Page 44 of Forbidden

“Two of whatever’s on draft,” he said.

The bartender poured two beers and set them in front of us. “You two look like you need to run a tab,” he said as he jotted something down, then slid the piece of paper into a clip that held the paper in place before walking away.

Should I talk about our dad? Should we get to know each other? Should we talk about Abuela’s trust? I had so much to say that I didn’t know where to start. The only thing I knew for sure was that I felt a connection to Noah, an automatic, brotherly bond that I never felt with anyone else before.

Noah held his glass up to me, and I raised mine.

“To our father,” he said. “While he might not have done anything right for us while he was alive, he did something good in his death—he brought his sons together.” We clinked the glasses and both took long sips of the cold beers.

After that, the words flowed between us like old friends. Hours passed as I told him the good stories about our dad, and we found we had a lot of things in common, including a love of art.

“I can’t believe you’re an artist,” he said.

“Well, I can’t believe I told you that. I’ve only ever shared that with Rosalie.”

I wished she was there to meet my brother and hear about everything that had happened. I reached into my pocket, touching my phone to pull it out, then let it go.

“You should call her,” he said.

“Really? The guy who can’t settle down and has never had a serious relationship is telling me I should call the girl who just stomped on my heart.”

“You really are a drama queen, aren’t you?” he joked. “Listen, just because I haven’t met anyone worth spending more than a night with, doesn’t mean I don’t know a good thing when I hear it. Call her. Maybe she’ll change her mind. Maybe if you call her, you can convince her to.”

I pulled my phone out of my pocket and stared at it. If I could change her mind, she would have called or texted me by now. She would’ve seen that I left and she’d want me back. Or maybe she wouldn’t. Maybe I convinced myself that we were something we never were.

Noah’s elbow nudged me. “You’re doing it again. You’re thinking too much, Shane. Just call her. See what happens. You mentioned going to California just to get away from here. At least this way if she doesn’t answer, you can go out there with a clear conscience. You’ll know you tried. That’s the best you can do.”

I hated that he made sense. “And with Abuela’s money, I can actually afford to move out there.”

“Not only that, but I know some people in Southern California. I have some friends who own galleries in Laguna Beach. I’m sure they’d be happy to help you get your foot in the door with the art community. Maybe they’ll even hang some pieces for you. And if that doesn’t work out for you, you can always use your creative skills in advertising like I do.”

“You have no idea how much I’d appreciate that,” I said as I rested my hand on his shoulder.

Noah reached for my phone and slid it closer to me. “Call her already. You’ll regret it if you don’t. Trust me on this.”

I picked up my phone and tapped on Rosalie’s picture. Her line started ringing almost immediately, but then I heard two rings, then three. By the fifth ring, I knew her voice mail would be answering.

“Hey… Rosalie,” I said, realizing I wasn’t sure what to say. “I… I miss you… Can we talk? I know it’s only been a day, but a lot of things have happened, and… and maybe if we talked, you would understand how much you mean to me. We belong together, Rosalie.”

I heard a loud crackle, and then static. The line clicked several times, then went blank. I looked at my phone and realized I had been disconnected.

“What’s wrong?” Noah asked.

“I got disconnected. I don’t know when it happened, or how much of my message got through. Maybe none of it did.”

“Then call her back.”

“Fuck that,” I said, feeling irritated. “I’m not that much of a pussy. She had to get at least something. I’m not going to call back and sound like an idiot repeating myself.” I tossed the phone onto the counter. “Shit, of all the luck.”

“Call her back, Shane. What if she got nothing? Do you really want to move 3,000 miles away without knowing for sure?”

I gulped some water down as I thought about what he said.

“No, I’m not calling back,” I said. “Everything in me says we’re meant to be together, just like I was meant to go to Philly today and meet you. If Rosalie and I are meant to be together now, she’ll get my message. And if she doesn’t, then I’m meant to start my life over in California. At least I’ll be far away from any memories of her.”

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