Eastern Lights

by Brittainy Cherry

“How have—”

  “How’s life—”

  We spoke at the same time then nervously chuckled together.

  My hands slid into my pockets, and I couldn’t shake the nerves I felt. Why was I nervous around her? Why did my heart feel as if it were going to explode out of my chest at any second?

  She nodded my way. “You first.”

  “Oh no, ladies first always.”

  “Still a Southern gentleman, I see.”

  “Some things never change.”

  “A fact that gives me comfort.” She brushed a piece of hair behind her ear, and I watched her moves as if each one gave me my next breath. “How have you been?”

  “Good, good. Same ole, same ole.”

  “All work, no play still?”

  I chuckled. “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” I walked over to the rooftop railing, placed my hands against it, and stared out into the night. The city lights were vibrant as the hustle and bustle sounds of New York stayed loud. I’d never imagined those sounds would be something I fell in love with. Aaliyah joined me in staring out into the night.

  “What about you?” I asked. “How have you been? Have all your dreams come true?”

  “Not all, but I’m closer. I was made junior editor at my company. One step closer to senior editor, but…” Her face grew somber as her words trailed off.

  “But what?”

  She shrugged. “I recently gave my two weeks’ notice. With Jason getting the position in California, we’ll be moving out that way, so I couldn’t keep my job.”

  “It’s your dream job, right? At that company?”

  “Yes. But…as a superhero once taught me, you can’t have the best of both worlds. So, I chose the dream family over the dream career.”

  She said those words as if she wanted to believe them, but her slight tone made me think she didn’t. Or maybe it was just wishful thinking. I didn’t know why, but it made my skin crawl thinking she was throwing away her shot at her future for a man like Jason—a man who would, without a doubt, let her down. I knew he would let me down over time, too, but that was a business risk I was willing to take to achieve a future goal.

  With Aaliyah, she didn’t get any prize from him ruining her life. I had no doubt he’d leave her world in shambles, and he wouldn’t even blink twice.

  “You think I’m crazy,” she said, tilting her head in my direction.

  “What? No.”

  She nodded. “Yeah, you do. You don’t have the best poker face. Remember? I’m good at reading people. I get it. Career has always been at the forefront of your dreams, so I completely understand why you think it’s insane for me to choose a family life over a job. But in my world, a family has always been my biggest dream.”

  “I understand completely,” I told her, and I did. I had no problem with Aaliyah wanting a family, especially when I knew she’d grown up without one herself. Yet I wished it was with anyone but Jason.

  He created more tragedies than happily ever afters.

  “I think it’s great, Red, that you want a family.” I meant that, too. I wanted her to have everything she’d ever wanted from this world. “How did you and Jason meet?”

  “It’s funny, really. I met him through a matchmaker—also known as his mother.” She laughed a little and leaned on the railing. “Marie was a regular at the coffee shop where I worked. Two years ago, not long after I met you, I went through a tough situation, and Marie was there to help me. After that, we grew closer. She had me join her book club, we started building a good bond. She pushed Jason and me together, and the rest is history.”

  “Marie and Walter are great people.”

  “Yeah. Between you and me, I think I fell in love with Jason’s parents before him. Some days, I swear I love his mother more than I love him,” she joked. “But that’s only when he drinks.”

  I didn’t comment on her statement because anything I said would’ve been negative. I had no positive thoughts about her future husband, so I bit my tongue to avoid making her feel bad.

  “How long have you two been together?”

  “A year and a half.”

  I blew out a heavy breath. “That’s a quick turnaround.”

  “Yeah. I understand people thinking that, but honestly, life is short. I don’t want to spend however much time I have left waiting for things to happen. I want to embrace every single second.”

  I placed my hands against my chest and laughed. “As someone who is invested heavily in the stock market for the long-term, the idea of a quick turnaround is terrifying to me.”

  “I guess that’s something different about us, Cap. You’re living for tomorrow while I’m living for today.”

  “I hope today’s good for you, Red.”

  She smiled. “I hope tomorrow’s even better for you.” She looked down at the statement gold band watch and groaned. “Speaking of living for today, I should probably get back inside.”

  She was frowning, and that made me sad for her. “You don’t want to interact with those people down there, do you?”

  “How did you know?”

  “Don’t forget, you weren’t the only one who knew how to read people. Rich people can be a lot sometimes, especially some of the ones in there. Rude, invasive—”

  “Total dicks,” she added in.

  I laughed. “Exactly.”

  “Between you and me, I really don’t want to go back in there. It feels like I’m being tossed into the shark tank and I don’t know how to swim. They are just so…so…ugh! Mean. For no reason.”

  “Oh, there’s definitely a reason.”

  “And what’s that?”

  “You intimidate them.”

  She laughed. “What? No way. What’s there to be intimidated by? I’m nothing special. Those people in there have it all.”

  “It’s all fake in there. Between you and me, a majority of those individuals likely hate their lives, hate their spouses, or hate themselves. It’s probably driving them crazy to see someone like you coming in and showing them something they haven’t experienced in a long time.”

  “And what exactly am I showing them?”

  “Your authentic self. They are envious of how real you are, so don’t let them get in your head too much.”

  She sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. “I just wish I had more time to breathe out here to build up the courage not to let them get to me.”

  “Take more time to breathe up here. I’ll cover for you if anyone asks where you are.”

