“No,” she lies.
“Look, I think we can both agree that this was an unexpected encounter today. It seems we can be somewhat cordial, and that’s what it is.” After all, we grew apart. It wasn’t as though some malicious event happened.
“Always the mature one,” she retorts.
Lifting my shoulders, I can’t deny it. “Well, doesn’t always work in my favor.” It probably bogged her down, right?
That silence floats back between us.
“I should probably skip the whole dessert table and cake with sparkler. I think I even saw an entire cake for the dog.”
“You’re crazy about dessert,” I point out.
She blows out a breath in an attempt to calm her body. “I was crazy about many things. All the more reason I should probably go.” I’ve never seen her eyes haunted by the past, until now that is.
“Okay,” I reply softly. I’m not going to argue. She nods and begins to step away, but I gently touch her elbow to stop her. “Wait…”
I’ve caved to weakness.
She peers up with wonder. “Yeah?”
“Do you maybe want to catch up for a minute or two?”
Immediately, a faint warm smile paints on her face. “I would like that.”
“Don’t move.” I beeline it to the bar and reach over to grab a bottle of whiskey when the bartender isn’t looking, not that he would care. Returning to Rosie, I hold up the bottle. “Let’s go for a walk.”
She nods in agreement, and a minute later, the sounds of soft music and conversations are babbling in the distance. I offer her the bottle, and she accepts.
“Heard you were running for mayor. The election is in January, right? Your mom nearly talked my ear off about it. To be honest, I wasn’t that surprised.”
Rolling a shoulder back as we slowly stroll side by side, I bite my bottom lip. “I keep hearing that from people.”
“Because you are a good person,” she says, insistent.
I could dispute that it wasn’t enough for her, but now doesn’t feel like the right time.
“How did seeing the world go?” I ask as she hands me the bottle.
“Okay. I went many places. Got my yoga teacher certification. Even went up to Alaska.” Then why do you sound sort of deflated? Disappointed even, I wonder.
“And now you’re back to Illinois.”
“Yeah,” she replies softly. “I’m staying with my parents until I figure things out. I’m already teaching yoga and organizing a few wellness retreats at the winery, also the Dizzy Duck in Lake Spark has asked me to lead a few. I’ve even started to follow some courses online for combining learning development with movement and art. Hailey asked if I wanted to give children’s yoga classes at her preschool, and it will be fun.”
It seems she’s back in my orbit for the longer term, and I’m not sure how I feel about that.
Quiet floats around us as I’m feeling the alcohol begin to ease me. We pass the bottle between us, and it’s probably because we both have more questions but don’t dare to ask. This is when I remember that my mom already let it slip that Rosie is single.
“I guess we might be crossing paths again,” I highlight.
“Seems so.”
That odd sound of silence returns to us for a few beats until she breaks it. “Look, Carter, I-I… it’s just I don’t know how to navigate being in the short mile radius of one another again.”
I stop and pivot to my side to give her a bitter glare. “We should have thought about that before we signed divorce papers.”
Her mouth opens but only a cracked sound escapes. I wince at my sudden harsh mood before blowing out a long breath.
