“How’s anyone supposed to get past that? I’ve got the opposite problem. People look at this face and somehow think I’m only here for a good time. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. I can’t get anyone to take me serious.”
I’d take you serious.Conrad ate another bite of muffin. A vague nut flavor made it to his tongue this time.At least he doesn’t have a boyfriend right now.“You? A party guy? I can’t even imagine. You were always the most serious one among us. Well, tied with me.” He considered what his therapist would say:Are you going to put yourself out there? Are you going to take a chance? Don’t let your mom’s actions stop you from having your own life.
Conrad set down his muffin, stared at his plate as he gathered his courage, and then faced Jude. “How about us?You’ve been on the inside of my shell. You know me. Wanna go see a movie sometime?” His heart pounded so hard his voice shook a little. “Or maybe grab supper at North Pond or Boka?” He was a fan of fine dining.
Jude laughed, lighting up. “Damn, you’ve got class! Sure, let’s go to North Pond or Boka. Then we’ll see a movie. Or forget movies. We should go to a symphony or something.” He drained the rest of his coffee. “Look at us: We have parents who make too much money, and we don’t know what to do with ourselves. We can at least keep each other company.” He took another bite of his bagel sandwich.
Grinning, Conrad picked up his muffin again. “Sure.” He ate a larger bite, this time tasting the banana, nut, and sugar.He went for it! And there’s no better man than Jude. Maybe I can actually get somewhere this time.“Let’s trade numbers. I’ve got a new number now.” He pulled his cellphone from his pocket. “We should aim for Saturday. That gives me time to see what’s on this weekend and see if the tickets are sold out yet.”
“No wonder all my texts went nowhere,” Jude teased. He pulled his cellphone from his jeans pocket. “Sure. If the symphony’s sold out, we can hang out and listen to old records. Mom kept all mine. You keep yours?” They used to collect records together.
“Oh, hell, yeah,” Conrad said. “Records are the best. Streaming might be easy, but nothing will ever beat a record.”
They traded numbers, finished their coffee and food, and then headed outside into the spring sunlight together, still talking about old times. When Conrad’s phone dinged, he knew it was Brian sending another angry text, but the anxiety that had flooded him before was gone. He didn’t have to answer. He finally admitted to himself that he’d been waiting five years for Jude to come back to Chicago so he could ask Jude the question he longed to have asked before:Will you be my boyfriend?
And now Jude had said yes.
Second Chance Love by Violet Stone
Sally shook. She grabbed the full coffee mug in front of her just so she had something to do with her hands.
It had been a long month.
Ella, her daughter, now grown up with her first child on the way—how had that happened—eyed her knowingly.
“Mom, calm down. You’re meeting your wife, not a stranger down a dark alley.”
Sally smiled at her daughter over the rim of her mug.
Strangers they certainly were not…but it sure felt like she and Harriet were drifting apart recently. No one had cheated, there was nothing dramatic going on—it was just one of those things, or so their couple’s therapist said. The one-month trial separation had been their therapist’s idea. No contact for one whole month to really think about what they wanted for the rest of their lives and if that included each other.
Sally had moved in with Ella, and Harriet had stayed in their house.
It had been the longest they had ever gone without speaking in twenty years, and Sally never wanted that to happen again. She just hoped that Harriet felt the same.
Sally drank a few more sips of her coffee before glancing down at her watch.
“I better get going,” she said.
Ella followed her out to the front door.
“And Mom, whatever happens, I love you both.”
Emotion swelled in her as she dropped a kiss to Ella’s cheek.
“I love you too, darling. Remember, you are the best thing we ever did.”
With that, Sally began her walk to the park.
What began as light rain had turned into a full-ondownpour. Sally blinked against the rain that blurred her vision. The park was mercifully quiet, with people deciding that today was not a day to venture outside. Still, a few people milled around, some walking their dogs, others practically running to escape the rain. Oak trees lined the edge of the park, and a fountain stood proudly in the middle, eliciting the soothing tinkle of water.
If Sally had a coin, she knew what she would wish for.
As she stood at the fountain, she attempted to run her fingers through her sodden curls. She hopped from foot to foot, like she was trying to physically repel the nerves from her body.
“Hello,” came a soft voice from behind her. A voice she would recognize anywhere.
Her wife.
