Chapter One #3
“I do, too.” Mei took his hand. She was glad Joey was a Jersey Shore guy, not a Hamptons one.
Once, after hearing colleagues talk about their Sagaponack summer homes, Mei ran a search on Zillow.
She’d pictured little cottages with weathered wood shingles, but the palatial estates and eight-figure price tags made her jaw drop.
Mei had never understood generational wealth until then.
Even if she and Joey quadrupled their salaries, they’d never be able to afford a home like that.
As Joey, Vivian, and Henry traded Jersey Shore stories, Mei excused herself to refresh the appetizers.
After replenishing the chips and guacamole, and adding more Chinese pastries to the platter, Mei stood on the patio to take in the scene.
A few people played cornhole. Kaia ran barefoot on the grass.
Where was the guest of honor? Mei couldn’t spot Alexandre, but she saw Joey chatting with Luc and one of his friends by the grill.
As Luc stacked vegetable skewers on a tray, he nodded politely, his eyes glazed over.
That could only mean one thing: Joey was telling them about his music files. Mei hurried toward them.
“I’ve been trying out new song identification programs,” Joey was saying. “You’d think AI would’ve made them better, but most are still shit.”
“Ooh, those steaks look delicious!” Mei said. Luc shot her a grateful look.
“Hey, babe,” Joey said. “I was just telling Luc and Alexandre about that old hard drive I found mixed up with my work stuff.”
Mei did a double take. Joey and Luc were, in fact, talking to Alexandre.
She hadn’t recognized him without the thick brown beard and shaggy hair.
Now Alexandre was clean-shaven. His chestnut hair was shorter and stylishly tousled, giving him a slightly rakish look.
His hazel eyes were bright with intelligence; when he turned to Mei, she blinked at their intensity.
“Alexandre! I didn’t recognize you without the—” Mei mimed a billowing beard.
Alexandre chuckled wryly. “Some days, I have a hard time recognizing myself.”
“We’re trying not to give him too much grief about his ‘new life, new look.’ ” Luc jostled his brother playfully.
“Well, I’m digging it. You look good.” Mei studied Alexandre’s face.
She had always thought of Luc as the more attractive brother.
But without all the hair covering his cheeks and hanging in his eyes, Alexandre was handsome, too.
Maybe even better-looking. The angles of his face were well-defined.
Mei could make out his lean shoulder muscles beneath his white summer button-down, his taut forearms under his rolled-up sleeves.
“Thanks,” Alexandre replied. “You look great, too.”
Mei’s cheeks warmed. Why did compliments make her so awkward? “How’s being back? You got here when?”
“Last week. Not going to lie. It’s a little weird.”
“Why’d you move back?” Joey asked.
Alexandre’s eyes flickered. “Tenure wasn’t happening.”
“Oh yikes,” Mei said. So that’s what his mother was referring to. “I’m sorry.” Should she pat his shoulder? Hug him? She looked away and sipped her drink.
“It’s okay. Twenty years of research to not achieve the ultimate goal. But it’s fine. Everyone wants to start from scratch in their forties, right?”
Mei smiled uncomfortably.
“Well, you’re not starting from scratch.” Luc turned the steaks on the grill. “You’ll be doing what you’re good at, and what you enjoy, without all the stress of tenure.”
“What’s your new job?” Mei asked.
“Teaching at SUNY New Paltz. Genetics, microbiology, and molecular biology.”
“Whoa.” Mei’s eyebrows shot up. A disbelieving laugh escaped her throat.
“What’s so funny?” Alexandre asked.
The fierce glint in his eyes startled Mei. She coughed to compose herself. “I’m laughing at what you call starting from scratch: teaching classes like that at the university level.” Mei saw a hint of surprise on Alexandre’s face. “That sounds so prestigious.”
A begrudging half smile formed on Alexandre’s lips.
“Yeah, man, it’s not like you’re bagging groceries now,” Joey agreed. “No disrespect to supermarket workers, of course. I put myself through community college while working at ShopRite.”
“You did,” Mei said proudly. “We both went to SUNYs,” she told Alexandre.
