“No, it’s not like that. Vaughn knows everything. I don’t have an issue sharing things with him, but you’re a D.A. You know phrasing matters.”
Her eyes narrow and she leans forward a little more. “An A.D.A. You want to talk to me without hurting his feelings.”
“I don’t think what I would say to you would hurt his feelings. I just—”
“No, I get it. One-on-one conversations are important.”
“Vaughn and I have different versions of closure. I think yours and his align more than mine.”
“How so?” she asks.
“Vaughn wants answers he won’t get. I think you do too.Iwant to move on. I feel a lot of things and none of them will bring her back or change where we are now.”
“And what does moving on look like for you?”
“Figuring out where Vaughn and I go from here.”
“Well, I think if you want Vaughn to be in your future, you need to let him search fruitlessly for those answers he’s not gonna get and when he and I are ready,” she says with a little shrug, “you two can rethink that future and reshape your happiness.”
“That’s the smart thing to do.”
“I know it is. I’m a genius. So tell me literally everything else about you.”
“I’ll skip a few things. Grew up here in Boston. Came close to joining the Navy. Dad caught me with my neighbor’s dick down my throat and kicked me out before I could make it to boot camp. My mom didn’t try to stop him. Spent the summer on the Vineyard with my grandpa, who’s a carpenter. He taught me a few things. Introduced me to a few people. Including my agent.”
“Your agent?”
“I used to model.”
“Oh. That I believe. You’re, like, stupid hot. So, no more modeling, then.”
I shake my head. “The scene wasn’t for me. But I saved up enough money and met enough people to buy my own place out in Barnstable. Close enough to my brother and sisters, far enough away that I can justify never running into my parents.” I pause as the waitress comes over to the table. Brooklyn orders some special and asks if they have a brand of hot sauce in the back. They don’t. She does her best to take that news well, but she doesn’t stop herself from scrunching up her nose in disappointment.
I confirm the size of the pancakes, then order six blueberry with a half dozen scrambled eggs, some salsa on the side and the biggest glass of orange juice they offer. Once we’re alone again I finish what I was saying.
“Anyway, I met Vaughn at a party. He was cool with me being sexually fluid and I was cool with him not being sure what he was yet. We started hanging out. Some time later, we met Corrine. Vaughn expressed his interest in her. I expressed an interest in her. She expressed her interest in us. Fast forward and I’m having breakfast with you.”
“Hmm.” She doesn’t say anything else. She’s thinking.
“Not what you wanted to know?”
“Just trying to decide how invasive I want to be.”
“My tongue was just in your mouth. Ask me anything.”
She chuckles, casting her gaze to the floor before she lets out a deep breath. She looks back at me, considering me for a few long moments. “I mean, I have questions, but they are invasive and pretty juvenile. And I think I probably know the answers.”
“Who knows? I might surprise you.”
“Okay fine. It’s kinky right? You guys aren’t just poly? You weren’t. It was more than that.”
“Correct. Brooklyn—”
“You can call me Brook. Everyone at work calls me Brooklyn. We don’t need to be that formal.”
“Brook. It is kinky. Do you want details?”
“Sure,” she replies, her tone light.
