Crossing Paths (7 page)

After wasting precious morning minutes by wallowing in bed, I convince myself to stand up, get ready, and head to work.

As the day goes by, it continues to be fairly uneventful. Normalcy seems to be back in full swing. Around two o’clock, my phone vibrates from the inside of my purse, which is tucked neatly underneath my desk. Since my boss is out for the afternoon, I dig it out to see who’s calling.

“Hi, Mom.”

“Caroline, I didn’t expect you to answer.”

“Well, it’s your lucky day. What’s up?”

“Nothing, sweetie. I’m just sitting in the waiting room at the doctor’s office.”

Did she just call me sweetie? That’s strange.
“Is everything okay, Mom? Why are you at the doctor’s office today?”

“Oh, um…just a normal check-up. They told me I might be waiting a little while, so I thought I would give you a call. Are you enjoying Texas and your new job?”

“Definitely. It’s all great. On Sunday evening, I went to dinner at June’s parents’ house, and it was really nice. Her family is great. Don’t say anything if you happen to talk with her, but her brother is so gorgeous that I can barely keep my eyes off of him. I can’t believe I never noticed a picture of him before.”

“Uh-huh. Well, I’m glad you are enjoying things there.”

As her voice cuts out a little, I hear my mom sniff a couple of times.

“Mom, are you crying?”

“Heavens, no.” She laughs gently. “I just have a little cold. I’m sure the doctor will give me something to knock it down. Oh, Caroline, they’re calling my name. I need to go. I love you, sweetie.”

“Love you, too. Bye.”

As the afternoon wears on, I’m distracted. That one simple phone call was the strangest conversation I have ever had with my mom. She didn’t laugh loudly, causing me to pull the phone away from my ear. She didn’t haze me, attempting to make me feel embarrassed about my attraction to my best friend’s brother. And she called me sweetie—twice!

Although my family is nowhere near as close as June’s seems to be, I have always been able to read my parents pretty well. When my favorite aunt, Karen, passed away, I took one look at my mom’s face and knew something was wrong. When my dad got me crazy awesome seats to the Justin Timberlake concert in high school, I started screaming in excitement before he even pulled the tickets out of his back pocket. Looking back, I guess it was always easy to read their facial expressions. Now, I know something is going on, but the specifics are fuzzy.

My mind begins to review the worse-case scenarios. Maybe my stepdad, John, is getting laid off. I know the economy has been down, and earlier this year, they were a little worried. Surely, we wouldn’t have gone on that huge vacation if they were still concerned. I’ll have to remember to call John later to do a little more snooping.

Leaving work, I head to pick up June from the airport. I can’t wait to see her smiling face. I pull up to the curb and watch as June practically skips to the car.
Hmm, she seems happier than usual. June is normally happy, but skipping? What happened to her in New York?
It looks like I have more snooping to do than I realized. I jump out of the car and throw my arms around my best friend.

“I’m so glad you’re home.”

“Thanks, friend. It’s good to be back.”

“What’s with the million-dollar smile?”

“What are you talking about?” June blushes a shade of red that can only be mimicked by the most brightly colored roses.

“Okay, seriously, something is going on. Did you get the contract already?”

“No,” she answers simply as she cheerfully hops into the car.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone cheerfully get into a car. It’s a very strange sight, especially when she should realize we’re about to hit a wall of traffic worse than standing in line for a new iPhone release.

“Let’s get out of here before you get a ticket for loitering or something,” June says.

“Hey, if that hottie cop over there wants to give me a ticket, I will gladly take his card with the number to his office.”
Wait, what am I saying?
If I keep acting like this, June will never be okay with me dating Liam. Then again, I probably won’t be seeing him again anyway. “He looks our age. Do you want me to get his number for you?”

“No! Just drive, Caroline.” She giggles.

Did June just giggle?
This day is getting weirder by the second.

As we pull on to the highway, a great idea hits me. “What do you say we cook dinner at home and drink some wine tonight? We can talk about your trip, and maybe the alcohol will get you a little more loose-lipped about whatever happened in New York.”

