Page 50 of When Stars Collide
“To be fair, you’re usually five or ten minutes late every morning, so I may be getting there on time, for all you know.”
“You noticed that, huh?”
“Noticing things is kind of my job.” He paused, perhaps waiting for some sarcastic comment from me. When one wasn’t forthcoming, he spoke again, “But, when everyone else is running out the door at the end of the day, you’re still right there with me. That’s something I’ve also noticed.”
“That’s because I have nothing to go home to,” I said matter-of-factly. I felt Phineas’s eyes on me, silently questioning me, wanting me to continue my thought, but also not wanting to pry.“If I’m being honest, I give you grief for not having a social life, but since I’ve been here, the only person I’ve really connected with is Jo. Most of my life is in Virginia.” I looked over, meeting his stare.
“Peter?” he asked. I couldn’t be certain, but the inflection in his voice when he said Peter’s name made it almost seem like he wanted me to refute his question.
“Yes, and Elle and Luke, too.”
He nodded, processing what I told him. The gears were obviously turning in Phineas’s brain. His nose scrunched up and worry lines appeared on his forehead.
“But, I’m here in New York, doing work I’m passionate about. It’s my choice to be here. Not everyone gets to do the job they had in mind for themselves when they graduated from college.I’m living in one of the best cities in the world, and I’m successful.”
Phineas nodded, the smile returning to his face. “That you most certainly are.”
“If you tell anyone about our little breakthrough moment, I’m going to flat-out deny it.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less.”
“Glad we’re on the same page.”
Unfamiliar streets began to appear outside of my window, though that wasn’t saying much. For me, pretty much everywhere outside of a five-mile radius of my apartment complex was unfamiliar territory, especially the more affluent parts.
“So,” Phineas began, “it’s officially the weekend. Aren’t you supposed to be jet-setting to Virginia or picking Peter up from the airport about now?”
“Not this weekend or, I guess, next weekend, either.” My stomach sank when I recalled my conversation with Peter earlier and the pervasive feeling that storm clouds were beginning to roll in.
“Mena, are you okay?”
“Wha—” I shook my head. “Yeah, I’m okay. It’s just that we arrange months ahead of time who’s going to visit whom, and sometimes it doesn’t work out. Peter has Jackson and other financial obligations that I just don’t have, so I expect there will be some months where I may make more than my fair share of scheduled trips to Virginia. And I’m fine with that, because the whole point is to be able to spend time with each other. This weekend, Jackson is playing soccer for a traveling soccer team. Incidentally, that kid is amazing on the field—great ball-handling skills. Probably gets it from his mother.”
Phineas chuckled. “It sounds like you and Jackson have gotten close, then?”
“I’d like to think I’m his dad’s cool girlfriend.”
“Naturally.”
“In any event, I knew this weekend was going to be a no-go. But then, right before I left for the club tonight, I received a call from Peter, and next weekend is a no-go, too. No explanation, just he can’t make it.”
“One of the things I’ve come to learn over the course of my thirty-eight years of life on this planet is that the only thing worrying accomplishes is making you even more worried.”
“That’s positively profound, Phin. May I call you Phin?”
“Not in front of anyone.”
“It’s a deal, Phin.”
“What I mean by that is, we spend too much of our time worried about things that never come to fruition. We work ourselves up, only to needlessly stress ourselves out. You forget I saw the way Peter looked at you at the bistro. He has a good explanation, you’ll see.”
“If you break out into a rendition of ‘Tomorrow’ fromAnnie, I swear I will jump out of this cab.
Phineas tilted is head up to see over the front seat. “Thankfully, our stop is coming up, just as surely as the sun is coming out tomorrow.” His lips curved upward into a tight smile, pleased with himself.
The cab pulled up to a high rise, containing what I believed were nothing short of luxury apartments. Phineas paid the cab driver and stepped out of the car, holding the door open for me. I slid across the back seat, taking his hand as helped me onto the sidewalk
“Good evening, Mr. Drake,” the aging doorman clad in a blue suit that probably cost more than my entire wardrobe greeted Phineas while also nodding at me in acknowledgment.
