“You’re lying. What time is Aaron coming over? Can he stop and get something on the way?” He grabbed his phone and started texting. Seconds later, he looked at her. “He suggests that dim sum place. You okay with that?”
She took his phone and quickly typed in her suggestions including a couple of vegetable dishes. “If you won’t eat our exciting new discovery, you have to have a few green beans and some broccoli. Otherwise you’ll get scurvy.” She glanced at him. “Or rickets. Either way, you won’t like the outcome.”
“I’ll always be handsome,” he teased.
“Not to mention humble.” She returned her phone to him. “He’ll be here in an hour. Let’s do yoga while we wait.”
Javiar groaned. “I hate yoga.”
“It’s good for you.”
“I work out in the gym every morning.”
Yes and he had the six-pack to show for it. But there was more to fitness than running on a treadmill and lifting weights.
“You need flexibility. I spent the day helping Aaron plant, and I’m stiff from bending over. Go get changed and meet me back here.”
He retreated to his room, and she went into hers. Five minutes later, they were back in the living room, both dressed in shorts and T-shirts. She turned on the TV and scrolled to her yoga app. Seconds later, their end-of-day stretching class began.
Shannon followed the instructor’s directions to focus on her breathing. Her shoulders and knees ached from the hard work she’d done. There had been dozens of flats of plants to put in the ground, but by the time she’d finished, the yard hadlooked great. She knew the homeowners would be impressed with what they’d done.
She breathed into child’s pose, allowing her shoulders to open. The tension eased a little, but she could feel where she’d pulled a few muscles. Maybe it was time to think about going to the gym with Javiar. Not that she was super excited about starting her day sweating.
They both stood and shifted into a high lunge and warrior one. Shannon concentrated on the stretch in the back of her leg and exhaling as she reached her arms to the ceiling. She was just shifting to triangle pose when Javiar asked, “When are you going to see Victoria again?”
She lost her balance and had to take a step to keep from falling.
“I don’t know. We didn’t set up anything specific.” She straightened and eyed him. “Are you interested in her?”
“She intrigues me.”
Shannon remembered what the other woman had said about relationships. “She’s not someone interested in getting involved.” The more specific wording had been that she wasin it for the orgasm. “You’re a serial dater. You want a girlfriend. She won’t be that.”
“I don’t buy it,” he told her. “Everybody wants a connection. She’s scared.” He sounded confident. “I just have to win her over.”
She faced him. “Javiar, no. She’s told you who she is and what she wants. You need to listen. This isn’t a game for her. When we talked the other day, she made it really clear she doesn’t want anything like a traditional relationship. You can’t change her.”
He only smiled. “Hey, it’s me. I’ve got this.”
“You think you not respecting her life choices makes you irresistible?”
“I do respect her life choices. I happen to know she thinks I’m hot.”
Her gut told her he was wrong, but she knew there was nopoint in pushing. Javiar could be stubborn. She reminded herself he was an adult, and if he ended up hurt, then that was on him. Only, thinking that didn’t make her feel better at all.
Ava sat in the living room, her hands trembling in her lap. Her stomach was a mess, and she felt cold all over. The fear was so powerful, she was having trouble thinking. Across from her, Milton stood at the French doors, staring out at the backyard. She wanted to beg him to say something,anything, only she knew she didn’t want to hear whatever it was.
She’d called him after Victoria had left and explained what had happened. Instead of reassuring her, he’d gone quiet before saying, “I didn’t know you’d kept that memory box. You’d said you were going to get rid of it.”
She’d tried to explain that she hadn’t been able to let go—that she’d needed her connection to the past to process her grief, but he’d cut her off, telling her he would stop by to see Victoria and then be home.
Now as she watched him, she felt his anger. The situation was so unfamiliar, she didn’t know how to cope. Milton was never mad at her, and they rarely fought. When they did disagree, they were always calm and rational. They discussed the problem, they each accepted responsibility, and they came up with concrete solutions. They followed through on those solutions and met to reassess the situation.
After what felt like three lifetimes, he walked over to sit across from her.
“She’s shattered.”
Ava flinched at both the words and the tone of his voice. He sounded so stern, so disapproving.
