Chapter 36
PAIGE
“Ian?” I ask, eyebrows shooting up.
The man doing yoga pops out of downward dog to look at me, and a huge smile breaks across his face. “Pages!” Ian runs across the sand until he’s standing in front of me, blocking the setting sun. He’s sportingverycolorful genie-like pants, likely from his travels abroad, and a black tank top.
Out of all the places Ian could be, he’s at Sand Ridge Beach. “I can’t believe you’re here.”
He puts his hands on his hips. “Yeah, on our hike, you told me about this place, so I thought I’d give it a try while I’m in town for the weekend. The waves were great earlier today. And you…” He waves his hands at me. “You finally made it back to California.”
“Yeah.” I smile up at him, still amazed he’s here. Ian looks less surprised. I guess when you spend your days traveling the world, you get used to running into friends in random corners of the planet.
“So you must have gotten the Z3 job. Congrats.”
“Yeah, thank you.”
He cocks his head, glancing at the sand next to me, a question in his eyes, and I pat the empty spot.
Ian plops down with a sigh. “So is it everything you hoped for?” He folds his arms loosely around his knees.
I take a deep breath and watch as a wave rolls onto shore, forming a foamy new line in the sand. “Yeah. I love my new job and the people I work with, and I’ve even managed to wake up a few mornings just to walk along the beach before work. So it’s been good.” The words come out right, but they sound half-hearted, which is sadly accurate considering half my heart is still in Colorado. But if Ian notices the dullness in my tone, he doesn’t show it.
“How about you?” I ask. “What brings you to San Francisco?”
He leans back on his hands. “I’m actually just here for a couple days. My girlfriend’s a flight attendant and is flying into San Francisco from Japan tonight. So we’re going to do some things in the city before she takes off again.”
A flight attendant. I smile—how perfect that Ian found someone who likes the traveling life as much as he does. “I’m happy for you,” I say, and I mean it. There’s no hint of jealousy, just excitement for my old friend. “So, how’d you two meet?”
“We met in the Narita airport in Japan, actually. I was on a layover coming from South Korea and went to an airport restaurant for dinner. She was eating at the table next to mine. When she got up to catch her flight back to the States, she accidentally grabbed my carry-on, which looked exactly likehers. We had a good laugh about it, and we’ve been together ever since.”
I grin. “Wow, that story belongs in a movie.”
Ian laughs and bumps my shoulder with his. “I could say the same about you.”
“What do you mean?” My eyebrows pull together as I look at him.
“What do you mean, what do I mean? You and Jordan. High school best friends finally making it work. It’s a classic.”
My heart drops. I have to clear the emotion from my throat before looking back at Ian. “Actually, things didn’t pan out quite like that.”
“Really?” Ian looks shocked.
“Yeah.”
“Then what is he doing here?” Ian points behind my shoulder, and when I follow the direction of his finger, all breath escapes my lungs. Everything seems to blur, and all I can see is Jordan several yards away.
Jordan Miller is here.
In California.
Looking at me.
The moment our eyes meet, Jordan stops in the sand. He’s wearing tan shorts and a blue button-down, and his wavy hair is slightly mussed from the sea breeze. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look more attractive.
His lips tilt upward in a small smile, but his eyes are wary, asking me a question. I know he’s scanning my reaction to see if he’s welcome or not.
I can hardly move, but my heart says otherwise as it starts up a kickboxing class between my ribs. What is Jordan doing here?
