gold when the sun hit them, long dark feathery lashes, her rounded nose with a slightly upturned tip, like someone had sewn a button on the end of it… I blinked and decided to speak. "I didn't know you were a runner. Are you a runner? How long have you been running? I mean, like in years or months, not how long have you been running today."
Smooth, Cole. Very smooth.
She gave me an incredulous look and almost cracked a smile. That was the second time I came close to making her smile.
“I wouldn’t exactly call myself a runner. I just do a couple laps around the park a few times a week.”
"Yeah." I nodded. "Running is a great way to stay in shape. Not that you need to stay in shape." My words made her chin dip, and she raised her eyebrows at me. "I mean, you look great. Not that I'm looking. I mean, I see what you look like—"
"I know I look great, andstaying in shapeisn’t the only reason to exercise.”
"Yeah, I know," I stammered, "I didn't mean to be rude. I'm not a creep, I promise." Every thought I had about Lisa since we turned the corner would beg to differ. "My brain isn't working, and I'm exhausted." I motioned to CJ with the hand that wasn't pushing the stroller.
Did I just throw my sleeping seventeen-month-old brother under the bus?
Yup.
She looked into the stroller and smiled. It was a genuine smile. I was used to women smiling at me and CJ on our walks, but this one felt different.
“He’s a cutie,” she cooed.
I stopped the stroller so she could crouch in front of him.
"Oh, I'm sorry. It's he, right?" She looked up at me, and I nodded. "I didn't know you had a son." She stroked the back of CJ's hand tenderly with the pad of her index finger.
“Oh, he’s not my son. He's my brother.”
She stood and faced me. "This baby isn't your son?" She pointed at my sleeping doppelgänger and put her hands on her hips.
"No. This baby isn't." I glared at her defiantly. I could have explained my atypical family situation, but I'd spent my whole life doing that, and after our last few exchanges, I didn't owe Lisa an explanation.
Besides, everything was too fresh, too raw. One of the many good things about having CJ come into my life when he did is that I didn't have time for self-pity when I was readingGoodnight, Moonfor the fifth time in a row or keeping pint-sized Evel Knievel from diving headfirst off of the couch. I barely thought about Crystal and definitely never talked about her, not even to my family.
I continued to push the stroller towards my house and away from Lisa.
“He looks like the Boba Fett to your Jango Fett.”
I stopped in my tracks and slowly turned to face her.
“Was that aStar Warsreference?”
Before she could answer me, I heard a familiar voice.
“Hi, you two!” Kimberly and Adam were walking towards us from the opposite direction, hand in hand. “Were you guysouttogether?” She raised an eyebrow.
