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“Wow, you look incredible,” he gushed, reaching forward to lightly squeeze my arm, proof of the touch confirming it wasn’t just his imagination playing tricks on him. “What have you been doing with yourself? Do you live around here? How long has it been? Like, years, hey?” In quick succession, he fired questions at me.
Simone rested her free hand gently over their linked one. “Charlie, you’re probably overwhelming Alina.” She chuckled. “Take a breath.”
“Yeah, right. Sorry.” He pinched at the back of his neck, his smile falling to an embarrassed smirk. “Maybe we could catch up over dinner?”
“Sounds good.”
“How about now?”
“I, uh…”
I was on my way back to the office and intended to tackle the mountain of work waiting for me after spending a week overseas with a marketing campaign. I’d only been at my desk for a total of four days over the past three weeks, and the amount of work seeking my attention was growing by the day.
“Sure.” The work could wait another hour, I reasoned. Besides, this was Charlie.
We walked to a little boutique restaurant a few blocks away, dodging through the evening traffic while Charlie held Simone’s hand, chatting the whole way.
“How long are you guys in the city for?” I asked as I sidestepped around a totally oblivious teenage kid with his head buried in his phone.
“Just a few days. We’re here checking out the university and what’s available in the way of student accommodations. That kind of thing,” Simone offered.
“Yeah, my girl is crazy smart.” Charlie beamed at his wife as we all fell back into step together.
Dinner had gone well without any of the awkwardness I’d been expecting, and I’d been relieved. Seeing Charlie so happy and in love with Simone had been the lift my spirit needed.
Before we’d parted ways, I’d given Simone my phone number, so if she needed a friendly face or someone to show her around, I was available to her. I was grateful she’d used it when she’d been in the city, using the time to form a really great friendship. I missed seeing her when she’d graduated, but we’d kept in contact even after she’d gone back to Beddington.
* * *
Charlie walked ahead, and Callum remained close as I walked with them to the door. I wanted to grab his hand and pull him back inside before locking the door, holding him captive a little longer, but I knew his leaving was for the best. I needed time to process the last few hours and, more than likely, overanalyze the situation and my newly re-emerging feelings.
“Jump in, darlin’. I’ll take you to get your car.” Callum stopped on the step below the landing, turning to offer the ride.
I had forgotten about my abandoned vehicle sitting on the long driveway out in the elements.
“Thanks, but I think I will go for a walk later. I’ll get it then.”
“You sure?” Callum’s hand reached for me and softly cupped my cheek with his eyes searching mine as if seeking an answer in our silence.
“I’m sure. It’s fine.”
“I’ll be back later, okay?”
“Yep,” I answered with a smile.
I waited on the porch until both vehicles were out of sight before throwing my hands on my hips and taking a deep centering breath for the count of three.
ChapterThirty-One
Alina
The air in the attic was stifling, the dust thick over every surface, and the stacked boxes were poorly labeled. Had my mother been here to ask, she would know what each of them contained, with a detailed list rolling off her tongue.
Sweat was beading on my forehead from the afternoon sun, plastering any loose hair to my skin, leaving it to frame my face. I had made progress, so I’d be damned if the last few boxes would defeat me. After the thunderstorm that had held us captive had passed, the air grew uncomfortably humid but sweetly scented.
With the opening and closing of each box, it was obvious my mother kept everything as a keepsake. All of my school reports and just about every recipe she’d clipped from the women’s monthly magazines were accounted for. Some of the pages had yellowed with age, while some had been eaten by silverfish.
Moving through each box, I categorized what I planned on keeping and what was junk. With each hour, the junk pile had grown at least four times faster than the keep pile.
