Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
Alexei
Franky opened the door with little Cammi in one of those wraparound carriers.
“Hello there. Come in.”
“Am I disturbing you? Jason asked me over for lunch, but he should be the one answering the door.”
“Not at all.” She pushed her glasses back on her nose. “He’s in the kitchen, making salad dressing. It’s a thing.”
Okay. “And how are you today?”
She smiled, and the woman Jason had fallen in love with blossomed before my eyes. “Well. I’m trying to get into a routine—it’s been a lot of change around here, and I’m the kind of person who craves a structure.”
“And Isner is not?”
“Actually, he’s more organized than I gave him credit for. I’m the one having a little difficulty settling down. I have a book to write but this little one is taking up every spare second. Aren’t you, Cammi?” She nuzzled the baby’s head as we walked into the kitchen. “Look who’s here.”
Jason wore an apron with the slogan, “I’ll feed all you puckers.”
“Naz! Grab yourself a beverage—water, juice, whatever you need is in the fridge.”
He had been somewhat insistent that I come over for lunch, which I didn’t mind.
To be honest, I was glad of the break from Sasha.
He had thrown a tantrum this morning before Maya arrived because he wanted to play chess, which was one of his favorite things to do with his friends in Seattle.
But one, I didn’t know how to play, and two, I couldn’t risk him hurting himself with the sharp-edged pieces.
I was reminded of how reliant he was on me for everything, and yet again, I questioned if I had made the right decision to come to Chicago.
“I’m just going to put her down,” Franky said, with a significant look at her boyfriend. I predicted a lecture in my future.
I headed to the fridge and helped myself to a bottled juice. “Anything I can do?”
“Nah, just take yourself out to the patio.”
I did as I was told and a moment later, Jason joined me with a mixed green salad topped with grilled chicken.
“There’s a homemade lime-cilantro dressing or a balsamic vinaigrette. Your choice.”
“Lime-cilantro sounds good.” I looked over my shoulder. “Will Franky be joining us?”
“In a minute. First, I need to talk to you about Lauren.”
As I suspected. “She said you knew. That you tricked her into telling.”
An eyebrow raise was my reward. “Not so hard to guess after you guys were so fucking weird with each other. I already knew she married someone in Vegas, but she didn’t reveal your identity. Then I witnessed it.”
“It?”
“The vibe, man. You two were pretty snarky with each other. In some universes, that’s considered hot.”
“She is snarky with me. I am merely myself.”
“Exactly. You’re kind of a dick sometimes, which, to be fair, matches Lo’s energy.” He stared me down. “She said she wants out.”
I chewed on my chicken. The dressing was excellent.
“That is an understandable reaction to an event seemingly outside one’s control.”
“What the fuck does that mean?”
“It means that Lauren is used to managing people, situations, her life in a certain way. She has structured it so she won’t make any mistakes or succumb to temptation like her father did. So when temptation comes calling, she is suspicious of it.”
He pointed his fork. “And what are you? The apple in the garden? Or the snake?”
“I am what happens when inhibitions are lowered and the true self emerges. Lauren may say it is an accident, but deep down, in some private recess she refuses to acknowledge, she knows this is not strictly true.”
He shook his head. “So you’re telling me you think you know what’s best here. I’m sure that’s gone down well.”
“I am merely asking that she give this situation a little breathing room.”
“By blackmailing her?”
I snorted. “Is that what she said?”
“No, that’s what I said.” Not Jason, but Franky, who sat down to my right with a bowl of salad and chicken.
“Your wife knows?”
“Not my wife. Yet.” He shot a serious look at Franky, who pursed her lips and blushed. “Through the joy of baby monitor technology, she overheard your conversation with Lo.” He gestured at Franky. “Over to you, Doc.”
Franky turned cool blue eyes my direction, which had the bonus of scolding schoolmarm because of the glasses. I felt my spine lengthening as I sat up straighter.
“My understanding of the conversation is that you threatened to tell Thad if she didn’t date you. I’m not sure how that doesn’t meet the definition of blackmail.”
I blew out a breath. “I may have fudged my words so that we could discuss it properly. Over dinner at Galleria.”
“Love their lamb chops.” Jason caught Franky’s eye. “Do your worst, my love.”
Franky continued. “You do realize that Lauren is involved with Thad? In fact, he’s about to propose.”
“And you think he is a suitable match for her?”
Jason shrugged. “To be honest, I don’t know him all that well.”
“That’s not really the point, is it?” Franky expelled an impatient breath. “She’s a grown woman with agency. If she no longer wishes to be married to you, then I’m not seeing how you can force her to maintain this arrangement.”
“Perhaps you are right.”
Franky wasn’t buying that for a second. “Are you in love with her?”
Jason looked taken aback. “Doc, that’s none—ah, hell, answer the question, Naz.”
“I care for her. I want to see if the connection we had all those years ago has survived the passage of time. As for love? Maybe once. But it was the love of a boy for a girl, green and unvarnished. Now? Perhaps we should learn if this quirk of fate that threw us together once more has legs.”
Franky sat back and stared at me. “Yet you don’t give her the respect of acknowledging her wishes in this matter. That’s definitely not love, Alexei, or whatever you’re calling it.” A cry emerged from the baby monitor. “I’ve probably said enough.” She shot another meaningful look at Jason.
Once she was gone, he shook his head, almost in wonder.
“So I always suspected that you had a thing for her in college, but I had no idea it had gone this far. What happened?”
“I hurt her and she has never forgiven me.”
Jason blew out a breath. “You know about her dad, right? She’s got major trust issues, yet what I’m hearing is that you did her dirty years ago and now you’ve waltzed back in, expecting her to bow to your will.”
“I … I had my reasons back then. But I plan to make it right.”
My friend looked skeptical.
“You will have to trust me.”
“Will I? Because while we might go back years, if I had to choose—”
“I know, and I appreciate it. I want you to always protect her.”
He remained as grave as I’d ever seen him. I was glad Lauren had him in her corner. “Even from you?”
“Even from me.”