“No, no. Not keeping it a secret, and thank you. I think I’m just a little nervous about applying. It’s not my first time, so I don’t want to get my ho—”
“Did he tell you about Nadine?” Zelda interrupted, already bored with the topic.
“Yeah,” Cierra replied, feeling more at liberty to speak freely now that she understood Zelda had been clued in. She wanted to respect Erik’s privacy, knowing he’d do the same for her. “He still seems a little down.”
Zelda’s mouth down-turned in a disappointed frown. “Mm, well, he was the one to call it off, so he’ll probably get over it fairly quickly. They were cute together, I’ll give her that.”
“I thought the same thing, and I really got to liking her in Mexico City,” Cierra replied. Although she was a bit shocked he had been the one to call things off.
“Yes, well, these things don’t always work out. And I have to admit, there was something . . . I’m not sure how to put it. Something about her didn’t sit right with me.”
Amy chimed in again. “That’s the girl he met on the app, right? Who wouldn’t stop gushing and asking about how much your bags cost?”
“That’s the one,” Zelda replied. The two women looked at each other with knowing nods.
Cierra, feeling increasingly uncomfortable with the subtext, tried changing the subject. “Anyway, thanks again for offering this weekend. And letting me bring Mia. I’ve never been to the Catskills before. It’s so serene here, I get the obsession. I don’t think you’ll be able to get me to leave.”
Zelda chuckled. “Please, you’re doing us the favor.” Then, sighing, she rubbed her eyes before continuing. “I wish Erik could find someone already. After all that soul-searching and whatnot.” Momentarily, Zelda pursed her lips while looking at Cierra, who was back to washing dishes, but bounced back to looking at her laptop screen after a notification sounded.
“What about Mia? Is she single?” Amy piped up.
Cierra turned back around to face the women. “Yeah, but she’s not really—”
“Oh, now that’s what I like to hear,” Amy said. “Maybe the hike will give them some time together. Besides, I have a knack for knowing when people are compatible. I introduced you to Elliot, didn’t I, Zelda?”
Zelda cocked her head reluctantly. “Eh, you have a point. It’s just, someone like Erik . . . he needs . . .” Zelda’s gaze momentarily veered into a distant thought before she carried on. “Maybe I’m just protective of him. I want him to have what Elliot and I have, you know? I feel like some women he’s dated have been after more than his . . . personality.”
Amy sighed. “What do you expect, though? Especially given he’s related to you.”
Before anyone could reply, an alert-sounding ring came from Zelda’s phone; her face contorted into an annoyed grimace.
“Gotta take this,” she said, walking toward the porch. Before Zelda walked out of earshot, Cierra heard her say, “. . . if you tell me the shipment from Italy is delayed one more time . . .”
Cierra turned back around to finish up with the dishes, grateful the conversation had ended and that she at least had more time to enjoy the get-away weekend than her own boss.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
SATURDAY AFTERNOON PASSED quickly, like the moment of a remembered dream in the morning. The weather was warm but not oppressive, sunny with just enough cloud cover, and the area surrounding the large white manor was brimming with flowering honeysuckle and wildlife, creating a bucolic atmosphere. Cierra spent most of the afternoon reading by the pool, watching Mia, Randy, and Erik splash around in the water. Their annoyingly toned bodies glimmered with sunlight reflecting off water droplets peppering their skin. Erik had begged her to join at one point, splashing her from the pool as she lounged on a recliner, but she was fine just where she was. And by early evening, the anxieties Cierra had been experiencing about Julian seemed further and further away.
The more she thought about her feelings toward him, the less interested she was in ignoring her gut. She liked him, and respected his honesty, but didn’t want to be on someone’s roster. Again, she felt like she was onhistime. The mixed signals and desperate yearn that tugged on her heart were feeling all too familiar. But she wasn’t a naïve college student anymore, she was a grown woman, capable of removing herself, even if she didn’t want to — but knew she needed to. In the safety of the woods, she settled on using the opportunity to end things first. Get it over with. Even with one day of distance and distraction, she noticed her infatuation subsiding.
In contrast to how he began the morning, Erik was smiling and laughing — dropping whatever drab attitude he had, he allowed his light-hearted, boyish version of himself to shine through. Mia sipped on kombucha and iced tea, calmly immersing herself in the languid day. Zelda and Elliot buzzed around each other, after he dramatically threatened to throw her phone in the pool if she answeredone more goddamn call.
Ahead of dinner, Cierra called Julian, but it only rang twice before the ring tone ended.
Can’t talk now, maybe later?was all he sent back.
Seeing red, and with the validation she needed, Cierra shot back,don’t bother,and then, I don’t think this is what I need right now.Rather than waiting around for a response, she tossed her phone aside and enlisted Mia to help her gather wildflowers from around the property to decorate the table.
As they walked together, they had little to say, but enjoyed the quiet companionship as they pulled the weedy bunches into a basket Cierra had found lying around the living room.
“Thanks again for inviting me,” Mia said.
“Thanks for coming,” Cierra said with a smile. Part of her wanted to tell Mia about the Julian situation, but she wasn’t quite ready yet.
“I really like the Lawsons.”
“Yeah, working with them has been great.”
