9. Andrew
Andrew
I had the distinct feeling that Katy was trying to avoid me. As soon as we got home from my mother’s house Saturday she disappeared into her room and I didn’t see her again the next morning, or when I came home between church and snowshoeing. When I drove up after snowshoeing I saw her by the front window, but by the time I got into the house she was gone again.
After putting the bone broth that Mom had sent with Andrew into the refrigerator and taking a shower, I decided to send her a text.
Andrew: Hey, are you awake?
Katy: Are you texting me from inside the house???
Andrew: I didn’t want to knock in case you were sleeping.
Katy: Thank you, that’s nice of you. But please don’t fuss on my account.
Andrew: Maybe I want to fuss.
Katy: ……
Andrew: How’s your hand feeling?
Katy: It’s fine. I took some ibuprofen.
Andrew: Is it really fine or are you just saying that?
Katy: It hurts a little and this stupid splint is really annoying. It makes me want to break that guy’s nose all over again.
Andrew: LOL. I was thinking about picking up a pizza for dinner and watching a movie. You in?
Katy: Sure. That sounds fun. Can I pick the movie?
Andrew: As long as it’s not a romcom. Or one of those sappy movies where someone has a long lingering death. And no dogs die. I hate movies where dogs die.
Katy: Right, so we’ll pick one out together then. Let me know when you’re heading out, I’ll go with you if that’s okay. I’ve been inside the house all day and it’s making me twitchy.
Andrew: I’ll call in the order when they open at five.
I resisted the urge to pump my fist in victory. Pizza was a good lure. I’d have to remember that.
I did a little cleaning until it was time to order the pizza, then Katy and I headed downtown to pick up the pizza. The term ‘downtown’ was relative here in Lawson, it was a five minute drive from one end of town to the other. Katy insisted on buying the pizza to thank me for letting her stay at my house and I didn’t argue.
“If you’re buying, let’s get chocolate chip cookies too,” I said, pointing at the giant cookies stacked up on the counter.
“Oh God, I’ll have to run for an hour to burn all this off,” she said, but I noticed she still grabbed us each a cookie.
I resisted the urge to tell her that there was absolutely nothing wrong with her figure. She was in much better shape than most people our age, men and women alike.
We had a good night eating pizza, drinking beer, nibbling on our cookies and watching two movies in a row. By the time the credits ran on the second one it was ten o’clock and we were both yawning.
“I’ll leave for the office around eight thirty tomorrow,” I told her as we put away the rest of the food. “Make yourself at home and text me if you need anything. Anything at all.”
“Don’t worry about me, I’m completely self-sufficient and used to living alone.”
“You’re never alone in a small town,” I told her.
She just smiled but soon she was going to learn what it was like to be adopted by the good citizens of Lawson. I was activating what my mother was calling “ Project Make Katy Fall in Love with Andrew ” and I was pulling out every tool in my arsenal to make it happen.
I thought about Katy all day Monday, making it hard to concentrate on my work. I left the office around four, and when I got back to the house Katy was on the couch reading on her tablet. Her splinted hand was propped up on a pillow on her lap.
She looked relaxed lounging on my couch in old sweatpants, thick wool socks and an oversized sweatshirt with her dark blonde hair twisted on top of her head in a messy bun. I loved coming home to find her in my living room.
“Hey, how was your day?” I asked.
“Shouldn’t that be my question?” she teased.
I lifted her feet and sat on the far side of the couch, then put her feet back down on my thighs, calling it a victory when she didn’t pull away. Goldie slunk out from behind the couch and came up on the cushion to snuggle on my other side, staring at me out of her one good eye.
“My day was fine. I did lots of boring lawyer stuff. But there’s one thing you might be interested in though,” I continued. “I filed a complaint with the Police Ethics Board and the City Ombudsman’s Office about your cop friend.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, I had a friend who’s a private investigator do a little digging and learned that the cop you punched has had multiple complaints about excessive force while on duty and has received several complaints about drunk and disorderly behavior while off-duty. He’s been trespassed out of several nightclubs in town for harassing women.”
“Why am I not surprised?” she asked.
“I also filed a request for the charges to be dropped due to self-defense. We’ll see what the DA’s office does with that though.”
Katy gave me a grateful look. “Oh my God Andrew, thank you so much. I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you for everything you’re doing for me.”
“That’s what friends are for,” I said softly.
