Page 42 of When I Come Back
I reach over for it while at the stoplight right before Grayce’s Café. Once I have it in my hand, the light turns green, and I push on the gas before reading the note to him. I have it clutched in my hand on the steering wheel, turning my head slightly to make sure I read it to him exactly as it was written.
“It says, and I quote, ‘Lemon—last night was amazing, leaving early so I can start tying up some loose ends in Seattle. See you later tonight,’” I recite to him, pulling into the parking lot of Grayce’s.
“Hmm… okay…” he muses back to me.
“No. No. You cannot say ‘hmm… okay…’ and expect me to not panic. What does that even mean?”
“It means… I don’t know. It sounds kind of promising? But also confusing. What would he need to leave early to tie up? Seattle is three hours behind us. It just seems like an odd thing to say.”
I’ve got the car parked in front of the café now with my arms crossed over each other on top of the steering wheel, my chin perched on them as I chew my bottom lip to shreds. “Yeah…” is my only reply, not really knowing what else to say at this point.
Last nightwasamazing, but I can’t pretend like I wasn’t waiting for the other shoe to drop. Everything felttoogood,tooright. The note seems harmless enough. There’s nothing specifically concerning about it, but matched with the internal dread I’ve felt since Mr. Elsher reminded me of our situation, it feels like an omen. And not one of the good ones.
Does it mean he’s going back to Seattle soon?
And if he is, will he come back to me?
Is this me losing him again?
I pause my downward spiral as I grab my purse from the passenger seat and disconnect my phone, bringing it to my ear as I push open my car door.
“I’m sure it’s fine, Thea.”
“Yeah, probably…” I let my voice trail off, shutting the door with a thud. I push a loose strand of hair behind my ear before the wind can whip it into my face. “Anyway, tell me about your trip. Did you get to see the elusiveWestwhile you were there?” He can’t see, but my brows waggle as I say this.
The National Whiskey Convention is an annual event taking place in Kentucky, close to where Ripley worked for a bit when he was younger. Three years ago, he met someone at the hotel bar while he was there. They hooked up, and it became their own annual event. He knows close to nothing about him, just what gets him off and his phone number. West probably isn’t even his real name. To be honest, I think Rip gets just as excited to see this guy as he does to go to the convention at all.
“Nah, he couldn’t make it this year, something about work.” There’s a hint of disappointment in his voice, but I don’t push him for more.
I pull the café door open, holding the phone to my ear with my shoulder. “Dang. Well, there’s always next year,” I say enthusiastically. He makes some kind ofmhmmnoise but doesn’t reply. “I’m getting you your usual, right?” I ask him as I enter the line. There’s one person in front of me checking out.
“Actually, get me an Americano. Extra large.”
I mock surprise by bringing my hand to my chest. “Wow, Kentucky changed you.” I laugh as I tease him. He isn’t one to switch it up, but with the cooler weather starting, I don’t blame him for needing something warm instead of his usual iced coffee.
“Okay, one second. I’m up,” I say to him as I move closer to the counter.
“Hey, Thea,” Grayce says with a warm smile on her face. “You want your usual, sweetie?”
“Yes, ma’am. I also need a hot Americano—”
I’m cut off by Ripley’s voice in my ear, “Extra large!”
I roll my eyes before cupping my hand over my mouth so I can scold him quietly, “I know! I was getting to it, my God!” I look back up at Grayce and give her a small smile that I hope translates to ‘sorry my best friend is annoying and demanding.’ “Extra large on that Americano, please.”
Grayce nods her head in amusement and takes my payment. I thank her then step away from the counter so the couple behind me can place their order. Grayce’s is tiny, and there are more people than usual—probably because more people are in town visiting family for Thanksgiving tomorrow—so it feels extra cramped today. I slide down to the pick-up counter and patiently wait for my order. Ripley is telling me about all the new things he learned from the convention, and I smile at how passionate he gets when talking about bourbon.
The barista puts my order on the pick-up station then quickly darts away to start on the next one in line. I wave goodbye to her and Grayce as I clutch the phone between my ear and shoulder to pick up the two drinks. As I spin around, I see a woman out of my periphery a half a second too late to stop from running into her. The coffee and my phone go flying and crash to the floor.
“Fuck!” I scream, much louder than what’s considered acceptable for public settings. I stand there in shock as I watch the woman look down at her very expensive, very ruined pantsuit and heels. Thankfully, most of the hot coffee landed on me, but some splattered onto her. I hear Ripley from the ground screaming, “What happened?!” through the phone. I bend down to pick it up, quickly put it to my ear, stand up, and say, “Gonna have to call you back, I just scalded myself and a stranger,” and hang up.
The woman still hasn’t said anything, so I take the opportunity to start profusely apologizing. “I am so sorry. Oh my God. Shit, I just—”
She reaches over and puts her hand on my forearm in a placating gesture. “It’s okay, really.”
I’m aggressively shaking my head, fully aware that I probably look insane. “No, it’s really not. I am so all over the place. I wasn’t paying attention. I’m just in my head, you know? No. You probably don’t know because you’re probably a normal person who didn’t just sleep with her ex and are now wondering if it was a mistake despite it feeling so fucking right. You know?” I throw my hand over my mouth. “Oh, wow. Fuck. You did not need to know all of that. I don’t know why I said that. Or why I’m saying fuck so much, shit. I ramble when I’m nervous, and—well, surprise—throwing hot coffee on someone makes me super nervous apparently.”
I pause. Not because I’m done embarrassing myself but because she’s… laughing?
