Page 103 of Infinite as They Come
“Oh, I wouldn’t have missed this. Sawyer’s first birthday party.” He leaned in close to me, his voice lowering to a whisper. “I got him a new toaster. Don’t tell him yet.”
I held a finger to my lips. “I won’t.”
“I got the same one for my move. Stainless steel. Can’t go wrong with that.”
Brodie had just finished up his final year of college after completing his Master’s at Boston, scholarship and all. I hadn’t been surprised in the slightest when they offered it to him. He had earned that and the official offer he had just been given to work full time for the New York Gazette.
“How exciting. This time next month you’ll be in New York.” Taking a sip of my soda, I held my cup up at Annie who was moving over to me with a little paper plate filled with chips and dip. “You and Annie can bond over the cold weather that I absolutely do not miss.”
Annie gave me a scoff. “Ugh. Don’t talk about it. Thanks again for letting me stay at your place, by the way. I’m gonna save so much money on rent.”
“Well, you don’t need to be worrying about rent when you’re gonna be doing all that dancing.” I stole a chip from her plate and scooped up some dip, letting that smooth cheesy flavor hit my tongue. “Ooh, I can’t wait to see you on stage again.”
“I gotta get more socks,” Brodie deadpanned suddenly.
My eyes flickered to his. “You know, you can stay at my place too, Brodie. You’ll have one less thing to worry about.”
His eyes widened a little. “I can’t live with a girl. I don’t know how to live with a girl.”
“Hey, I’m easy to live with,” Annie said.
“I meant my other place in Manhattan. My dad’s penthouse. It has such a beautiful view of Central Park. It’s just sitting there empty if you want it,” I said, and both their heads turned to each other at the same time, their eyebrows raised.
“Sometimes I forget how much money you have,” Annie said before munching on a chip.
Brodie raised a hand, giving it a wave. “I can’t live in a penthouse either. I’ll break something. If there’s glass, I’ll break it.”
“Don’t be silly. I don’t care if you break something. Think about it, though,” I said, taking another sip of my drink. “You won’t have to stress about finding a place to stay.”
Brodie shrugged. “I don’t know how I feel about living in a penthouse. They’ll probably think I’m breaking into the place and kick me out.”
My eyes rolled. “That won’t happen. Why don’t you give it a think?”
“I will.” He nodded before his eyes lit up. “Ooh, they’re handing out the cake. I’ll be back.”
Brodie took off in the direction of the dining table, giving me and Annie a chance to sidle up together against the wall.
“This is sweet,” she said, giving me a little nudge. “This whole thing. I’m glad he has this.”
“Yeah, me too,” I said with a smile. “Thank you for coming.”
“Wouldn’t miss it,” she said, her hand finding mine. My left one. She raised it, giving her tongue a click. “I needed to see this ring up close again.It’s been a while.”
“You saw it at the wedding.”
“That was almost half a year ago…”
It felt like yesterday, like if I closed my eyes, I could go right back there and walk down the aisle to become Mrs. Westbrook all over again. I could have blushed at just the memory alone. Me and Sawyer had picked a small location back in Dallas. A little chapel, perfect for just a dozen guests or so, and it couldn’t have been more perfect. Just a little old building, the two of us whispering “I do” as the sun set in the distance, him sliding that ring on to my finger that I would never take off.
My eyes lingered on the pretty silver on my left hand. “It doesn’t feel like it.”
“Time moves slowly here. I get why you and Sawyer wanted to move here.”
“This thing’s digging into my skin,” a voice grumbled beside me. Turning, I saw Sawyer pulling at the string of his birthday hat.
“You can’t take it off,” Annie said. “It’s illegal to take off your birthday hat on your birthday.”
Sawyer hummed. “Not sure if I believe that.”
