“You’ve been my only thought for quite some time, Ms. Harris.” He seals his declaration with a kiss.
“I need to go for a run. Do you have a good route around here?” I pick up my backpack, which only holds my running gear.
“Sure, I’ll go with you.”
“All right, Turner,” I tease, “but you’ll probably have to slow down a bit.”
“Ha. With you? You’re probably right ...”
I playfully punch his shoulder before we dress and head out for a run.
*
“That was a great route, Adrian!” I feel exhilarated and refreshed for the first time in days.
“Yeah,” he pants, “told you I’d have to keep up with you.” He playfully smacks my butt as the elevator doors close.
“Good to see some things never change,” I quip before kissing his cheek.
When I’m with Adrian, in the moment, thoughts of Bo are light years away. It’s when I’m alone or too deep inside my head, that thoughts of what could have been seep in. Just stay in the moment, and no one will get hurt.
When we reach Adrian’s door, I hear someone banging around in the kitchen and stop short.
“Is that housekeeping?” I ask.
“Nah, that’s probably just Pace.” Adrian unlocks his door with annoyance.
“Your brother’s here? Why didn’t you say anything?”
Adrian’s older brother Pace was one of my favorite people at Princeton. He graduated the year Adrian and I got together, and I only saw him a few times after that. Adrian swings his door open, and I let out a childish squeal.
“Pace!”
Startled, he drops the spatula in his hand and whips around.
“November? What the hell?” He jogs toward me and pulls me into a hug, spinning me around twice for good measure before setting me down.
While it’s clear Pace and Adrian are brothers, Pace is nearly six-foot-six, towering six inches over his younger brother. Built like a brick wall, and athletic to boot, he could have played nearly any sport at any college of his choosing. His family’s tradition of Princeton, however, overruled any athletic aspirations he may have had.
“All right, you two,” Adrian teases.
“Where the fuck have you been hiding her, Adrian?” Pace squeezes my shoulders, forcing all the air from my lungs.
“It’s good to see you, too, Pace.” I wriggle out of his hold and pour a glass of water. “I think the real question is what are you doing here?”
“I live here, smartass. Well, not here in this apartment,” he continues when he sees my confused look, “but in this building. I’m one floor up.”
“Of course you are.” I roll my eyes at the brotherly competition that hasn’t died down. “Guess medical school served you well?”
Adrian covers his mouth in laughter, and Pace punches him in the shoulder.
“What?” I ask.
“Pace dropped out of medical school two years in,” Adrian says.
My eyes bulge out of my head. “You’re kidding! Did your parents have joint coronaries?”
The brothers laugh and shake their heads. Pace tells me that his parents were understanding of his decision, being that he did try medical school for two years and promised to pay them back for their investment.
“Being a doctor just didn’t turn out to be what I wanted to do long-term.” Pace shrugs.
“What did you want to do long-term?” I ask.
“Make a shitload of money. I work for the company that owns this place.” Pace grins. If there’s one thing you can say about the foul-mouthed Turner brother, it’s that he’s one hundred percent honest. “Seriously though, November. Where’d you resurface from? It’s been so long.”
It’s clear from the look on both of their faces that I haven’t exactly been a topic of recent conversation.
“So, you live one floor apart and I’ve never come up?” I eye Adrian, who looks out to the harbor.
“Oh, you’ve come up all right.” Pace crosses his arms in front of his chest, tucking his fingers under his armpits.
“Shut it, Pace,” Adrian commands.
Silence befalls the previously light atmosphere. That’s my cue.
“Well, I’m going to take a shower.” I clear my throat and disappear into the bathroom.
When I’m dried and dressed, I find Pace alone in the living room, eating the omelet he was preparing when we walked in.
“Where’s Adrian?” I ask as I slide onto the stool next to Pace. I’ve always been comfortable around him. The big brother role exudes from his core; it’s nice to see that hasn’t changed in the last few years.
Pace sips his orange juice and watches me from the corner of his eye. “He went around the corner to grab you guys some bagels.”
“What gives, Pace? Tell me...before he comes back.” I know he’s holding something back, and it’s irritating.
“Well, obviously when you two broke up in college,” Pace launches in with little thought, “he was a mess for a while. After graduation, law school took up most of his time.”