Page 10 of Vesper Martinis

I have the weekend off, so I decided to show Minnie around Vancouver today. It gets me outside into fresh air and distracts me from thoughts of Pierce. Though there is zero chance that it won’t work. I swear the man has consumed my entire being. I think about him all the fucking time.

I shake my head as I head to my car, Minnie beside me, ready for our day out.

“So, how have you been?” Minnie asks, crossing her jean-covered legs and leaning against the center console like she’s looking for a particular answer.

“No,” I say as I drive to Jericho Park.

“What do you mean ‘no’? Your one-night stand is now your boss. That’s like… insane. Million to one kind of thing,” she says, waving her hands in the air up and down, palms out.

God, I regret telling her about Pierce.

When she gets no answer, she slumps in her seat and continues the conversation on her own.

We drive down the highway west of downtown towards the water to Jericho Park.

Jericho Park is a place I like to hike. They have trails, and sometimes you can see some wild rabbits, so I often take my camera. This time though, I have my backpack with lunch instead. After the hike, we can go to the beach and have a picnic.

Minnie loves BLTs so I made one for her and a ham and tomato sandwich for me. Plus, a couple peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, just in case. Maybe that’ll make up for me not wanting to talk about Pierce.

After about a twenty-minute ride, I turn a corner that brings us to the parking lot.

It’s a beautiful day. Warm with the light breeze and blue sky, it isn't raining like usual. I’m wearing a pair of nylon pants, a T-shirt, a light jacket, and hiking boots—casual and practical.

I pull into a parking spot, and the conversation seems closed due to my silence. I reach to the back and pull out my backpack before exiting the car. Minnie’s long brunette hair gets blown all over her face as a breeze comes in.

“Oh my God,” she giggles as she tries to capture the mess of curls in her hand and tie them into a loose bun.

I chuckle as I put on my backpack and lead her into the park.

“This is pretty sweet!” she says about halfway through the hike.

It’s the height of summer. All the trees have leaves that shine in the sunlight, the flowers are all out, and the air is fresh. The structured path of the park makes it pretty easy to walk, and it takes about half an hour to finish. Mostly because we stopped to stare at a couple of wild bunnies sitting next to a bush eating grass.

“Oh my God, Wes. Look. Aw, they are so cute.” Minnie takes out her phone and snaps a few pictures.

I take my water out of my backpack while she enjoys the bunnies. Taking a sip, my eyes catch a runner in skin-tight blue and black lycra. He’s a little too far away, but what I see of him, the way his chest fills out his top and his muscular arms, I can tell he’s hot.

I stop mid-drink as the man comes closer, and I see it’s Pierce.

Fuck my life.

My body tightens as he gets closer and closer to us.

“Yo, earth to Wes.” Minnie waves her hands in my face just as Pierce slows down.

“What?” I say as I peel my eyes away from how Pierce licks his lips and removes his earbuds from his ears.

Minnie looks over to where I was staring and sees him.

“Well, hello there,” Pierce says, pocketing his earbuds.

“Hi,” I manage to get out despite my sudden dry mouth.

We stand there, staring at each other. Pierce looks hot as fuck, sweat dripping down his face, and the muscles on his chest are outlined by his shirt.

“Um, hello,” Minnie says, sticking her hand out to Pierce. “I’m Minnie. You know Wesley?”

“Yes,” Pierce says.

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