Unexpected Arrivals(20)
I dreaded telling them anything about what we were doing. Not that I thought they’d be against the idea, because I didn’t. I just wasn’t interested in their advice or opinions. They’d been absent most of my life, and I’d be damned if they started involving themselves now.
5
James
Moving to Long Island had been like relocating to a different planet. I wasn’t a stranger to wealthy people—Geneva Key and Chapel Hill had been full of them—but everything about this place was foreign from the way they talked to how people dressed. It took me weeks to get to the point that I could understand the dialect—not because the words were all that different, it was the speed at which people spat them at me. And yes, they spat.
Once we’d settled in—after realizing that even with the monetary resources Cora and I both had, without spending millions, our housing options were limited…and small—life started to take shape. Between the four of us, it made more sense to share an apartment until we were all solidly on our feet. With the girls in school and Neil depending on the business for income, it made sense to live like Friends when the going rate for a two-bedroom space was three grand. And in the long run, it left Neil and me without guilt choking us with all the long nights because Cora and Hannah were together and not alone in a strange city.
My phone rang, and I glanced up to see it vibrating on my desk. Cora’s smiling face stared back at me. “Hey, sweetheart.”
“Are you and Neil having an affair?”
Her question caught me off guard and immediately put me on the defensive. The two of us had been working a lot of really long days since we’d bought Reynolds Wealth Management, but I’d never thought she’d believe I could violate her trust. “What?” I shoved back in my chair and stood abruptly, as if she could somehow see my outrage. “How could you think I’d be with another woman?”
“Did Neil have a sex change?” She’d lost me. “Because the last time Hannah checked, he was definitely a dude. I just never knew you were into men.”
I rolled my eyes and sat back down. “So now you two are contriving fairy tales about Neil and me having a sordid affair over stocks, bonds, and dollar signs?”
“Meh. I’ve heard of stranger kinks. Maybe you’re one of those weirdos who likes the smell of dirty money.”
“Or maybe I like to be able to deposit them into my bank account to keep your pretty little head covered at night while we sleep.”
“Which is all we do these days.” Her tone was playful, even though she was right. We’d turned into an old married couple who scheduled sex for weekends only. “Since I have this rocking body, and Hannah’s fairly easy on the eyes herself, we figured the two of you have to have something going on.”
I grinned as I leaned back in my seat. One of the best things about Cora was her ability to tell me something bothered her without lobbing grenades or screaming. She never left me feeling maligned or attacked—I wanted to be the best I could be for both of us. “We tried, except he’s a little hairy for my tastes. Have you seen his back? Gross,” I added in my best valley-girl voice.
“Maybe you should suggest waxing…everywhere.”
And…she’d crossed the line. “Okay, that took it too far. I won’t be able to erase the visual you just created of my best friend in precarious positions…hairless. Thank you for that.” My laughter filled the line, and the sound of hers made my heart ache.
“James?” Her soft voice was tinged with longing.
“Yeah, babe?”
“I miss you.”
For years, we’d spent all our free time together. Yeah, Neil was my best friend, and we’d been together as friends since birth, but Cora was my soulmate, which ran deeper than any relationship I had outside of that. And I had neglected her in recent months while chasing the almighty dollar.
“I miss you, too. Why don’t you get dressed, and I’ll come home? Let’s go spend a night in the city.”
She didn’t hesitate or bother mentioning it was already after seven. Tomorrow might suck, but tonight didn’t have to. “Be careful. Love you.”
She disconnected the call, and the screen went dark. I didn’t clean up my office after logging out of my computer. It would all still be here tomorrow, and there was never a guarantee the person I loved would.
“Neil, I’m heading home,” I called down the hall to my partner’s office.
“Did you just get the same pitiful phone call from Cora that I got from Hannah?”
I made my way toward him only to find him slipping his arms into his sports coat and turning off the lights. “More or less. I’m heading home to take Cora out. What do you guys have planned?”
“That actually works well. We’re going to stay home. Shoot me a text when you’re on your way back so I can make sure you don’t walk in on anything.”
“Dude, gross. Common areas are off limits for that shit. We all agreed.”
“I’m fucking with you, Carp. Get a grip.” He smacked me across the chest.
Neither of us wanted to bother with public transportation and hadn’t driven because traffic on Long Island wasn’t much better than in Manhattan, so we opted for a cab home to our girls.