Chapter Six
Scarlett
I pedal away from the restaurant as fast as I can. My bike doesn’t go fast enough to put distance between Wade and me.
My sneakers squeak against the pedals and my thighs burn as I turn the gears to the highest possible level.
I shouldn’t have gone out with Allen. There were some subtle beige flags—possibly a faint red flag?—at our first coffee shop date. I hoped that a longer date would show his true colors. And boy, did it. Just not the way I hoped.
But I think the worst thing about tonight is the fact that Wade showed up to my date. It’s exactly something my brother would do. And even worse—he brought a friend. A cute friend, in fact.
So not only was my date horrible, but I probably ruined any chance with Wade’s cute friend.
I’d felt the urge to do or say something immature, like maybe threatening Wade with his life. Something minor like that. But I didn’t want to embarrass myself further, so I just fled the scene of the crime, avoiding the possibility of headlines like, Woman bludgeons her brother’s best friend to death with a chip basket .
It’s so frustrating when I’m just trying to live my life and people keep butting in. Obviously, I wasn’t going to go out on a date with Allen again. But Victor and I were handling it just fine. After tonight, I would never have seen him again. No one else would’ve needed to know it. But now I have witnesses, and it’s Wade’s fault.
I adjust the gears on my bike and pedal a little faster. My legs are burning. I round the corner, nearly colliding with a fire hydrant. I catch myself with my foot and right the bike just before I crash. That could’ve been bad.
I sigh as I look up and see The Serendipity ahead. It’s a relief to see home. There’s something magical about going home to the place I’ve dreamed of living in since I was a little girl. Heading towards The Serendipity feels like I’m getting a nice warm hug from a good friend. It’s a safe place for me. And it’s so nice to feel like I belong somewhere. For the first time in a lot of years, I feel at home in a place.
When I reach the building, I park my bike on the rack near the front staircase. I chain the bike up, bringing my helmet with me as I climb the stairs. I fumble for my keys and unlock the front door, stepping inside.
Steve, the building manager, is standing in the entryway to the parlor, talking on the phone. It’s really late for him to still be working. Poor guy. “Yes, I know the door creaks,” he says tightly. “The whole building creaks!”
Not exactly true, but it’s past regular working hours, which means Steve has probably already dealt with a lot of calls from tenants about issues that need to be addressed. He’s a good manager. He’s on top of it but does seem to get overwhelmed fairly easily. He nods in my direction as I walk by to head to the basement stairs.
“Good night, Steve!” I say.
He gives me a frazzled smile, and I disappear down the stairs. At least I’m not the only one having a bad night. Maybe solidarity.
I head downstairs, unlock my apartment, and slip inside. I leave my bike helmet hanging on the hook by the door, then walk into the bathroom and fill the bathtub with half a bottle of soap so it’s nice and bubbly. Before I grab my book, I pick up my phone and text Wade.
SCARLETT
I can’t believe you crashed my date tonight. What were you thinking?
Before I even have a chance to set my phone on the bathroom counter and get undressed, Wade texts back.
WADE
I was worried about you.
SCARLETT
I worry about my parents, but it doesn’t mean I’m going to show up on their doorstep when they least expect it.
WADE
I just remember some shady things about Allen in high school.
SCARLETT
You mean the fact that he always tried to hustle people out of their money? Well, guess what? He’s still doing it. And I am a big girl. I can take care of myself. I’m not going to invest my money into someone’s scheme, and I know a schmoozer when I see one.
WADE
I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings .
Oh . Well, that’s actually rather sweet of him. It changes things if he’s going to apologize—but then he texts again.
WADE
But I would do it again if it meant keeping you safe.
SCARLETT
Go pound sand, Wade. This is not your responsibility. I am not your responsibility.
WADE
You’re my best friend’s little sister. Of course you’re my responsibility.
I text back a single emoji that encompasses my current mood. It’s one I would never send my mother. Maybe my brother. It’s the angry face that looks like he’s swearing.
