Chapter 15

Finally, I thought with a sigh, leaning back in my chair.

It was the end of the work day, and I was just about to step out of my office. First, I emailed the reports I’d just reviewed back to the managers that sent them to me. They still needed to be perfected, and that wasn’t my job. Once the emails were sent, I logged out of the company’s system and turned off the computer. My cell buzzed where I’d left it beside my key board, and picked it up, smiling when I saw it was a text from Brooklyn.

“You don’t yet?”

It had been a day since we’d been back, and already I missed her. I had gotten into work early both yesterday and today so I would have some free time to spend with her. I didn’t know what was happening with her friend and the wedding, but even though she hadn't said it, I didn’t think she had that many days left in New York. I let her know the time we would meet earlier, and I was running a little late.

“Sorry. Work’s been hectic, but I’m done now.”

“If you’re busy, we can put this off,” she sent back immediately.

“It’s fine. I’m on my way out already.”

I stood up as I typed, then sent the message off and picked up my coat from where it sat on the back of my chair. I pulled it on, put the cell in an inside pocket, then picked up my briefcase on the floor beside the desk. Then I hurried out of my office, barely sparing a goodbye for my secretary as I left work.

There was a small café not too far from work where I’d asked her to meet me. It was a little too late for lunch, and still early for dinner at just half past three in the afternoon, so I figured it was the perfect place to meet.

It was still early, so if I could get her to spend more time with me, we might just beat the rush hour and I could get her back to my place. Or Maria’s, since it was actually closer, and it might make Brooklyn feel more assured. I hadn't missed how she’d grown slightly withdrawn ever since our trip back, but there wasn’t anything I could do about it with how busy I was.

There was no time to drop my briefcase off. It would mean going down to the underground parking to drop it off in the car, so I ended up taking it along. Thankfully, there were no important or confidential documents in it, because I didn’t think I’d be paying much attention to it.

When I arrived at the café, I was breathing a bit heavier, and feeling hot even with the cold breeze that always seemed to be blowing through the streets of New York. After the heat in California, adjusting back was annoying, but better now than when I’d come back after four years under mostly sweltering sun. I tugged on my tie as I pushed the café door open with my shoulder, and caught sight of Brooklyn right away. She was seated at a small table with two seats, her eyes already looking at the doorway.

Smiling, I hurried over to her. “Hey, there,” I said as I set the briefcase down and pulled the seat out so I could sit down. “Sorry about that, I hope I didn’t make you wait too long.”

“It’s fine,” she said with a shake of her head. “I’ve barely been here five minutes, but I would really love something hot to drink right about now.”

I looked her over. She had a jacket on that she had tightly wrapped around herself so I couldn’t see what else she had on, but she still looked like she was freezing, her body even trembled slightly. She really wasn’t used to the cold. I glanced around the café and caught the eye of a waiter, then raised my hand to beckon him over.

“Good afternoon, sir and miss. Are you both ready to order?”

I waved my hand at Brooklyn, who recited her order without even looking at the menu, which meant she’d been around long enough to decide what she wanted and then waited for me.

“I would like a white chocolate mocha with whipped cream on top, please. And a cut of your strawberry shortcake, please.”

The waiter jotted it down, then looked at me.

I took a quick glance. “Black coffee and a plain muffin.”

He wrote down my order then smiled at the two of us. “I’ll be right back with your order, please excuse me.”

He gave a short bow with his head and turned to leave, but my attention had already shifted to Brooklyn.

“You still drink your coffee black,” Brooklyn said with a slight wrinkle in her nose, even as her lips tilted up at the edges in a small smile.

I chuckled, folding my arms on the table and leaning closer. “Of course. You’d be surprised just how much hasn’t changed over the past several years.” I paused, giving her a meaningful look. “Or how much has changed.”

I tried to convey to her with my gaze just what I meant, that she could trust me this time not to hurt her. She held my gaze for a long moment, then looked down at the table.

We were both silent until the waiter came back with our order. Brooklyn’s hands clasped around her mug the moment it arrived on the table, held it up to her mouth, blew a bit and took a sip.