Our eyes met and held, and the air between us seemed to suddenly warm. I was tempted to lean over and kiss her, so tempted, but I needed to play the long game with Katy. If I moved too fast I’d scare her off. So instead I leaned back against the cushion and said, “Now tell me what you did today.”
“Well, let’s see. I slept in way later than I ever do, then I just read and relaxed for the most part,” she said. “Your mom texted to ask if I could come help her with some stuff tomorrow and I said yes. One of your neighbors, Myra, stopped by to introduce herself and tell me what a good neighbor you are. Oh, and I slipped a few treats to Goldie in a blatant attempt to win her affection.”
“Did it work?” I laughed.
“Not yet, but I’m determined to keep trying.”
We chatted easily as we worked together to make dinner, then read books on our tablets side by side on the couch until bedtime. I’d lived alone for a long time, then with Goldie for the last year, so it should have felt weird to have Katy in my space. But it wasn’t weird. It felt right. I wanted to spend more time with her, both because I enjoyed her company and because I selfishly hoped that she would start to see me the way I saw her – as the future.
“I don’t have to go into the office tomorrow until ten,” I said as we got off the couch to head to our respective bedrooms. “I was planning to go for a run in the morning. Do you want to come?”
I could see her debate the invitation.
“It won’t bother your hand, will it?” I asked.
“I don’t think so,” she answered. “But I’m sure I run a lot slower than you.”
“I don’t care.”
“I need to stretch before I run, otherwise I stiffen up after,” she said.
“Same.”
I watched her carefully, her desire to go with me at odds with whatever it was that made her want to keep her distance.
“How far are you planning to run?” she finally asked.
“I usually do a three mile loop, but we can go farther if you want.”
Her mouth moved from side to side as she made up her mind. “Sounds good. What time are we leaving?”
“Eight thirty.”
We were both up at eight fifteen having a cup of coffee before we set out on our run. It was a chilly morning and there was quite a bit of snow on the ground so we’d both dressed accordingly. Like me, Katy was wearing trail running shoes so she’d have some traction, a hat, long performance tights and a long sleeve shirt with a running jacket over it. Katy also wore a vest over her jacket. She had a running glove on one hand and had pulled a giant stretchy mitten over the hand with a splint. She looked adorable, like an ad for an outdoor activity magazine.
We did a few minutes of stretching in front of the house then set off at an easy pace. When I saw Katy pushing herself to run faster I held back a bit until we settled into a pace that was doable for both of us. To be honest, her pace wasn’t that much slower than I usually ran anyway. She was in incredible shape.
“How’d you start running?” I asked as we made our way through the quiet streets.
“I fell in love with running in high school,” she said. “I’ve always found running to be very therapeutic.”
“Were you on the track team?” I asked.
She laughed humorlessly. “No, we couldn’t afford that.”
I realized it was probably the first time that Katy had told me anything personal about herself. She was particularly skilled at surface level conversations – sharing stories about her work, discussing current events, and with our shared relationship, talking about Steph and Christopher. She asked a lot of questions and was a good listener, but she wasn’t particularly forthcoming about anything personal.
“Tell me about your family,” I said. “You know all about mine.”
She sped up slightly and I adjusted my pace to match hers.
“Nothing to tell,” she said.
There was a long pause while I waited for her to say something else and when she didn’t, I prodded, “Are you parents still alive? Do you have siblings?”
She shot me a quick glance before returning her attention to the road. “No siblings. My mom died a few years ago and I never knew my father.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I learned to take care of myself at an early age, and it worked out just fine for me. Resilience has served me well as an adult.”
I could tell by her tone that she didn’t want me to pry any further. Somehow I had the sense that she’d already revealed more than she intended to, so I let it go. We were both silent until we turned the corner to my street, signaling the last block of our run.
“Race you to your house,” Katy called as she started running full out.
She was faster than I expected. I put on a burst of speed and set off in pursuit, catching up with her right as she reached my driveway. On impulse I grabbed her from behind, my hands gripping her waist as I lifted her off the ground and spun her in a circle with a whoop.
“Caught you!”
“Put me down you idiot!” she screeched.
I set her gently back on her feet but held onto her waist. Katy turned in the circle of my arms, looking up at me curiously. Her eyes were shining, and her face was flushed with exertion. She looked so beautiful in the light of the morning sun I wanted to kiss her. More than anything. But I wanted her to make the first move.
I leaned forward, waiting to see if she’d meet me halfway. Katy’s eyes bounced between mine, both of us completely still for several seconds, then she grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me down to capture my lips.