“So they’re not open today?” I asked.
“Nope. Not until Memorial Day weekend.”
As we got closer, I could see the dark-red sign etched in brilliant gold that read: Avon Pavilion. The building stood out white against the bright-blue sky, and the crisp spring air carried the smell of the ocean and the cries of the seagulls. The actual pavilion was to the restaurant's right, overlooking the beach and the sea. Two people stood there, leaning against the railing and looking out at the water. When we made it up the ramp and underneath the structure, a man with fair skin, bright-red hair, and miles of freckles detached himself from his companion and approached us.
“Sean!” He stopped and held his arms out wide.
Sean jogged over and pulled the man into a tight hug. “Ryan! When did you get back?”
“Early this morning,” Ryan replied. “We took the red-eye from San Francisco. We’re here for Molly’s graduation from Rutgers.”
“Oh my God,” Sean said, “Is she really that old?”
Ryan smiled. “Yep. The last of the Gallaghers to graduate university.”
Sean laughed. “Your parents must be relieved after putting five kids through college.”
“Oh yeah,” Ryan replied with a grin. “I heard my dad say something about a month-long cruise.” He saw me standing behind Sean and raised his chin toward me. “You gonna introduce me to your gorgeous friend?”
I felt my cheeks heat, and Sean smiled broadly. He gestured for me to join him. “Ryan Gallagher, this is Jeremy Fitzgerald. Ryan and I went to high school together.”
I held out my hand. “Nice to meet you, Ryan.”
Ryan shook my hand, a slight furrow in his brow. “That name sounds familiar,” he said quietly. I stiffened, prepared for the onslaught of wide-eyed wonder, but then he shook his head and held out his other hand to the man standing at the railing. The other man was tall and slender with light-brown skin and a short afro. “This is Isaiah Taylor,” Ryan said. “My fiancé.”
Sean’s face lit up. “No way! Congratulations, man. That’s great.” He pulled Ryan into another hug. “I’m so happy for you.” He took a step back and held out his hand toward Isaiah. “It’s great to meet you, Isaiah. You got yourself an awesome guy there.”
Isaiah smiled and took Sean’s hand. “Don’t I know it.” Isaiah glanced at me, and his brows rose. “You’re Jeremy Fitzgerald.”
Ryan looked at his fiancé in confusion. “You two know each other?”
Before I could say anything, Isaiah replied to him, “No. Not like that anyway. Jeremy is one of the premier concert pianists in the world.” He turned his attention back to me. “I saw your performance of Prokofiev’s third at the Met. It was…incredible. Flawless.”
I cleared my throat. “Thank you,” I replied.
Ryan snapped his fingers. “That’s right. We saw that together, what, two years ago?”
“Yeah, that’s about right,” Isaiah replied. He looked at me. “I heard about your accident. I’m really sorry that happened to you. How’s the shoulder?”
“Much better,” I answered. “I just…had to take a bit of a break from performing for a while. I let myself get run-down on top of everything else.” The lie almost stuck in my throat, but I certainly wasn’t going to share my darkest secrets with this stranger. He’d mentioned one of my last major performances before the accident. I saw Sean glance over at me like he knew I wasn’t telling the truth, which was silly because he hardly knew me.
“How did you two meet?” Sean asked Ryan.
Ryan smiled at his fiancé. “I was singing in the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, and Isaiah played in the orchestra for some of our performances.”
“You’re a musician?” I commented.
Isaiah ducked his head a bit. “Yeah. I’m in the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra.”
“That’s great,” I said. “What do you play?”
“Violin.”
Ryan put his arm around Isaiah’s shoulders. “And he’s going be all modest andnottell you he was made principal second violin after only two years.”
I felt my brows rise. “That’s fantastic. That’s quite an honor after so short a time. Congratulations.”
“Thank you,” Isaiah replied quietly.