“How’s it taste?” I asked, drinking from my own black coffee.

She smiled at me. “Way too damn sweet. Just the way I like it.”

“You still like candy way too much,” I said disapprovingly.

Still, I was smiling as I watched her pick up a fork and cut into her shortcake, then take another sip of her mocha, licking at the whipped cream on top. Some of the cream stuck to the top of her lip, and my hand was reaching across before I could even think about it. Brooklyn must have felt it, because she was just about to lick it off with her tongue, but instead, her tongue met my thumb. We both froze for a moment, our gazes meeting, and I swiped the cream on her lip and brought it back to my own mouth, licking it off before wiping my finger with the napkin.

The atmosphere had changed again, and I almost cursed myself for my impatience.

“Clearly something is bothering you,” I said, deciding to go the blunt route. “Why don’t you just tell me what it is so we can talk about it?”

She sighed and stirred the top of her drink with a straw. “It’s not so much something is bothering me as… I feel concerned.”

“About what?”

She didn’t beat around the bush, either. “That you’re toying with my feelings again.” She met my gaze straight on, her expression serious. “That in the end, I’m going to be left with a broken heart and scrambling around to pick up the pieces before I don’t even have a heart left.”

After she finished, she looked down again, and I picked up my muffin and took a bite of it, chewing slowly then washing it down with some coffee, thinking of a reply. There was a long silence between us, and I broke it with a heavy sigh. She looked up at me, and I gave her a sad smile.

“I know this is my fault, so I don’t have the right to complain. I still wish you would trust me, though.”

“You can't just ask that of me.”

I nodded. “Fair enough. Then, I’ll be honest. Brooklyn, I never got over you. My parents have no idea, I don’t know what they think about me still being single at twenty eight, but they think it’ll pass when I meet the right woman for me, and it was hard to tell them that I already had.”

Brooklyn bit down on her lip, her eyes misting slightly as she focused completely on me, blinking her eyes to get rid of the excess moisture in her eyes.

“My sister said I needed to see you,” I continued. “To know if I was going to stay the same or move on. I can't tell you right now what my choice is, but I know…in the few days since we met again, I’ve come to realize that I missed you so much more than what I’d originally believed, and I want more than just some fun. It was never like that between us from the beginning, and I wouldn’t have approached you if I wasn’t serious.”

I had been doing plenty of thinking, and those were the conclusions I’d arrived at. I had no idea just yet what I was going to tell my parents, if they would approve of this, but my mind was made up.

“You’re being serious with me, right?” she muttered.

I nodded. “Brooklyn, I couldn’t be more serious.”

We were silent again as she let that sunk in, eating as we waited for her to gather her thoughts. It wasn’t until we were done that she looked up at me again. My eyes hadn't left her the entire time.

“Nora’s wedding with Paul is cancelled,” she said. Before I could wonder what that had to do with us, she continued. “Because there’s no more wedding, it means I can't keep stalling. I’m going to have to go back to Cali soon, I have a life, and I have work. I’m not sure I’m ready to give up on either one just yet.”

“And you don’t have to,” I said quickly. “I swear I’m not asking you to give up your life for me, or anything like that. I’m willing to try and meet you half way, if it’s what you want. Is that okay?”

Brooklyn’s lips pursed, then slowly spread into a smile. The waiter interrupted us before she could give any verbal confirmation, but her happy expression was all the answer I needed. I dropped some bills for the food and drinks, and a tip, for the waiter, then Brooklyn and I stood up. I waited for her to walk around the table, then wrapped an arm around her. I remembered to pick up my briefcase, and we went out into the cold. Brooklyn stepped even closer to me, but the coffee must have warmed her up because she didn’t shiver.

“Where are we going now?” she asked, looking up at me with cautious trust behind her eyes.

I smiled gently at her, tucking her close as I led her back to my office building so we could head to my car, still in the underground parking.

“We’re going to my sister, Maria’s place. It’s close by and she’s supposed to be out of town, but she wouldn’t mind us using her place.”

After all, I was technically the one paying for it while she refused to live at home or stay at her university’s dorms.