“Joey got his associate’s from Nassau. I went to Binghamton but never took anything like what you’re about to teach.
That was Ali’s realm.” Her sister had aced every science class on her way to becoming a physical therapist. “Your new job sounds amazing.”
“Thanks.” Alexandre fiddled with the label on his beer bottle. “But in academia, all anyone cares about is research. There’s a big difference between being a tenured professor doing research and a professor who’s only teaching. Which is what I will be. It’s considered a huge step down.”
Luc set the grilling tongs aside. “No one thinks that except some academic a-holes. It’s not even true.”
Mei nodded vehemently. “What’s more important than teaching the next generation?”
Alexandre shrugged. “I’m trying to focus on that, and not what my former colleagues think. Or my parents.”
“They dreamed of us carrying on the Brodeur family academic tradition,” Luc explained.
“They were devastated when I went into tech without getting a PhD, or even a master’s.
And they were horrified when I quit tech to start my company.
” Luc had worked as a software engineer at a major tech company for a decade before opening a custom carpentry and furniture business.
“But at least they had Alexandre. He was always their great hope.”
“Clarisse and Jean-Germain were history professors at Fordham,” Mei told Joey. She turned to Luc and Alexandre. “I didn’t know they wanted you to be academics, too.”
“Oh yeah.” Luc nodded gravely.
“That’s a story for another day,” Alexandre added.
Mei spied Clarisse and Jean-Germain on the patio and narrowed her eyes. What snobs!
She glanced back at Alexandre. He was sipping his beer, but Mei could see the tension in his shoulders, the unease in his eyes.
“Are you teaching this summer?” she asked.
“Not until the fall. I’m going to spend the next few weeks settling in and working on lesson plans. Maybe check out some of the local hiking and running trails.”
“You probably already know this, but the Hudson Valley is great for outdoor activities. There’s tons of biking, rock climbing, and skiing.”
“That was a big draw for moving back. That, and spending more time with this guy.” Alexandre shook Luc by the shoulders as he smiled at Mei.
Alexandre’s mischievous grin took Mei by surprise. She beamed back at him.
“I don’t know if you’re into the beach, but we’re renting a house on Long Beach Island the second week of August,” Joey said. “There’s an extra bedroom if you want to come.”
Alexandre raised his eyebrows. “Yeah? I’d like that.”
“I’ll send you the info,” Luc said.
The four of them clinked their drinks.
“What’d I miss?” Ali ran over and added her wineglass to the circle. “What am I cheers-ing?”
“Alexandre is coming to the beach house. Joey invited him.” Mei rubbed her fiancé’s arm.
“Perfect!” Ali cheered. “Alexandre, we’re so glad you’re back. I hope you’re ready to make up for lost time. These two”—she angled her head at Mei and Joey—“are always up here, so you’ll be seeing lots of them, too.”
Alexandre nodded politely. “I can’t wait.”
Luc set the steaks on the platter. “The food’s ready. I’m going to bring everything to the table.”
“I’ll help you.” Alexandre grabbed the tray of vegetable skewers.
“I should get Kaia ready to eat.” Ali headed across the lawn to her daughter.
Mei smiled up at Joey. “That was nice of you to invite Alexandre to the beach house.”
Joey shrugged. “He seems like a good guy.” He glanced at Alexandre on the patio and lowered his voice. “I feel kind of bad for him. He’s single, right?”
Mei followed Joey’s gaze. “I think so.”
“Wonder what his deal is.”
“He probably never found the right person.” She watched Alexandre place his tray on the table, then bend down to talk to Kaia. Alexandre’s eyes met hers, catching her mid-stare. Mei flushed and turned back to Joey. “Dating in New York was rough. It’s probably much worse in an Oregon college town.”
“Yeah.” Joey wrapped his arms around her. “I’m so glad we found each other.”
Mei breathed in his spicy scent. “I am, too.”
When they drew apart, Mei spotted Alexandre laughing with Luc, his smile lighting up his face. She nodded to herself. He’ll find someone soon, too.