Chapter 10♥Gifted with Her Words
Will had become a permanent figure at the house. A talkative, wise-cracking one who made everyone smile, although Elinor secretly preferred Brandon’s quieter company to Will’s. When she joined Greta and Ian in walking Dumpling, Brandon often came along.
Little Ian Middleton had taken a renewed interest in walking his dog now that he had a friend to come along, and Greta was happy because she got her ten dollars either way.
It was on these walks that Elinor planned out her running routes with Brandon’s help.
There were certain streets where passing by would start up a barking war between neighboring dogs, and she avoided adding those to the route. And then there was one road with a blind left turn due to an overgrown tree, so she marked that off as well.
“What do you know about Lucy Steele?” she asked when Greta and Ian had gotten a little ways ahead of them one day.
Brandon sighed. “Besides the fact that she’s engaged to Edward?”
He looked so hesitant that Elinor felt the need to clarify. He would not have to choose loyalties on her account. “I’m not asking because of that. It’s just, she’s sort of latched onto me, wanting to be my friend. But she’s my mom and sister’s boss, and she’s engaged to my boss… The whole thing makes me uncomfortable, to be honest.”
“I can understand that. Lucy likes to be in the middle of things, and I take it you hate to be in the middle of things. How opposite the two of you are. Opposite personalities sometimes make good friends, though.”
“I guess what I’m asking is this—does she genuinely want to be my friend?”
Brandon shrugged. “I can’t say, but then, what harm is there in assuming she does? Is she coming on your inaugural run on Monday night?”
“Yes.” Elinor peered up at him. “Are you? You still haven’t answered me on that.” She had a feeling his lack of response had everything to do with Marianne and Will. The discomfort on Brandon’s face at the bonfire while watching the lovey-dovey couple had said it all. Within minutes, he’d found an excuse to leave.
She really wanted his opinion on Will as much as she did on Lucy, but some things were better left unprovoked. Something about Marianne had captured Brandon’s interest from the first moment he saw her. And why not? Marianne was beautiful and fearless and fun.
“Who do you know is for sure coming already?” Brandon asked.
“Oh, ho. So, if my guest list isn’t prestigious enough, you’ll bow out?”
He shook his head at that. “More like, if you don’t have enough people, I’ll feel obligated to show up and support you.”
Elinor clutched her chest. “Oh, you’ve somehow managed to make me feel worse.”
“Okay, I’ll come. You’ve thoroughly guilted me into it. I should be back from my meetings in Houston on Sunday night.”
Talking to Brandon was easy. There was no tension there, no attraction on either side that wasn’t platonic. It was tragic really. They were both interested in people they couldn’t have.
Training with Rosa had left little time to be around Edward at the office, and he hadn’t offered to drive Elinor home from work since the bonfire. Knowing his fiancée was keeping such close tabs on him had to be a driving force in that. However, it hadn’t stopped him from coming over and fixing things. And Elinor needed to assist and supervise. That was just her nature. Nothing outside of what she would normally do.Lies, her conscience whispered.You are a besotted liar, girl. And you totally know it.
“So, is Lucy nice?” Elinor asked, hating that she’d circled back around to the subject.
“She’s always been nice to me. I went to prom with her, but we barely knew each other at the time, and we’ve only talked occasionally since.”
They must have not hit it off then, but obviously Brandon harbored no ill feelings towards her. Elinor felt relieved, but not by much. A friendly, nice Lucy struck a line through some of Elinor’s theories about Edward’s engagement. New theories took their place.
They were almost back to the Middletons’ home and Dumpling knew it. She took off running, and the two kids ran with her all the way up to the front door.
Elinor said goodbye to Brandon, collected a sweaty Greta who was in desperate need of a bath, and walked home more confused than ever.
***
The running group had decided to meet at the park down the street from Edward’s office. Knowing Lucy planned on coming had Edward reconsidering whether he wanted to go, but he finally decided he wouldn’t let that stop him.
In his determination to get there before Lucy, he’d arrived before anyone else, and had to wait in his car for five minutes before Marianne and Will showed up.
They stood together brushing imaginary lint off each other’s shoulders and tickling each other and finding a hundred other ways to flirt-touch. That phrase needed its own entry in the dictionary.Flirt-touch: Being obvious about your interest in someone by inventing reasons to touch them.It was hard to not watch them with all their glow-in-the-dark bracelets, as they were the only moving light source in the whole area.
When he got out to greet them, they covered him in bracelets and anklets, too. Marianne insisted on it. She connected several strands together and put them around his waist just as someone walked up behind them.
