Page 10 of Cartel King

“Mostly. I lived in the city for a while during the week and would come home to my place a couple miles from here. Eventually, I sold that house and moved into the one I’m in now permanently.”

He kept a place around here as well as in the city, and he went to prep school. He comes from even more wealth than I suspected. I definitely don’t own multiple properties. I never have.

“How long have you been in Jersey?”

“I just moved here when I bought the house. I’ve been in it for two months.”

“What made you decide to live here?”

“I wanted a change of scenery. I wanted to be close to the city where I have friends, but also not that far from DC where I grew up until I was ten while my dad went through med school, residency, and his specialty training, then I came back for college. It’s easy to get to Europe from New York, so that makes life easier. I’ll even settle for flying through Newark.”

“Sometimes that’s simpler than LaGuardia or JFK.”

“Yeah, I discovered that over the years, but both are still better than trying to fly in and out of most of the airports in New England during winter. Can’t tell you how many flights I’ve had grounded trying to get out of Logan.”

Boston isn’t the only city with an airport in New England, but it’s certainly the hub for all major flights in and out of the area.

Our conversation pauses for a few moments, but it’s not uncomfortable silence. When the house comes back into sight, Constantine tugs a little more.

“Heel.” I give the command, and he obeys immediately. I know he’s ready for some water, but he still rarely pulls. That’s twice today. It’s not that hot, but who knows exactly what dogs think.

“Other than your garden, what other changes do you want to make?”

“There’s not a whole lot to do. The place was pretty turnkey, but I want to paint in a couple of places, particularly my office and the kitchen.”

“Are they a color you don’t like?”

“No, they’re white, which is fine by me. I don’t know if they were something different before the last owners sold, but I just have a thing about having yellow kitchens. I have for as long as I can remember. I don’t mean highlighter yellow, but something bright and cheery makes me think of sunshine. And even though I don’t bake as often as I did when I was much, much younger, bright sunshine and fresh baked goods go together in my head. I know it’s ridiculous.”

“It’s not. If that’s what makes you feel at home, then go for it. It’s your space to do with as you want.”

“It is. That’s why I’d also like to paint my office something like a soft misty green. I had a studio when I was in college, and my kitchen was yellow, and the main room was a light fawn green. I loved it. I’ve had white walls ever since then in most parts of my house. Otherwise, the few that were painted were much darker than I would’ve picked.”

I don’t want to get into how I came home from a trip with my boys to find Tim had painted the dining room almost chocolate brown. It made the space feel tiny, even though it wasn’t. I hated it from the moment I walked in till the moment we sold that house. I learned to live with it and didn’t think about how much I disliked it all the time. But as we were moving out, I remembered.

“I also just got new sod in the backyard, so I want to plant some flowers around it.”

“Oh, that’s why you were playing with Constantine in the front yard the other day.”

“Yeah. When the weather gets too cold, I’ll move my workout equipment to the basement, which I’m finishing as well.”

“That’s a lot to lug around.”

“Well, when I say I’m moving it, I mean my three strapping young sons will move it for me. Then I’ll have them move it all back up next spring. I like the fresh air, but it’ll get too cold to have the garage doors open. I don’t enjoy working out in there if I can’t have them open. I’d rather be in my basement then.”

We get to my driveway, so the conversation ends there. As we say good evening to each other, it’s the same as every time we part. I wonder if I’ll walk with him or see him on the water again.

It’s another two days before I see Enrique. He’s coming back from his run as I set off for my walk. I got a call I had to take, so I started later than I wanted. He hints he’ll be away for work for the next week. It’s as though he wants me to know that’s what he’s doing rather than maybe think he’s avoiding me. I appreciate the heads up because I would’ve feared I did something wrong if he stopped walking with me.

“I shouldn’t be away too long, Elodie. I hope we can plan for a walk.”

Together.

It’s a silent prayer.

“Mom, we can take Constantine out for you.”

“Thanks, Will, but I could do with the fresh air. I want to get my steps in for the day.”

---