I set my phone down after I turn it on silent, grab my book, and climb into the bath. I’m going to block out anything more that Wade has to say.
It’s becoming all too clear that Phoenix has enlisted Wade to shadow my every move. I almost wish that Wade had had the idea to keep an eye on me himself. I don’t know why that little difference matters. But it does.
I forgot to turn my phone back on last night, so when I wake up this morning, I see a text from Wade. He must have sent it while I was still in the bath.
WADE
Hey, seriously, I’m really sorry I interrupted your date like that. And I’m sorry I showed up with a friend. I didn’t mean to embarrass you. I just heard something about Allen today that made me really concerned. Like maybe he’s not respectful of the word no, if you know what I mean. And I just panicked thinking about you on a date with him. Forgive me?
I would like to stay mad at Wade. I really, truly would. It feels good deep in my soul to point my frustration at a single entity. But I don’t think it’s fair when Wade is a newcomer to this problem. I have a problem—that every single date gets somehow ruined by my family. I just need to explain that to him. While he was pretty much a fixture at our house growing up, he might not realize that the overprotectiveness didn’t stop when I became an adult.
So I text him back.
SCARLETT
Sorry I was so grumpy last night. I’m going to stop at Serendipi-Tea this morning on the way to work. Do you want to meet me there?
He texts back right away.
WADE
See you in thirty.
I get ready, head outside, and hop on my bike. It takes about fifteen minutes to get to Serendipi-Tea by car, which is funny because I can also get there in fifteen minutes on my bike. Yet another reason to be a biker. Keeps me healthy and active. Keeps me alive. And I can get to most places just as fast as a car. In fact, if there’s a traffic jam, I can get there even faster.
The old two-story Victorian house that’s been converted into a coffee and tea shop is one of my favorite places in town. Violet Baker has owned it for years, and I sometimes like to leave early for work so I have time to stop here and get a coffee.
Wade is already standing on the steps outside of Serendipi-Tea when I arrive. His hands shoved in his pockets. He’s wearing a light gray sweatshirt and jeans. He smiles at me as I lock my bike and hurry up the steps.
“Hey,” he says sheepishly.
I glance up at him. “I’m sorry I sent you an angry emoji last night.”
He tries to frown, but a smile cracks through. “That’s okay. I probably deserved it.”
I look up at him with a straight face. “You did. But this is me buying you an apology tea anyway.”
“Well, I chased you away from enjoying your chips and salsa and horchata, so I think I owe you this one.”
He opens the door for me, letting me enter before him.
“I’ll be honest with you, Wade,” I say as we get in line to order.
“You always are,” he says with a grin. “Which is funny because I don’t see you being blunt with anyone else in your life. Just me.”
“If you didn’t want me to be blunt with you, then you shouldn’t have been at our house every day growing up. I’m too comfortable with you, and now you bring out my mean side. It’s really all your fault.”
“Is this Introduction to Gaslighting 101 ?” he teases as we move forward in line.
“If you stick around long enough, you might even make it to my advanced course. Something we younger siblings learn early,” I reply with a grin. “But seriously, if you learned something shady about Allen, I understand. I should have known better than to go out with someone I met on Sole Mate.”
Really, I’m trying to give him an excuse to explain it away. I don’t want to fight with Wade, so I’m extending an emblem of peace. It’s not even an olive branch. It’s a freaking olive tree. Delivered in a pot so it can keep growing. It’s up to him what he does with it.
“Well, Jack—the guy with me last night—said his sister had a run-in with Allen. I don’t remember if it was late high school or early college, but it wasn’t a good experience, if you catch my drift.”
“Unfortunately, all women understand that,” I reply quietly. “Okay, so your concerns were legitimate with Allen. I appreciate that.”
“But Sole Mate? Really? I’ve heard nothing but bad things about that app. Besides, sounds like a foot fetish,” Wade says.
