AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He chuckles. “I thought you were a romance author. Isn’t that supposed to be your specialty?”
“Aspiring romance author,” I correct.
He doesn’t respond to that comment, just smiling as he opens the door. For a moment, it’s like time stops. Like I’m being given a choice. I know that if I follow him out this door, things are going to change between the two of us. I’ve pushed him away several times now. Each time is harder than the last, and he hasn’t fought me even the slightest. Instead, he’s just… been him.
I take a deep breath and accept the possibility that maybe things will change. Maybe the man I’m standing next to will be a blip of fun in my life, just three weeks of sparks and excitement. Even though I barely know him, I feel like I can trust him to keep what happens right now separate from work when everything goes back to normal.
Plus, who knows exactly what will change?
Twenty-Two
ADDISON
Wildflowers are everywhereas we walk through the trees of Central Park. I didn’t understand what Central Park was when I saw pictures of it. I didn’t understand the size of it or that there’s a freaking lake in the middle of it.
“This place is huge,” I say, “and so beautiful. Who’d have thought that all of this was in the middle of Manhattan?”
Phillip smiles as he looks around. “It is pretty. Spring is better, but summer’s not too bad.” He’s quiet as we sit on the bench in the middle of a scene that could have been in any romance novel ever. I’d imagined a thousand pigeons and a walking path around a little pond like in my hometown, but this is enormous and nothing like that.
“Do you come here often?” I ask while he stares off into space. It’s odd seeing him in a place like this. Sure, Central Park is in the middle of Manhattan, but it’s a different vibe, almost like it’s separate from the actual city. And Phillip Loughton belongs in the concrete jungle, not walking around in fields of wildflowers.
He shakes his head. “Nope. When I was young, my mother would take us here occasionally, but not very often. My father didn’t want me to waste time in parks. He wanted me at the office doing something ‘useful’.”
The more time I spend with Phillip, the more I understand why he gave up everything. I’d thought it was insane before, but it feels like he really has spent literally every moment working since he was born. No wonder he wanted some time to do anything else.
“Well, does this fit the characters you’re making? Is this where they’d go?”
I look around at the trees that line the path and fill in the spaces between, just enough to blot out the rest of the city, but not enough that you couldn’t walk through them. It’s like getting lost in the woods only a mile away from the biggest city in the states.
My first instinct is that it could be the perfect place for romance, but after a moment, I shake my head. It’s not what Angela would enjoy. She wanted to come to the city, to escape her small-town life. She’d want romance to blossom amidst the buildings and traffic and life there. Not somewhere that would remind her of the forests outside her parents’ house in Vermont.
“Probably not,” I say with a sigh. I’m still trying to figure out just what kind of scene will prompt their first kiss.
Phillip doesn’t seem bothered at all. “Somehow, I had a feeling that it would be wrong. You’re basing that book on you, after all, and you’re not going to look for love in Central Park.”
I squint my eyes at him. “What do you mean?” The real question is how would he know what I was writing other than the tiny little details and hints I’ve dropped?
He stands up and looks down at me. “You’re writing what you know, Addison. Just like most first-time authors. They’re the stories you’ve had in your head forever. Your characters are pieces of yourself. Andyouwouldn’t be happy with love being found here.”
I don’t know what to say. Is it really that easy to tell what I’d write about? And how would he know where I’d be looking for in a romantic scene?
Phillip just chuckles. “Come on. I’ve got a better spot. It’s a short bus ride, and we can talk about how annoyed you are on the ride.”
Something’s changed in Phillip. I don’t know what happened today, but something did. He’s been quiet and nervous since Friday, but now, it’s like everything’s clicked together for him and he’s just as confident as he’d been in the office.
I stand up. “Okay, lead the way. I’m intrigued about the spot and even more intrigued about what you think you know about me.”
All he does is grin.
Twenty-Three
PHILLIP
“Why wouldyou think that I’m Angela?” she says, completely confused and frustrated, and it’s really hard not to laugh.
We’re sitting on the bus as it heads to the Brooklyn Bridge Park, and I feel like this is the closest we’ve been since we shared a bed. Ever since then, there’s always been a distance between us, whether that was physically or emotionally. But now, it’s just the two of us, and that gap is closing.
Addison tries to turn more in her seat and her leg brushes against mine. She automatically stops and glances down, but she doesn’t pull it away. Instead, she continues her argument. “I don’t own a bakery. I’m not bumping into any exes, thank all that’s holy. I certainly am not struggling to find time for dating, since dating isn’t even on my radar.”
