Page 44 of Wright Kind of Trouble

Another beat of silence.

“Harley, you don’t have to…”

“We haven’t spoken in months. Do you want to see me or not?”

“Yes,” and this time, there was no hesitation.

“I’ll be there in fifteen,” I told him and then hung up before he could argue.

The map to Chase’s house was ingrained in my mind. I hadn’t been there in over a year, and it felt like I was going on autopilot to get there. I parked in the driveway and headed to the front door, which opened before I even knocked.

Chase was in board shorts and a blue Yale T-shirt. I, however, was still in my Tacos uniform. I’d only traded out my cleats for black Adidas slides.

His eyes were wide and surprised. “You’re in red.”

I glanced down at the uniform. “Yeah.”

“I’ve never seen you in anything but black.”

“Well, don’t get used to it,” I said. “This is a special occasion. I was filling in for Nora.”

“If you say so,” he said with a small smile coming to his lips. “Red looks good on you.” He pulled the door open wide, and I crossed the threshold into his house.

I waved him off. “I wear other colors. I crocheted a long off-white vest once. Wore it all the time. It was like festival wear.”

“At least white is monochrome. This is like seeing Wednesday Addams in red.”

“Pig’s blood?” I offered.

He laughed. “Just so.”

“And you? Do you always go around announcing that you went to Yale?”

He furrowed his brows. “I don’t go around telling anyone I went to Yale.” I pointed at his shirt. “Oh. Well, I was alone.”

“Uh-huh,” I teased.

He shrugged. “So what? I went to Yale. At least I’m not lying about it.”

I tried not to shiver at the ease that came with his presence. His nonchalance as I made fun of him. The secret smiles that somehow tugged on my heart and reminded me exactly why I’d fallen so hard.

I turned away from him and went to the record shelf. I pulled out a Bowie vinyl and put it in place on the record player. The Bose speaker connected correctly this time and started playing.

“Where is Bowie?” I asked.

“Passed out in his bed.” He tilted his head toward the bedroom. “We went on a ten-mile hike and kayaked for a few hours today.”

My eyes rounded. “Whoa. I’d be dead, too. How are you standing?”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “Was actually about to go swim. Still have energy to burn off.”

“By all means,” I said, gesturing to the back door.

He arched an eyebrow. “I don’t think you came over here to watch me swim.”

“No,” I agreed. “But maybe we could sit outside?” My eyes snagged on the couch, where he’d made me completely collapse. “You know…not in here.”

His eyes followed my gaze. “Yeah. All right.”

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