“Sorry,” she said, reaching for her wineglass. “That was Colin.”
“And he called just to say hello?”
Maria nodded. “We’re going to lunch tomorrow.”
As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she regretted them. Her mother could never comprehend why anyone would consider going anywhere else besides the family restaurant.
“Wonderful,” her mom said. “I’ll make something special for the two of you.”
CHAPTER 9
Colin
“Really?” Evan called out, leaning over the porch rail as Colin crossed the yard. “You went running again?”
Colin was still breathing hard as he veered toward the porch, finally slowing to a walk. He pulled up his shirt to wipe his face before peering up at his friend. “I didn’t run earlier today.”
“You worked out this afternoon. And this morning.”
“That was at the gym.”
“So?”
“It’s not the same,” he answered, knowing that Evan really didn’t care one way or the other. Instead, he nodded toward the front door. “Why aren’t you inside with Lily?”
“Because my house smells.”
“What does this have to do with me?”
“How about the fact that I can smell the stench from your clothes wafting up through the vents like a green, putrid fog? Instead of heading out to run, you should have done a load of laundry. Or better yet, you should start burning your workout clothes on a daily basis. Lily actually thought there was a dead mouse in the pantry. Or that the sewage had backed up.”
Colin smiled. “I’ll get right to it.”
“Hurry up. And then meet me back over here. Lily wants to talk to you.”
“Why?”
“I have no idea. She wouldn’t tell me. But if I was to guess, I’d say it’s about your girlfriend.”
“I don’t have a girlfriend.”
“Whatever. The point is, she wants to talk to you.”
“Why?
“Because she’s Lily,” Evan said, sounding exasperated. “She probably wants to ask whether you’ve handwritten a card to Maria with fancy calligraphy. Or she’ll offer to help you select the perfect silk scarf for Maria’s birthday. Or she wants to make sure you use the right spoon for your soup if you take her to the country club. You know how she is. But she brought home an extra bag, and she won’t tell me what’s in it.”
“Why not?”
“Stop asking questions that I can’t answer!” Evan sighed. “All I know for sure is that every time I tried to make my move, she told me that I had to wait. Because of you. And just so you know? I’m not happy about it. I was really looking forward to tonight. I needed tonight. I’ve had a crappy day.”
“Okay.”
Evan scowled at Colin’s answer. “Why was it crappy, you ask?” he said, mimicking Colin. “Gee, thanks for asking, Colin. I appreciate your empathy. You plainly care about my well-being.” He stared down at his friend. “It turns out that there was a terrible jobs report this morning, and the market tanked. And though I have no control over those things, I was nonetheless on the phone all afternoon with upset clients. And then, I get home and my house smells like a locker room, and now I have to wait for her to talk to you before my night can really begin.”
“Let me change first. I’ll be over in a couple of minutes.”
“I surely hope not,” Lily said to Colin, suddenly appearing next to Evan on the porch, wearing a yellow sundress. She slid her hand into her fiancé’s and smiled up at him sweetly. “You wouldn’t think of letting him come over without a chance to shower, would you, Evan? The poor man is practically soaked through. We can surely wait a few more minutes. Merely allowing him to change his clothes wouldn’t be proper.”
When Evan didn’t answer, Colin cleared his throat. “She does have a point, Evan. It wouldn’t be proper.”
Evan glared. “Fine. Go shower. And start your laundry. And then come over.”
“Oh, don’t be so hard on him,” Lily scolded. “It’s not his fault that you invested your clients’ money in the wrong companies.”
She secretly winked at Colin.
“I didn’t invest in the wrong companies! It wasn’t my fault! Everything was down today.”
“I’m just teasing you, sugar,” she drawled. “I know you had an awful day and that it wasn’t your fault. That mean old Mr. Market just took advantage of you, didn’t he?”
“You’re not helping,” Evan said.
Lily turned her attention to Colin again.
“Have you spoken to your lady friend today?” she asked.
“I talked to her before I went running.”
“Did you bring flowers to her office like I recommended?”
“No.”
“Candy?”
“No.”
“Whatever am I going to do with you?”
“I don’t know.”
She smiled before tugging Evan’s hand. “We’ll see you in a few minutes, okay?”
Colin watched them head back inside before entering his apartment. He stripped on his way to the bathroom and added his clothes to the laundry pile, noting that Evan was right. The pile reeked. He started a load of laundry and hopped in the shower. Afterward, he threw on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt before making his way back to Evan’s.
Evan and Lily were sitting beside each other on the couch. Of the two, it was clear that Lily was the only one who was happy Colin was there.