Page 66 of Again, In Autumn

I focus on the dark lake water. “Go ahead.”

“I like being out here with my sister, and I’m having a good time with Dave and Fran.” He grimaces. “That was the whole point of keeping us a secret, right? To not make things weird?”

I suck in air. I watch him sway back and forth, pacing his steps.

Adam continues, “You didn’t want it to be weird for them. Now it’s weird for me.”

“You’re not alone in that,” I remind him.

He looks up to the stars, searching for words. He says, “I need this break. I’m heading back into the studio on December first, and I need to be in a creative headspace to do it. I came here to have fun and relax.”

I wait for this statement to involve me. And the cold. And the potential bears.

He says, “Tiptoeing around you doesn’t put me in a relaxing mood.”

“And that’s my fault,” I gather.

He cocks his head. “Really? Let me introduce you to yourself Vienna: you’re a woman who draws attention.”

My eyes bulge. “Excuse me?” I take sideways steps to get closer to him. “I am the exact opposite of that. I’m not a scene-stealer. I am the last person to draw attention to myself!”

“Oh, let me make a scene and drop glass all over the driveway. Maybe I’ll give myself a skull fracture while pouring a glass of wine. I can’t fit into my car, I’ll have to ride with you…” Adam flips his hair back and shimmies his chest and bats his eye lashes before turning his face back to disgust.

My jaw drops. “You think I did all of that on purpose? To get your attention?”

“No,” he snarls. “I don’t think you want my attention, but the point is that you’re not as invisible as you think you are.”

“Maybe not to you,” I surmise, covering my body with my arms.

He doesn’t answer.

“No one else sees me,” I say. My heart jumps. “You’re the only one who ever looked at me without me giving them a reason to.”

“Oh, you gave me a reason,” he growls. He quickly presses his fingers into closed eyes, remorse for revealing himself.

I point out, “You’re the one who pulled me on the dance floor tonight.”

He leans to the side, body language begging for a break. “I was trying to get away from Maggie. I didn’t want her to start interrogating you.”

“What would she have said?”

He looks at me as if to say: Don’t make me admit it.

I repeat, “What would she have said?”

“It doesn’t matter,” he mutters. “I wish she didn’t have you to talk to at all.”

“She wouldn’t have anything to say if you didn’t spill the beans.”

“If you weren’t always around, there would be nothing for her to judge.”

“This is my family vacation!” I stamp my foot, but it wasn’t intentional.

Adam marches toward me. His breath mists into the air like steam from an oncoming train. He edges up to my personal space. He points toward his house and says, “And that’s my family vacation. I can spend it however I want to. I like hanging out with your family. Maggie and Diego like being with them too.”

“And I’m getting in the way,” I conclude. “Well, I’m not hiding in a broom closet because you’re obsessed with my brother-in-law. Or his sister.”

His brow arches. “You’re not going to put a damper on the rest of the week.”

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