60. Jo
Chapter 60
Jo
T he smell of bacon and coffee infiltrates my nose before I conjure the motivation to open my eyes. When I do, I realize I’m in Isaac’s bed, but he is definitely not. I roll over, untangling myself from the white bedsheets.
“You’re awake.” Isaac’s voice startles me from where he stands in the door frame, a glass mug of coffee in hand.
“Ugh,” I groan, my palm flat against my right eye where the pulsating has begun.
“Here,” he says, approaching the bed. I open my left eye, tracking him as he sets the coffee cup down on the bedside table and picks up the water glass. He extends his hand to me. “C’mon, you need to take these now.” He shakes his hand, and the rattle of pills has me extending my open hand towards him to take them.
I pop the two Ibuprofens into my mouth and sit up just enough to get a gulp of water from the glass.
“There’s food,” he starts. I push myself to fully seated and set the water glass back on the table.
“Did you change my clothes?” I grab the coffee mug and blow away some of the steam before taking a sip.
Caramel.
“Well, I wasn’t going to let you sleep in that dress.” He nods to where the dress from last night hangs on the bathroom door handle. “Too scratchy to spoon you.”
I roll my eyes before pressing my fingers against my temple to quell the throbbing. The bed sags under his weight as he sits down next to me, his hand finding my head and applying more pressure that I can myself.
“We need to eat something, baby.”
My eyes snap open and find a genuine smile plastered to his face. “We’re doing pet names now?”
He shrugs, letting his fingers trace down my jaw to my exposed collar bone. His t-shirt hangs off my shoulder just enough to give him access.
I shiver.
He shrugs, pulling his fingertips away. The tingles on my skin remain. “Are we not a fan of baby?” He stands, and the mattress rebounds. “Babe? Honey? Darling?” An edge of sarcasm laces his voice as he continues.
“Oh, shut up.”
“Come eat, you pain in my ass.”
My feet hit the floor with a thud, and I grab my coffee and follow Isaac to the kitchen. “See, that’s a more appropriate pet name for me,” I add, surveying the spread of breakfast foods he’s prepared.
“How do you want your eggs?” He turns to face the refrigerator and pulls out the carton, glancing back at me and raising his eyebrows.
“Sunny side up,” I respond, grabbing a piece of bacon and ripping off a chunk with my teeth. “Please.”
And while I know that coffee and breakfast might help my imminent hangover migraine, watching Isaac make me that breakfast is the best pain-killer on the market.
“Hey bitch, what’re you doing?” Carmen hasn’t called in a few weeks. Her smart ass has landed her across the pond for a global traveling fellowship.
I throw the kitchen towel over my shoulder, admiring the pile of dough I’ve just created. “Making bagels,” I respond, just waiting for her to rip me apart. “Let me live.”
“I’m sorry,” she laughs. “Like with dough and shit? She’s got herself a boyfriend and suddenly she’s domesticated?”
“Hey, I’m working through some shit, okay?”
Carmen laughs, and it instantly puts me at ease. The semester starts tomorrow, I haven’t even prepped my syllabi, and the only thing my brain wants to do is make bread.
So make bread, I shall.
“Are you two married yet?” I sprinkle flour on the countertop, trying to balance my phone on my shoulder. Isaac returns from the bedroom and sets my wireless headphones next to me.
What a gem.
I pop the earbuds in, and Carmen’s voice immediately finds her way back into my brain.
“You can’t just ask someone that.”
Isaac silently moves around me in the kitchen, pouring himself a cup of coffee and pressing a gentle kiss to my temple while I measure a teaspoon of salt. I turn around and reach for the sugar canister, balancing on my tiptoes and leaning into the counter. I strain to reach, but Isaac is behind me before I can ask for help, pulling the sugar down out of the cabinet and setting it next to the rest of my supplies.