It’s like he just stomped on my olive branch. “I have something else to say—” But I’m interrupted because we are now at the front of the line, and we have to order our drinks.
After we’ve ordered, we sit at a table by the window.
“What was that you were going to say?” Wade asks before blowing on the hot tea in his cup.
I clear my throat, trying to calm my temper. The coffee should help with that. “You are someone I consider a friend.”
His eyebrows raise at that. “Oh, gee, thanks. Glad I’m not an enemy.”
I smile sweetly at him. “But if you start acting like my brother, I may have to switch you to a different category. If you know what I mean.”
I keep a smile on my face.
Wade’s eyes dart around my face, searching my expression, and then he chuckles. “Trust me, I’m not trying to be your brother. That’s the last thing I’m trying to be. ”
“Good! That means you will not ruin any more of my dates, right?”
“As long as I don’t need to interrupt any of your dates,” he says with a smirk as he lifts his teacup to take a long sip. I don’t know how he has a tongue left. I can still see the steam rising from the cup. It looks so dainty in his hand, and?—
Wade’s words finally register in my mind and the smile slips from my face. “Nope, nope, nope. You do not get to choose if you interrupt my dates. This isn’t a multiple-choice quiz.”
“I’m getting the impression this is not an apology tea. This is actually a negotiation,” Wade says thoughtfully.
I clutch my large cardboard cup full of delicious coffee. “Not so much negotiation. It’s more of me telling you what’s not going to happen. And I am going to go on dates. I’m going to enjoy going on dates and not being interrupted by my brother. I don’t need you filling his shoes. One Phoenix is enough.”
“I guess we’ll just have to see about that, won’t we?” he says as he sets down the cup. It’s already empty.
“I’m serious, Wade. Leave it alone.”
He holds both hands up in the air in surrender. “Listen, Scarlett, I don’t want to butt in on things, but I really do care about you. And I want you to be happy. I don’t want anything bad to happen to you, especially with you living alone and your family out of town. I guess I just want to make sure you’re okay.”
I reach out and pat the back of his hand. “That’s very sweet of you, and I actually appreciate it a lot. But there’s a difference between looking out for someone and being overbearing. I just hope you know the difference. Because my brother sure doesn’t.”
“Oh, please. I know the difference,” he mutters as he lifts his empty teacup, looks down at it in surprise, then sets it back on the table.
“All right. Prove it,” I dare him. “I’m going on a date tonight.”
He raises his eyebrows but otherwise looks at me calmly. “See? I’m not overreacting.”
“You’re doing very well.” I reach forward and squeeze his hand. “I met him through a book club friend.”
“That’s nice,” Wade says smoothly. His smile looks like it might shatter at any moment.
“Wow, you really are holding in all your questions. I’m so proud of you!” I tell him in a cheery tone.
“Yup. You know me. I can mind my own business if I need to.” He smiles tightly at me as I stand up and grab my to-go cup.
I might be teasing him, but I really am kind of surprised he’s not asking a million questions.
I needed to have an open-hearted talk with him. Now that I have, he knows where I stand on these things.
Wade is right behind me as we exit Serendipi-Tea. He reaches past me to unlock my bike for me since I’m still holding on to my coffee.
“Hey, how did you know the combination?” I know I didn’t tell him.
“Like your birth year is any big secret. Really?” He chuckles as he grabs the helmet and sets it on my head. He even reaches under my chin to buckle and tighten the strap. His fingers brush against my neck, and I feel a strange jolt of electricity. How odd .
“Thanks for the coffee,” I say as I climb onto the bike using my free hand.
“Yup! Have a nice date!”
I start biking so I won’t be late to work.
“Where are you going on your date?” he calls after me .
“Bye, Wade!”
“What’s his name?” he shouts after me as I put more distance between us.
“At least tell me his social security number!” he yells.
I have to focus on what I’m doing so I don’t crash my bike as I’m bent over with laughter. So much for him not being an overprotective menace.