Jess: Okay. See you then.
He wasn’t big on booze, but Jess loved wine, so he stopped at the liquor store on his way and picked up a bottle of champagne. There was a Lexus in the driveway, so he parked on the street.
For a second, just a flash, he worried that the high-end car was Evan West’s, before his brain caught up and pointed out it was surely the real estate agent. He grabbed the bottle of wine, took a deep breath, and got out.
The rain had let up, but it was still drizzling, and he dashed toward the house. Jess met him at the door. “Come on in. Roberta just arrived.”
Roberta was a professional machine who knew her stuff. She didn’t react to the bottle of champagne in Brent’s hand, or the nervous expression he was sure was on his face. She laid out the offers. The highest one also came with the longest closing period, which would mean going back to the sellers of the cottage that Jess wanted to buy in Wardham and negotiate an extension.
She immediately shook her head at that. “I know it’s a bit more money, but I’d like to get this settled as soon as possible.”
Brent tapped the offer with the shortest closing period and no conditions, and ignored the pain in his chest. “This one is best, if you can get the closing date moved up on the cottage.”
For a wild second, he thought about suggesting she stay with him in Mr. Subramanian’s basement if the closing dates didn’t match up. Then he called himself some colourful names and shut down that fantasy good and hard.
“I’ll call Lola,” she said.
He didn’t know who Lola was, but Roberta clearly did as she nodded.
It had been kind of Jess to include him in this, but he’d never felt like more of an outsider on her life. He’d done that to himself.
It would be easy to sink into depressed self-pity. He could feel it, a dark hole of nothing but navel-gazing and regret. It was harder to stay in the present and deal with the discomfort of watching his wife have a one-sided call he didn’t fully understand, although it became clear as she kept talking.
“Hey Lola, it’s Jess. Sorry for calling so late— Oh, is he? Ha, yeah, that’s a good way to spend the evening on your own. I’m definitely in for a marathon movie night with you once I’m in town. Listen, I’m calling because I’ve got an offer on my house, but the closing date is sooner than we’d put on the offer— Yes, exactly. Do you think you could call them? Is two weeks do able? Sure, I’ll send you an email with the exact date so you’ve got it—yep. Great. Thanks.”
She hung up and starting typing, her thumbs flying. Once she hit send, she looked at Evan, and the expression on her face—nervous excitement—wipe away all of his selfishness.
“This is really happening,” he said softly, with a smile. “Look at you go.”
She wiggled her shoulders. “I know!”
“Lola’s your real estate agent in Wardham?”
“Yep.”
“And a movie watcher?”
She laughed. “Yeah. Her husband is a cop, and he’s working tonight, so she’s on her own with a bowl of popcorn.”
She didn’t have to spell out that it was a life Jess knew all too well. In another timeline, that friendship could have been born out of their partners both being first responders. Except he’d ducked out on their life together, and their timelines now ran parallel but separate—unless he could figure out a way to get them back together.
It took Lola fifteen minutes to get back to them, and when she did, Jess squealed and jumped up and down.
“Congratulations,” Roberta said, shaking both of their hands. “You’ve sold your house.”
Then they were alone, maybe for the last time in this place they’d once bought together to hold their hopes and dreams.
And his lies.
He shoved that away. “How do you feel?”
“Good.” Jess gave him a warm smile, and her eyes were soft enough for him to imagine this was bittersweet for her as well. “Thanks for hanging out through all of that.”
“It was better than anything else I could have been doing tonight.”
“Quiet night in?”
“It’s been a year of quiet nights.” He shook that off. They’d talk enough about his lack of a social life. “Anyway, congratulations. Can I pour you a glass of champagne?”
