Part of me wanted to ignore Trent’s text and wait a day or two to message him back. He hadn’t even asked how I was, or more importantly how Nonna was. But I knew that would just make me what Leo lovingly referred to as a “Petty Betty.” He used the term as an endearment because he was a self-proclaimed lover of all things petty, but that wasn’t me.
I quickly typed back that I wouldn’t be able to make it. I could say that I would try, but that would be a lie. There was no way I was going to leave Nonna this soon and waste money on a flight. Of course, I knew that if it was just a financial decision, Trent would have no problem buying my tickets, but it wasn’t just that. I was just getting settled here and going back to New York didn’t feel right. I needed to make this place my home.
The sound of teens laughing caught my attention and I looked up to see them playing frisbee in the park. I checked the time and saw that Nonna still had another two hours with her physical therapist who was at the house, so I figured I’d head over.
A stroll to clear my mind about Trent would be good. As I walked along the cement path that wound through the green grass, I was starting to think that the relationship had run its course. I didn’t see how it could work being bicoastal.
It’s not like I loved him. I’d only ever loved one person. Maddox Cruz.
I lifted my head and stopped dead in my tracks. I wasn’t sure if I was seeing things or if I’d somehow subconsciously summoned him, but on a park bench a few hundred yards away was the only person I ever loved.
Maddox was sitting with an attractive brunette who was talking animatedly. I wanted to turn away, to leave, but I found myself frozen in time.
He glanced in my direction, and for a split second I thought he saw me, but then his attention was pulled away when the brunette threw her arms around his neck and wrapped him in an intimate embrace.
Seeing the affectionate hug served as a catalyst to thaw out my frozen state. I was able to force my cemented feet to move.
As I turned around and rushed out of the park, moisture filled my lids. Seeing him with another woman felt like a slap in the face. Which made zero sense.
I’d told him it could only be one night. I’d left without saying goodbye, again. I hadn’t responded to his text.
Of course he was going to see people.
I just didn’t want to see him seeing them. So much for my one in a million chance of running into him. Maybe I should go buy a lottery ticket.
17
MADDOX
I glanceddown at my phone for probably the hundredth time over the past hour. This ninety-minuteplaydate felt like it was ninetydayslong. Only five minutes had passed since the last time I checked which meant I still had fifteen minutes left.
As Heather droned on about her ex and how many men had been pursuing her, I tried to ignore her without being completely rude. I smiled and nodded at appropriate times but made sure not to maintain too much eye contact.
I remembered the tips Lizzy had given me. She said that my eyes were what always drew her back in, even though she knew our relationship wasn’t going anywhere. She said that for most people eyes were the window to the soul, but my eyes were liars. She said they made women believe that I was much more interested in them than I actually was.
I wasnotinterested in Heather, and I did not want my eyes telling her I was.
So, I kept eye contact to an absolute minimum. I scanned the park, only giving Heather occasional glances.
On this scan, I spotted a group of kids that had started playing frisbee. The group was six deep, four boys and two girls. It looked like they were on teams and were basically playing football, but instead of pigskin had a flat disc.
A young mother was running with one of the fancy new three-wheel strollers. She had earbuds in and was clearly talking to someone on the phone.
As I continued my ocular perusal, I noticed a senior couple walking hand in hand, looking at each other adoringly.
They reminded me of a couple that Peyton and I had seen when we had walked across the Golden Gate Bridge as teens. I’d told her I wanted to be like them someday, still together after sixty years. A grin pulled at my lips remembering her theory that every time people saw a couple of a certain age, they assumed they’d been together for decades.
She was right. It was the conclusion my subconscious always came to. Even now that’s what I thought as I looked across the park. But that couple could have just met on a dating app. This could be their second date for all I knew. Still, I imagined them together as teenagers, young adults, getting married, having kids, becoming empty nesters, becoming grandparents, and then finally retiring.
I projected onto them what I’d always wanted. A forever love. But that could only happen with one person, and she wasn’t interested.
My eyes scanned past them, and I saw a woman in a yellow coat who my body recognized before my mind caught up with what I was seeing. My heart started pounding, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up.
It was Peyton.
Peyton Russo was at the park in San Francisco. And she was looking this way.
I started to stand when Heather wrapped her arms around my neck. Again. “I’m so happy we’re finally doing this.”
