“Adam called the other day.” Her voice was even and calm.
“What did he want?” Isaac said as he grabbed a stack of shirts from his drawer and shoved them in a duffle bag. A pile of shorts followed. He packed everything.
“He wanted to convince me to come back to Seattle. So he didn’t have to move out of the townhouse.”
“Have you seen my running shoes?” Isaac said, looking around the empty closet.
His lack of reaction surprised her. Her first feeling was hurt, but she looked at the bigger picture. Isaac was so wrapped up in Vince and his recovery that perhaps her information seemed unimportant. She felt foolish for bringing it up. Maybe she was making too big a deal out of Adam’s call. Next time, she’d only bother Isaac if something significant happened. She’d handled this already, and he was busy with more important things.
For the first few days back at Vince’s, Anna tried to help Isaac by cooking, getting groceries, and running errands at the market, but Isaac had to return to the market and cook when Vince requested a recipe that Isaac knew how to make, and Anna didn’t. Vince made several other food requests that she was unfamiliar with, and Isaac found her looking up recipes.
“I’ve got a great recipe,” he said. “I can make those things. They’re Vince’s comfort food. I don’t mind.”
Isaac took over the cooking, and she reminded herself that it was one of his favorite things. Perhaps he needed it to unwind.
Several times Anna tried to write, but Vince always interrupted, at first looking for Isaac or asking her to pass on information. Sometimes he sat and asked questions about her manuscript. She appreciated the interest, but not the constant distraction.
If he wasn’t talking to her, Vince often played loud music or brought his computer to the living room or on the patio to listen to old races. With his vision bothering him, he couldn’t play video games or watch movies, his usual pastimes when he wasn’ttraining or working out. He couldn’t read either, but that one he didn’t seem to mind. He must be stressed out and bored, maybe even looking for company, but he made it hard to concentrate.
It was impossible for Anna to get into a groove with her writing. Vince was used to constantly training and had far too much energy. She felt for him, and it was his house, but the feeling swelled within her, and she wanted to be left alone. Though self-imposed, she was under a deadline, as time kept ticking and November edged closer every day.
Just in case, she updated her CV and bookmarked a few jobs she would be qualified for, including two that she might be able to stay abroad and work remotely. Maybe there would be a way to make an income while she finished writing and querying. She wanted to stay with Isaac, not return to America. A long-term, long-distance relationship was doomed.
Anna’s frustration and the feeling that she was unproductive and, in the way, grew each day. She needed to finish this story and move on to revisions and preparing query materials. Not only was she nearly thirty and yet to do something worthwhile in her career, but the end of November loomed, increasing her sense of urgency.
On the fourth day since returning home, she went to Isaac.
“Can we talk?” She had difficulty speaking, knowing he might not like what she was about to say. Even if they’d never argued, the possibility tied her stomach in knots.
“Uh-huh,” he said absently, glancing up from the website on diplopia treatment and remedies where he’d been reading. His eyes returned to the article before she spoke, which made her gut clench tighter. He’d been off since their return home, and she didn’t understand why. Vince was improving, but Isaac seemed more worried, not less.
Anna tried to keep her explanation brief, so she didn’t lose the rest of his attention. “There are two things. First, I don’thave the funds to stay in Spain and off work past the end of November.” He knew that, but what else she had to say needed context.
He still faced the screen. “You don’t need money. I can pay your rent, or maybe we should move back here where it’s free.”
“I believe in paying my share.” She didn’t want to take advantage of Isaac the way Adam had taken advantage of her. Besides, this was Vince’s house, and he hadn’t invited her to live here. Though she and Vince were getting along better, it was still awkward being here all the time. She would have stayed at the rental house for a little longer, but she didn’t want to sleep there without Isaac, who wanted to be near his brother in case he was needed at night.
“I was thinking about the rental,” Isaac said. “We aren’t there anymore. I thought I’d call them today and let them know so they can rent it to someone else.”
“I don’t want to live with Vince.” Anna blurted the truth.
Isaac’s jaw set. “I’m not asking you to live with Vince, but I can’t leave him.”
He wasn’t understanding. She took another tack. “If you don’t want the rental anymore, we should give it up.” That wasn’t what she’d come to talk to him about.
Isaac stopped reading and swiveled toward her with a slight crease between his brows. Maybe he sensed that she was unhappy. “Do you want to leave?”
“No,” she said, hurt that he would even ask. Her chest tightened. Of course, she didn’t want to leave him. “It’s not about me and you.”
She took a deep breath. “Adam will only sign the papers from my lawyer if I meet him in person. I don’t want to, but if I don’t, the sale will take too long. Maybe I could meet him in Texas with my lawyer. If it means the house sells, I can afford the flight and pay my share of our rent. Wherever we end up.”
“When were you thinking of going?” he said.
“The last week of the break,” she said. With Vince’s slow improvement, Isaac couldn’t commit to coming with her, even if his support would be welcome. He also could be back in full training mode right before the next races. It wasn’t the best time for him to travel.
“That’s a good idea,” he said. “What’s your other problem?”
This was trickier to explain. Something about being here in Vince’s house where she didn’t feel like she belonged was preventing her from writing. She had time but no inspiration. Constant interruptions also inhibited her efforts. There was nowhere here to call her own. She decided to just lay out her thoughts.
