It was a little early for the Dynasty delivery guy, but I went to the door and peeked through the peephole just to be sure.
Our apartment sat on the second floor, and the black wrought iron stairs ended in the tiniest of balconies. One folding lawn chair and couple of teacup sized succulents took up most of the space to the right of the front door. But from what I could see, the landing and the stairs were empty. The sound of someone ascending the metal stairs usually could be heard throughout the apartment, so I dismissed the noise, made myself a comfort nest against one arm of the couch, and turned on the DVR.
I kept a cache of my favoriteWill & Graceepisodes for emergencies, and today had been a tire-fire kind of day. So, I chose “Das Boob,” season two, episode three, because, no matter how shitty I felt, watching Grace Adler struggle to hide her punctured water bra like a late twentieth century Lucille Ball always made me laugh.
Grace, Will, and Jack had just executed the simultaneous boob-grab when I heard more noise outside. But it wasn’t footsteps on the stairs. It was voices.
And one of them sounded like it was coming from right outside the door.
I paused the show and wriggled out of my nest. Peering outside again, I still saw no one. And it wasn’t until then that I heard footfalls on the stairs. Within seconds, a delivery guy stepped into view, and I slid back the chain and unbolted the door.
And I opened it to find Cole. Standing on my balcony. Paying the delivery guy.
My eyes almost bugged out of my head. “Wh-what are you doing here?”
He ignored me, counting out bills to the Dynasty driver. “And that’s for you,” he said, laying a ten on top of the stack he’d dealt into the guy’s hand. The driver promptly handed Cole the hulking white paper sack.
I couldn’t process anything I was seeing. What was Cole doing here? When had he arrived? Why was he paying for our takeout? And those were just the superficial questions. The biggest question I couldn’t tackle was tougher.
Why is my heart trying to leap out my chest in his direction?
“Hey!” I protested. “We ordered that, not him.”
The guy held up the receipt and frowned. He looked back and forth between me and Cole. “Delivery for Coleman Whitehurst?”
“What?!”
Alberta, you traitor!
Cole handed the guy another ten. “Thanks, man. We’re good.”
Beaming, the driver nodded and gave Cole a half-salute. “Wow! Thanks. And thanks for choosing Dynasty.”
The delivery guy turned and with an obvious skip in his step, he jogged down the stairs, making a hellish racket as he did. My gaze shot to Cole who’d set the takeout bag down on our folding lawn chair and was proceeding to dig through it.
My mouth worked for a few seconds before actual words came out. “How— What— Please tell me what’s going on? What are you doing out here?”
Cole fished out a pint-sized white box and a set of paper-wrapped chopsticks. He didn’t look at me when he spoke. “I’m taking Louis’s advice.”
This cryptic answer cleared up nothing. Maybe Louis suggested he smoke a bowl, and Cole had taken him at his word. Nothing else made sense.
“What advice?”
Cole thrust the paper bag at me, his eyes locking with mine. In that crystal blue that could ensnare my heart and lungs, I saw an ironclad will. And behind that, I saw ease. Whatever Cole was up to, he was sure about himself, and he wasn’t about to be deterred.
My stomach did a little flip.
“He told me that if you left me, I should go with you,” he said, his voice so low and smooth it felt like a feather running up the back of my knee. But that sensation was bound to knock me off balance, so I pushed it away. I took the takeout bag from him and fixed my eyes on that.
“Where’s Ava?”
Staring at the bag, I waited for Cole to answer me, but when he didn’t, I looked up at him, puzzled. It was only when I met his gaze again that he spoke.
“I’m not sure, but she may still be at Flora’s.” He wore the slight frown and puckered mouth of someone mildly interested in the subject.
I stepped back, fast-blinking. “Y-you’re not sure?” Of course, he knew were Ava was. He had to know. After searching for her for hours, Cole wouldn’t just let her out of his sight. Not after the night she’d had.
He just lifted one shoulder in a casual shrug. “I talked to Ava,” he said evenly. “From now on, I’m going to be taking a strictly supportive role in her sobriety.”
