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“I didn’t know there was a Pilates studio across the street,” Nick said.
“It’s new,” Aera informed him. “My friend is friends with the owner.”
“I didn’t know you did Pilates,” Alex said to them both. Rick didn’t know either. Since he and Charlie got together, she was at the spa or with him. As far as he knew, her only workout routine was all the intensive sex they had, which legitimately counted as exercise.
“I did it religiously when I had the time. Aera still does it, and I’m hoping to find more time for it,” Charlieanswered.
“Come on, let’s head over there. We have a free trial starting in a few minutes,” Aera urged. “We’ll come back to chat.”
“Alright.”
Before they left, Rick pulled Charlie to the side and ignored the way the others ogled them with interest.
“How long is the trial?” he asked her.
“About an hour. Why?”
He grinned. “That’s about the same time I’ll be done here. Did you come by yourself? I can take you home.”
Those leggings were really speaking to him, and he couldn’t fight the need to place his hand on her hips. The second his fingers landed, she seemed to have gotten his message.
“Aera drove,” she whispered. “I can go back with you.”
“Perfect.”
Twenty-Six
On a quiet Sundayafternoon in Rick’s office, while he edited photos, Charlie was on the couch, researching with her laptop. Rick took a peek at her, typing away, resting on her stomach, her legs swinging in the air.
The childish radiance was belied by her bare legs and upper body barely covered in his dress shirt. This week’s living arrangement was at his place, and Charlie loved taking his clothes to wear around the house. He liked them better on her, anyway.
After saving his progress, he swiveled his chair toward Charlie. She was still concentrating on her work to notice him. Rick smiled, admiring her attentive expression.
“Are you hungry? Let’s take a break and eat something.”
She looked up with a smile. “What do you have in mind?”
“Fruits? I have mangos and strawberries I can slice up.”
“That sounds great.”
Charlie brought her things into the living room while he made their snacks. He looked out the window and saw the billowing gray clouds. A roar of thunder boomed before a flash of lightning followed. When he finished cutting up the fruits, the pattering of raindrops became the central sounds in the condo.
Rick stepped into the living room and placed the plate on the coffee table. Charlie sat on the couch looking out the balcony door with a wondrous expression on.
“I love rain,” she said as he sat behind and encased her in a hug. “I hate getting wet, but as kids, my mother used to slap two or more raincoats on Ryan and me and have us play in the puddles. It’s one of my only memories of having actual kid fun.”
She wrapped his arm around herself and sighed. “It was a rare occasion she was being a normal, loving mother.”
“Parents are complicated,” was all he offered without unloading too much negativity to prevent from ruining the moment.
She turned her head around as a pair of concerned eyes bore into him. Her lashes lowered and blinked before widening again. “Sarah told me about it,” she said carefully. “Your mother. About how she left and how you… tried to get her to stay…”
His heart bumped faster, surprise flowing through. He’d never told Sarah the story, but there was no question who she’d learned it from. Rick tried erasing the memories, but found that the more he tried, the more it came back, so he buried it deep. Before, it would only bring him nothing but shame and anger. Now, he couldn’t feel much. It was the best he could ask for.
Charlie leaned back until her lips pressed on his neck. “I hope I didn’t overstep.” She kissed his skin. “But I want you to know that you’re better off, Rick. Anyone who doesn’t want you is stupid beyond belief.”
He had nothing to say to that, knowing that all words pertaining to his past had reached a plateau. Nothing more could make it better or worse. The sensitivity of the topic had gotten better as time passed. He still couldn’t go without reacting to it, but at least he wasn’t overwrought with gut-boiling anger.
