Melanie shakes her head as if coming back to reality. She clears her throat. “So, what are your plans today?”
“Well, I haven’t been here since I was sixteen,” I say, walking over to the beeping coffee pot.
“Mugs are up there,” Melanie interrupts, gesturing to the cabinet in front of me.
I reach up and grab two mugs, pouring us each some coffee. She gets cream from the fridge and pours some in hers, then silently offers it to me.
I shake my head, slurping a small sip of my black coffee. “I was thinking about exploring a little. I’ve got to write this album, and I need to find the inspiration.” I pull out a chair at the table and sit down.
Melanie nods, taking the seat across from me. She nurses her coffee, sipping quietly.
“Do you have work today?” I ask, raising my eyebrows.
“Not until tonight,” Melanie says. “I’m hoping Andrew will close though. I’ve been there late too many times this week.”
I nod, understanding. “Would you—would you want to go out with me today? We can explore and catch up a little.”
Melanie looks up at me for the first time since sitting down. When our eyes meet, my chest tightens.What is this? Nostalgia. That’s all it is.She licks her lips.
“Sure,” she murmurs. “I’d like that.”
* * *
An hour later,we’re at the old railroad, gearing up for a pedal train tour. It’s one of those things you don’t do when you’re a local. I’ll admit though, I’m kind of excited. The train is smack dab in the middle of nature, and I’m hoping it brings me some clarity. Things haven’t been easy lately. First, Kiera dumps me, then my band. I honestly don’t blame any of them. Kiera told me I’m never focused on her, only my music and myself. I’ll admit, I am introspective, but I always try to be a good boyfriend. She was ready for things to be more serious, and I didn’t see that for us. I had to keep pumping the brakes. I wasn’t crushed when she walked away, just a little bummed out. I thought we were having fun. The sex was great; we always had things to talk about too. But I keep things bottled up inside, it’s my armor, and she didn’t like that I always kept her at arm’s length.
My band breakup came out of left field though. I had no idea they were so frustrated with me. I always set out to be a solo artist, but I probably wasn’t clear about that when we started taking off. They wanted a big tour, but I didn’t. I need a break from the limelight to do some soul searching. I’m feeling lost and looking for my purpose. It’s not their problem, but I thought they’d be understanding about no tour. I apologized for the confusion, but they were still pretty pissed at me. It’s my face the label wants though, and I can’t apologize for that. I will, however, be groveling tosaid labelwhen I can’t write this album. That’s seeming more and more likely by the day.
Melanie and I step up to the check-in booth, and I dig out my wallet.
“Hello, folks,” the elderly man behind the window greets us. “Would you be interested in a double or a quad bike today?”
“Double, please.” I glance sideways at Melanie and offer her a hopeful smile. I hope she doesn’t mind that I’d prefer to hang with just her and not strangers on a weekend getaway.
She doesn’t flinch. Instead, she leans against the side of the booth, watching the swarms of tourists.
“That’ll be ninety dollars,” the man says. “Cash or card?”
I hand him my card, and Melanie grabs my forearm, her jaw falling open.
“Josh, we can split it.” She makes an attempt to tug my arm away, but the man already has my card.
“This is my adventure, Melanie, so if you don’t mind, I’d like to pay for it, okay?” I grin at her. She rolls her eyes but the corners of her mouth turn upward anyway, betraying her.
“Fine, but I’m buying lunch.” She juts out her lower lip, and the sight of it does something to my insides. I’m warm all over, despite the early summer breeze.
“Whatever.”
The man directs us to the old train platform where there are a couple of families and one other couple milling about. I’m surprised to find there is an empty bench.
Melanie sits first and I probably sit too close to her, but the feeling of her thigh grazing mine is too enticing for me to scoot over. She doesn’t seem to notice or hear the hammering that my heart is doing in my chest, so I don’t move and silently will myself to calm down.
“Are you nervous?” Melanie asks, jarring me out of my internal pep talk.
I laugh self-consciously. “No. I’m not nervous about the pedal train…” I hesitate, swallowing a knot in my throat before meeting her eyes. “It’s just…really great to see you.”
We’re interrupted before Melanie can reply.
“Okay, folks, if you’re in a two-person train, you can climb into one of these.” The attendant gestures to her right. “Quad trains, you can climb into these behind me.”
