Bring Me Back(68)

Her brows furrow in confusion and then her eyes light in understand. “Oh, God no, my air conditioner broke.” She waves me inside. “And of course it’s hot as hell today.” She fans herself with her shirt, and I get an eyeful of her lacy pale pink bra.

“Casey and Chloe aren’t here yet?” I ask unnecessarily. The place is small enough that I can see everything from where I stand. It’s cute, though. The wall with windows is exposed brick and the rest of the walls are white. Her couch is a light gray color and mismatched rugs add color to the wood floors. The kitchen is barely big enough for one person but it’s clean with new black cabinets and shiny white countertops. It’s a studio apartment so her bedroom can be seen from here. Her headboard is a tufted gray fabric that matches the couch and her bedding is white. It’s currently rumpled—but as much as I’d like to think it’s because Cyrus was here I know Hannah hates making her bed.

“Casey says she’s running late from work and Chloe’s picking up the Chinese. Do you want anything to drink?” Hannah asks, opening the refrigerator door.

“Water.” I kick off my shoes and sit down on the couch. The TV is on and I laugh. “Family Feud?”

“Diss it all you want, but I love that show.”

She sits down and hands me a glass of ice water. It’s already dripping condensation onto my lap. “You weren’t kidding,” I say. “It’s hot in here.”

The breeze from the open window is doing little to help with the heat and she only has one fan blowing.

“My brother said he’d bring another fan over for me, but the loser probably forgot. I better go text him,” she mumbles the last to herself.

While she does that, I sip the water. It doesn’t do much to help cool me down though. Hannah returns and sits cross-legged on the couch. “So, what’s new with you?” She asks.

“The FOR SALE sign went up in my yard today.” I sigh. “So many changes.”

She frowns. “I’m really sorry, Blaire, and I know that’s the last thing you want to hear, but I am. It’s unfair that you have to shoulder so much right now. This should be the happiest time of your life.”

I look away. I refuse to cry or feel sad tonight. I want to have fun with my friends like we used to. “It’s for the best,” I say, and it’s true. “This place is really nice,” I tell her. “Are you liking it?”

“Oh yeah. That upstairs apartment is still for sale,” she says with a coaxing tone.

I make a face. “I’m not sure … I’m going to have a newborn in a few months.”

“I understand,” she agrees. “But I’ll be here, so I could help out.”

My lips twist. “Good point.”

“Come on.” She grabs my hand and tugs me towards the door. “Justin—he owns the building—should be downstairs.” I let her take me downstairs where she knocks on a door. It opens up a minute later to reveal a younger-looking guy—probably in his early forties when I was expecting someone much older—sitting at a desk in a closet-sized room. “Hey, Justin,” Hannah greets him. “Blaire here is looking for a new place. Would you mind showing her the upstairs apartment?”

“Sure.” He stands and grabs a ring of keys off a hook. “Hi, nice to meet you Blaire, I’m Justin.” He holds his hand out to me.

I shake it. “Hello.”

“The upstairs apartment is a little pricier than the others, but it has two separate bedrooms, one full bath, and a half-bath.”

“Sounds like it’s exactly what I need.” I try to sound cheery, but I’m anything but. My stomach is knotted into a tight ball. This … this feels too real. I take a deep breath and remind myself that it has to be done. Justin leads us upstairs to the third floor. “You seem a little young to own a building,” I comment, then cringe. “Sorry,” I say quickly. “I didn’t mean to sound rude.”

He chuckles and opens the door. “It’s okay. I inherited the building from my Uncle; he didn’t have any kids and when he passed he left it to me. I’ve been fixing up the empty units.” He shrugs.

“Oh, cool,” I say.

Hannah and I step inside. The apartment is much larger than hers, probably double the size. Like her apartment, there’s an exposed brick wall, but this one extends into the kitchen. The kitchen is L-shaped with an island that sits against the wall on one side with a butcher-block countertop. The other countertops are the same white stone as Hannah’s with black cabinets. There’s a sink in front of a window that overlooks an old-fashioned bank.

I step into the empty living area. It’s large enough for my sectional, a few bookshelves, and the TV. The space is also large enough that I could add a small table for a dining area other than the island. When I move over toward the half-bath—also newly redone with shiny white tile—there’s a nook that would be perfect for my desk.

Hannah trails behind me as I enter the first room. It’s small, but cute, perfect for my baby girl. I can see it now. Cream walls, pale-pink curtains, and the paper crane mobile above an antique-style crib. Tears swim in my eyes.

“It feels like home,” I confess, turning to Hannah. “This … It feels right.”

I take a deep breath and warmth floods my belly. I feel like that warmth is Ben telling me it’s okay, that this is what I need to do. I have to let him go.