“Are you going to actually tell me that you two are in love?” Carmen asks, and Isaac takes his coffee to the dining table. I admire his dedication to finishing the book he’s reading before school starts back up tomorrow. He holds the book open with his thumb and pinkie finger, taking sips of his coffee as he reads. “Or are you just gonna leave me in the dark?’
“I love her,” Isaac yells loud enough for her to hear. “And I’m certain she loves me too.”
I stop mixing my second batch of bagel dough to glance at him again. She laughs and yells through the speaker, loud enough to make me wince. “Atta boy!” She lowers her voice again. “He better be, or I will kill him and make it look like an accident.” I can hear the evil smile on her face.
“I miss you,” I respond, dumping the congealed dough onto the flour-covered countertop. “Tell me about London!”
“I’ve been here for a day , Jocelyn.”
I groan, kneading the dough with my palms. “I know , Carmen, but how does it feel?”
“Well, I’m about to get the hell out of this flat and meet Liam for dinner.”
I wave my hand emphatically until I pull Isaac from an apparently enthralling scene in his book. I point at my earbuds and whisper, “She’s going to dinner with Liam!” He smiles and nods, clearly not as excited as I am.
“Well, I should go.” Background noise continues to crescendo behind Carmen’s voice. “Can’t leave the better Britlyn waiting!”
I huff a laugh. “Call me later!” She’s already hung up. “Carm and Liam are probably about to cause significant trouble in London,” I say to Isaac, running my fingers under the sink faucet.
“As long as we don’t get a call saying we need to bail them out of jail or that they’re dying in a hospital, I’m fine with it.” He smiles, setting his book face down on the table. I wipe my hands on a towel and round the island, approaching where he sits in the dining-room chair. He pulls me into his lap and removes my headphones one side at a time.
“I love you, you idiot.”
“You’re done at four today?” I ask as we climb out of the car. Isaac insisted that we drive here together. He’s taking his role as boyfriend very seriously.
“Yeah.” His face is stoic. “I’ll leave my phone on loud in case you need something.”
“Okay, let’s not get crazy here.” We head towards the doors to our office building. Though it’s still freezing, students are congregating on the quad, catching up with one another after the holiday break. Isaac walks me to my office, and I push open the door. He squeezes my shoulder and backs out of the room, leaving me to organize my thoughts for the brand new semester. “I’m a strong, independent woman, remember?”
My fingertips trace the top of my desk as I make my way to the office chair, still positioned exactly where I left it before break.
I take a seat and set down my bag and travel coffee mug, examining each part of the room. Somehow being here feels different today. I feel lighter. I push myself up from the chair and walk towards the open door, peering down the hallway. The morning class sessions have begun, and the hallway is empty. I have another two hours until my first class of the semester.
“Well, better get prepped!” I say to the empty room before moving to the bookshelf and pulling down the assigned textbook for my neuroscience course.
A sudden knock at the door has me sending papers in the air.
“Dr. Carello, I’m so sorry.” Dr. Zin stands at the threshold to the office, holding a paper cup of steaming liquid. “I thought you might need some coffee to make it through our first day back.”
My hand clutches my chest as he enters. “I’m sorry, I’m just a little jumpy today.”
“I hope everything’s okay.” He sets the cup on an open spot on my desk and knocks twice on the wood with his knuckles.
“Just some first day jitters,” I say, furiously spinning the fidget ring on my finger. “Nothing I can’t handle.” He nods, extending his hand in a wave before turning on his heel and echoing down the hallway. I kneel down to collect the new mess I just created with my own unwarranted alarm when he knocks again, likely in an attempt to quell my anxiety.
But it’s not Dr. Zin.
“Isaac, you’re supposed to be in class.”
He shrugs, pushing the door closed and rounding my desk. He leans his hip against the wood and brushes a finger along my cheek. “They’ll manage without me.” Isaac leans forward, pressing a chaste kiss to my forehead before standing and turning towards the window. He pushes open the blinds for a better view of the quad. “It just feels different here today.”
I nod, studying him as he watches students outside the large window. “I think it’s us,” I say. “I think we’re different.”