“Ha! I doubt that, but some good pasta sounds wonderful. Stop at the Epicurean Market, and we’ll grab what we need. I think we need some See’s Candies to go with our meal, too.”

“You speak to my heart. Italian food, wine, and chocolate. If you were a man, I would marry you right now.”

June laughs loudly, throwing her head back. She seems so cheerful. Even if I don’t find out what happened in New York, I know something has altered her mood in the best way possible.

When we get home, June cooks dinner while I pour glasses of wine. After I open our See’s Candies, she asks me to grab her phone, so I can play a new song by some British girl. She gushes about the song, telling me how the lyrics are so great. If June wasn’t in such a good mood, I would tell her that a song about dancing at discos and eating cheese on toast is not exactly enlightening. Just as I’m about to suggest a song change, my phone chimes to tell me I have a new text. I walk to the other side of the couch and turn away as if the back of June’s head could read the screen on my phone.

Are you busy Friday evening? I have this event to attend, and I was hoping you might be available to join me. —Liam

Did I read that right? Crap!
This can’t be happening. I am not supposed to get involved with June’s brother.
Wait, I have the perfect excuse to avoid him on Friday night.

Would love to, but I actually have a charity event to attend for work. —Caroline

It doesn’t happen to be for the Boys & Girls Club, does it? —Liam

Yes, that’s the one. —Caroline

There is no way he is attending the same event!

Sounds like we’re headed in the same direction. Could I convince you to let me pick you up?

—Liam

Well, I had plans to go with some girls from work, but I’m sure they wouldn’t mind just seeing me there. —Caroline

Great, it’s a date. I’ll pick you up at 6:30 on Friday night. —Liam

Okay, thanks. See you then. —Caroline

A date!
He definitely said it’s a date. With the strangeness of today, I reread the text a few more times to make sure it’s not a mirage to my weary eyes.
What am I thinking? You know what? I don’t care.
It’s not like I’m pursuing him. He asked me. My smile has already spread from ear to ear as I walk back into the kitchen. I’m trying in vain to hide my excitement, but June sees through me with one glance.

“Who was that?” she asks with a knowing grin.

“A guy I met at work. He wants to go to the charity event together on Friday.”

June’s mouth drops open. “I was only gone for one day. You must have really wowed him. Is it the one you told me about last week? The hot guy from the office down the hall?”

I hesitate, thinking about my answer. I don’t want to lie. “No, it’s a new guy I just met. I don’t know much about him, so there isn’t much to tell.”
A certain level of vagueness isn’t considered lying, right?

Thankfully, June leaves it at that. “Dinner is served,” she announces as she places our dinner on the bar place mats.

The food and wine are wonderful. The See’s Candies are otherworldly. And, of course, the company is the best part. I am so glad to have June home even though I have to hide the fact that I’m lusting over her brother.

Thinking forward to the rest of the week, I know Wednesday and Thursday will pass in a blur. Things are going to be crazy at work as we get ready for client meetings and prepare for the charity event. Since my boss is head of the committee in charge of the event, I’ll be running around, arranging flowers, setting tablecloths, and making sure everything looks beautiful. As the date gets closer, I know there will be last-minute additions to make sure my life does not survive without chaos. Up to this point, the details appear to be falling into place. If I can just keep myself from falling into a relationship with June’s brother, I’ll be doing alright.

Wednesday

Driving to work, I’m blaring music through the speakers with my windows down. I’ll do anything to keep my mind off that crazy business trip. I’m resolved to the fact that I will turn down any further opportunities to embarrass myself or the company in out-of-state adventures. This was simply an indication that I should keep my feet planted firmly in Texas.

Honestly, I don’t know why I’m letting it all get to me. I was awake for what felt like hours last night. If I told anyone in my family that small fact, they would take me straight to a doctor. A normal sleep routine for me consists of changing clothes, laying my head on the pillow, and falling fast asleep in two seconds.

While answering text messages from her new boy toy last night, Caroline seemed oblivious to my distracted mind. It was impossible for me to stop thinking about Cohen. I should have asked for Caroline’s advice, but truth be told, I don’t want advice. I want the whole experience with him to disappear. It was humiliating. It was frustrating. Although he was amazing, I don’t want to dwell on that.