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“Okay. So why don’t you tell me why you brought me here tonight of all places and what this is really about,” I said.
“Can’t a father just want to enjoy a meal with his son, one on one?”
“Yes. I would love that. Yet, you’ve never done that with any of your kids, so why are you starting now, with me?”
“As I was saying, Walker and Bailey are settled, or as settled as Bailey is ever going to be. The woman is determined to see every inch of this world,” my father said.
“She has wanderlust. She has since before she went to Italy. I think it only helped to cultivate it. She’s inquisitive and loves to see new things. I think it’s wonderful.”
“Unlike you who has never left New York City except on forced family vacations.”
“I went willingly on those vacations. I just don’t see the point in leaving New York, not when everything I want is right here.”
“Is it?”
“Yes. My family is here, who I adore, most of the time. I have a job that I love going to, working for a company I respect and want to help nurture. There’s culture and activities to keep me busy, and good friends that I can enjoy spending time with. What more could a man want?”
“Love,” he replied.
“Are we back at that? I’m fine. Just because your two youngest are all settled as you like to say, doesn’t mean you have to start worrying about me or JD.”
“JD is too busy getting his restaurant off the ground to be worried about a woman right now. Though his time is coming.”
“What do you mean by that?” I asked slowly.
I didn’t like my father’s tone or what he was implying. He had manipulated Walker and Morgan and I wouldn’t put it past him to do that to JD. If he was, I wanted to put a stop to it right away.
“Nothing. We’re talking about you and getting so involved with your life and career and what you think is making you happy that you forget to see what could make you happy.”
“Thank you for your concern, father, but it’s unfounded.”
“Are you sure? There isn’t anything, anyone that you could want in your life that would make things just that much better?”
I immediately thought of Hope and how she was the one thing, the only thing, that I wanted. If she was in my life, more so than the passing acquaintance, my life would be perfect. Not just good but perfect.
“It doesn’t matter, Dad,” I admitted to him.
“No, son. It’s all that matters. If you aren’t careful, you’re going to miss out on the one thing that you want and need most in your life.”
As he spoke, he wasn’t looking at me. His eyes focused on something that was right over my shoulder. I followed his gaze and my breath caught in my throat. Almost as if my father had conjured her up, there was Hope sitting at the bar with who I thought was her ex-boyfriend, but apparently was her current boyfriend, Bash Harris.
Chapter 4
Hope
“Isn’t it great that we can see each other like this?” Bash asked me.
“I’m glad we are able to catch up,” I said cautiously.
We had been sitting at the bar of The East, a restaurant that I had been to a few times but was never one of my favorites as it always seemed too pretentious for me. Everyone who was there was trying to prove something about themselves to everyone else. The atmosphere felt tense and fake, if that was possible. There was no authenticity to it and it was why I hardly frequented it.
Bash had wanted to meet here so I had agreed. Though as I drank my glass of wine that was ridiculously overpriced and sat across from a man I knew I was no longer interested in, I kept wondering why and looking for a way out.
As soon as I sat down and looked at Bash, I knew I shouldn’t have come. He was a nice guy, a good guy, one that any woman would be lucky to be with, but I was not that woman. We had met about a year ago and had dated briefly. He had seemed fun and easy and hadn’t been looking for anything serious, which was perfect for me with my school and family obligations. We had gone out a few times in a span of about two months. We would make plans but inevitably one of us would cancel at the last minute as people did in New York City.
Once I had a break in school, we hung out consistently for about two weeks. It was then that we slept together, and while it wasn’t the best, it wasn’t the worst experience either. It must have been the same for Bash as I didn’t hear from him again for over a month. When I did, he was apologetic about being busy and said he wanted to meet up again. I wasn’t overly interested and by then I was neck deep in my dissertation and had brushed him off. We had met up for coffee before he had gone to Boston and it had felt like a goodbye. I hadn’t really thought about him until he had called me to see if I wanted to meet for a drink.
I had told myself it was because I had been so busy with school that I hadn’t taken the time to be with him. It was because he was moving to Boston that I didn’t get too attached, but sitting across from him and hearing him talk, it was none of those things.
