“Who’s Chauncey?”
“Wren’s fiancé. They’re getting married in six months,” she says. “He owns that pizza place, Finnegan’s.”
“No shit? That’s one of my favorites. Their corned beef and cabbage pizza is-”
“Disgusting,” she interrupts. “Love Chauncey, but some of that stuff on his menu isn’t meant for human consumption. Cabbage roll pizza? Lamb stew on pizza? Who thinks of this stuff?”
“What do you eat there?”
“Cheese, usually. Sometimes pepperoni. He lets me order off the kids’ menu.”
Aidy takes another drink, glancing around the small café. It’s beginning to fill up the closer we get to dinnertime.
“So what are you doing this weekend?” I ask. “Since Wren and Enzo are going to be gone?”
She sits up straight, staring down and to the side. “I don’t know. Guess I hadn’t thought about it. Working maybe?”
“I’m going to my lake house,” I say, and before I can talk myself out of it, I invite her. “You should come.”
Her blue eyes widen, her lips fighting a smile. “What? Are you serious?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you sure?” Her head tilts.
Chuckling modestly, I nod. “Yeah. I was going to go alone, but if you don’t have plans, you should come.”
“What do you do there? Where is it?”
“It’s in Rixton Falls,” I tell her. “Upstate. And I just relax. I fish. I canoe. Watch the fireworks over the waterfalls.”
Aidy’s full lips press together, widening into a timid grin. There’s a crease above her cupid’s bow when she smiles, and I’m not sure how I’d never noticed it before, but it’s halfway between her top lip and her nose and it’s fucking adorable.
“You want to come?” I ask. “I can pick you up Friday. Bring you back Sunday.”
“Yeah,” she says. “I’d love to.”
Nineteen
Aidy
* * *
“How are you guys getting there again?” Wren stands in my doorway Friday afternoon, just before two.
“He’s renting a truck.” I pull the zipper tight around my oversized suitcase. It’s meant for a seven or eight day trip, and I know I’m only going to be gone for two days, but I like to be prepared . . . especially when I don’t know what to expect.
“Where is this Rixton Falls place again?”
“A couple hours north. Upstate.”
I sit on top of my luggage, smooshing down the contents so I can pull the zipper the rest of the way around. No part of me believes this is actually happening, and I don’t think it’ll feel real until we’re cruising down the interstate wondering what the ratio of fun to awkwardness will be this weekend.
I’ve never traveled anywhere with someone I hardly know. For all intents and purposes, we’re still halfway between friends and strangers. At least he’s a public figure, which means I’m ninety-nine point nine percent sure he’s not some secret serial killer planning to hack me up and feed me to the catfish.
“Are you sure you’re going to be able to cover my appointments this weekend? I have six,” I say. “Four of them are regulars. Two are brand new.”
Wren’s eyes glint and she leans against my doorway, arms folded. “I’ve got this. Just go to Ricksville Falls with your super sexy baseball player boyfriend and have a great time.”
“Rixton Falls,” I correct her. “And he’s not my boyfriend. As far as I know, we’re sleeping in separate bedrooms and I’m accompanying him as a friend.”
“Ha.” Wren slaps her leg. “Right. You’re accompanying him as a ‘friend’ because he’d much rather go fishing with some random girl he met a week ago than one of his old baseball buddies.”
She has a point, so I zip my lip.
Still, my expectations are zeroed out.
I’m simply going because he invited me and because it sounds like a good time.
Growing up, we used to have a lake house in the Ozarks. Every summer, about this time, I get nostalgic for that place.
“Remember the house on Prairie Rose Drive?” I ask Wren.
She stands straight, eyes wistful. “How could I forget?”
“Mom, someone’s knocking at the door.” Enzo squeezes from behind my sister.
Shit.
I didn’t know he was coming up here.
And he’s early.
Wren studies me, looking slightly amused at the fact that I’m panicking over probably nothing, and then she slips her arm around Enzo’s shoulder.
“Are you all packed for your dad’s, buddy?” she asks.
“Not yet. Sorry, Mom,” Enzo says. “I’ll do it now.”
He hates packing, but he loves to see his dad. Lorenzo may have his issues and he may have been a shitty partner to my sister, but Enzo lives and breathes for his weekends with his father.
They head down the hall, each splitting off in separate directions, and I take a minute for myself, breathing deep and replacing all my worries with pure excitement.
This is going to be a good weekend.
I have a feeling.
Wheeling my suitcase down the hall, my heart races, reverberating in my ears, and I feel a hot flush sprint through my body when I round the corner and see Ace standing at my door, his hands buried in the pockets of his low-slung jeans and his tanned, muscled arms playing off his white V-neck t-shirt.
“Hi,” I say, wondering why the hell I’m acting shy all of a sudden.
“Hey.” There’s something lighter in his eyes today. I noticed it Wednesday, too, at the café. “You ready?”
His gaze falls to my suitcase and he reaches for it, stopping halfway through.
“What are you bringing? You know it’s only two days, right?” He takes the handle and pulls it toward him, curling it like a dumbbell. “Jesus. This has got to weigh at least . . . seventy, eighty pounds?”
“Stop.” I wave him off.
“I told her she over-packed.” Wren shoots me a look, making her way toward Ace with her right hand extended, and I realize I haven’t properly introduced them yet. God, she acts like our mother sometimes. And right now, she looks like her too. “Hi, I’m Wren. Aidy’s sister.”
Ace shakes her hand. “Good to meet you, Wren.”
I check the time on my phone. “Should we get going? I’m sure there’s some kind rush hour we’re trying to avoid. I don’t know. It’s been a long time since I’ve actually driven anywhere.”
Enzo appears from behind Wren, stepping out of the shadows of the hallway. His round eyes are wide and locked on Ace, and he uses his mother as a sort of shield. Gone is his excitement and enthusiasm. Wren was wrong. He hasn’t forgotten, and he probably never will.
“Hey,” Ace says, crouching down and making eye contact with Enzo. He reaches around and pulls something out of his back pocket. “Was hoping I’d run into you.”
Enzo looks at Wren before glancing back at Ace. My sister nods, and he takes a step closer.