His cheeks blush as his smile widens. “Thank you, ma’am.” He looks back at Chris and hesitates before glancing back at the court.
Chris, seeming to understand Seth’s dilemma, saves him and says, “It’s alright. I know you’d rather be with your friends than us old folks. Go on.”
Seth chuckles. “Thanks, Uncle Chris.” He starts to turn away before looking back at the man at my side. Emotion clouds his eyes as he says, “Thanks for coming tonight. It’s really good to see you.”
Chris clears his throat before saying in a husky voice, “I’m glad I did, too. I’ll be around more. I promise.”
Seth nods and then heads back to rejoin the group. Chris shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans and watches for a few moments. His expression seems strained, so I stay silent, wanting to give him time to work through whatever is causing it.
Finally, he looks down at me. “Come on, let’s go home.”
My heart feels like it’s going to explode in my chest as he intertwines our fingers, and we make our way out of the gymnasium. The thought of somewhere beingourhome is overwhelming to my system in the best possible way.
19
Lily
“Here’s your breakfast.”
Chris hands me a plate where I’m curled up on his couch, Hank lunging behind me along the back. It’s Sunday morning, and I think I’m still dazed from the game last night. Everything about it felt like a date. A shared moment where Chris revealed to me a piece of his life. It all felt very special and sacred.
And now, here I am, in his condo, with a breakfast of eggs, bacon, potatoes, fruit, and toast that Chris made himself after waking up who knows how much earlier than me.
“Thank you. This looks amazing.” I smile at him, his face serious and unreadable as he gazes down at me.
He picks up my coffee cup. “I’ll get you some more coffee. Beright back.”
I admire the view of him in dark sweats and a tight T-shirt as he crosses the short distance to the kitchen. Before he turns around and catches me, I let my eyes fall to the plate in my lap and spear a piece of melon with my fork.
A few minutes later, Chris returns with my coffee cup and a plate of food for himself. He sets it on the coffee table and sits at the far side of the couch. I wish he was closer.
Last night made me even more curious about Chris, so taking a breath in between bites, I ask, “Do your parents live close by?”
He looks back at me as he finishes chewing the bite of food he just took. “They both passed away many years ago.”
Sadness tightens my chest. “I’m sorry to hear that. My mom passed away when I was twenty. I never knew my dad.”
His eyes leave mine and return to his plate.
Now that the door has been opened, I’m running through until he shuts me down. “Did they know you became a lawyer?”
From his profile, I see his lips twitch before he says, “Yeah, my dad was alive when I started getting a lot of attention around town from some high-profile cases.” Chris takes a sip of coffee, then sits back, his face marred in thoughtful mournfulness. “He used to cut out newspaper articles about me and had them on the fridge, like it was my elementary school artwork.”
I can’t stop the smile that lifts my lips. I love that someone loved him so much.
Chris looks over me. “It wasn’t even at the peak of my career, but he was so proud of me. Used to tell me all the time how proud my mom would have been if she were still alive, even though she hated attorneys.” He finishes his story with a chuckle.
“They sound like wonderful parents.”
He stares out the windows for a minute before asking, “Were you and your mom close before she passed away?”
Taking a few moments to think back on our relationship, I tell him, “We tried. My mom worked a lot to support us, so I was on my own. We didn’t really have any of her family around, so we did the best we could. I know she loved me, in her own way.”
The only sounds for a few moments are the whirling of the overhead fan and Hank’s soft purring.
“It’s hard being without them,” he muses, almost to himself. “My parents and I were so close that sometimes I’d wish for some solitude. But the last few years, especially, have changed the way I look at loneliness.”
There’s a depth of pain behind his words that tightens my chest as my cheeks tingle with emotions I can’t keep at bay. I want to ask him about Seth and about the friend he considered family that isn’t around, but something stops me. Something in his tone and eyes tells me he isn’t ready to talk about it.