  “You’ll do that for me?”

  “Of course. Without question. I’ll say you were talking to some big, impressive person.”

  She reached forward, took my hand in hers, and squeezed it. “Thank you, Connor.” She paused. “Connor…I really like your name.”

  I smirked. “I think I love yours more.”

  She didn’t pull her hand back right away, and I wondered if she felt it, too—the heat that began to race throughout my veins. When she did let go, the chills returned to me.

  I gave her a half-smile then nodded in her direction before turning to walk away.

  “Connor! Wait!” she called out. I looked back to see her hurrying in my direction. She slid out of my jacket and held it out toward me. “Thank you for keeping me warm.”

  10

  Connor

  “Have you seen Aaliyah?” Jason asked, walking over and patting me on the back.

  It was clear that since the last time I saw him, he’d had a few more drinks. If there was anything you could count on with Jason, it was taking everything a step too far.

  “Did you see her?” he slurred. He was drunk. When Jason was drunk, he repeated himself and frequently brushed his finger against the side of his nose. I hated that I was learning his small habits because whenever he did them, they irked me.

  “I haven’t,” I replied, lying on Aaliyah’s behalf. Jason grimaced, and I couldn’t help but notice. “What is it?”

  “Nothing. I was
talking to Trevor Jacobs and he mentioned how crazy it is that I’m getting married, which got me thinking…” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Aaliyah is pretty young.”

  “She’s mature, though.” Everyone Jason had dated was younger than him. He had that way about him. I had food older than some of his exes in my pantry. If anything, Aaliyah seemed too old for him, because she was around our age. He wasn’t really robbing the cradle with Aaliyah.

  “Do you think she’s too young, though?”

  “No, I don’t. Even if she were, it’s a bit late to be asking that, don’t you think?”

  He grimaced.

  “You’re thinking too much, Jason. You’re drunk. Stop thinking so much.”

  “Yeah…it will be fine.” He nodded somberly to himself. “Have you seen Aaliyah lately? She’s so damn unsocial.” He asked me about her location as if he had already forgotten he’d asked me that question twice.

  I parted my lips to lie once more, but I was cut off.

  “I’m right here.”

  Jason and I both turned around to see Aaliyah. She looked refreshed and well-rested. I assumed a few moments of fresh air had been exactly what she needed to clear her head while spending the night with some of the worst humans on the planet.

  “Babe, where were you? I thought you said you’d be back in five minutes, and that was like an hour ago. Where were you that whole time?” Jason repeated, his brows knit with concern.

  “Oh, I, uh”—she fumbled with her words—“I was talking to, uh…”

  “She was talking to Daniel Price,” I told Jason, covering for Aaliyah. Her eyes locked with mine, and she smiled.

  “Oh? Is that so?” Jason asked, perking up a bit. “He’s one of the people I wanted you to meet. That’s great.”

  “Oh yeah, totally,” Aaliyah said, her cheeks turning red. It was so clear that she was guilty, though Jason was too wasted to pick up on the clues to that. “Daniel was very nice.”

  “Nice?” Jason snickered, stunned. “Never in my life have I heard someone describe him as nice.”

  He was right. Daniel was a rat.

  “Maybe nice wasn’t the right word. Maybe, um, intriguing?” she corrected.

  Jason laughed even more. “Intriguing? Are we talking about the same Daniel Price?”

  “I meant, well…” She started to stumble over her words as she rubbed her hand up and down her arm. Her nerves were getting the best of her.

  “Knowledgeable,” I spat out. “I’m sure Aaliyah meant he was knowledgeable.”

  She nodded. “Yes, that’s what I meant. He knew a lot about…a lot. Like all things. Daniel knew so much about—”

  I cleared my throat loudly, catching Aaliyah’s eyes. I shook my head slightly.

  Don’t push it.

  She stopped talking.

  Jason didn’t notice anything at all.

  “Perhaps it’s a good time to shut everything down for the night,” I mentioned, patting Jason on the back. “We have a few busy weeks ahead of us.”

  Jason nodded. “Perhaps you’re right. I’ll go say good night to a few people, and then we can wrap it all up.” He hurried off, and Aaliyah moved in closer to me.

  “Thank you for that, for covering for me,” she said. “I’m a pretty crappy liar. I don’t have much practice with it.” She laughed, combing her hands through her hair.

  “Stay in this room long enough, and you can pick up some tips from anyone here.”

  “I don’t know if that’s a good thing. So, um…” Aaliyah rocked back and forth on her heels. She was nervous around me. I felt the same around her. “Before I came over here, I ran into Walter, and he said Jason is staying at your place the night before the wedding?”

  My insides cringed. “That’s the plan.” Not my plan, but alas.

  “Perfect, because, well, you know the rule—the bride can’t see the groom before the wedding and all.”

  I nodded once.

  A part of me wanted to ask her why Jason. A part of me wanted to know how she’d been and if her dreams had come true. Another part wanted to tell her not to marry the man crashing in my guest room in a few days. I wanted her to run, wanted her to find someone she deserved. I wanted her to fall out of love with him.

  Instead, I turned to Aaliyah and said, “You should probably catch up with Jason to say your goodbyes.”

  “Oh.” She stood taller, and I wished I could read her thoughts. “Yeah, of course. Okay. It was good seeing you again Ca—Connor.”

  I smiled at her almost calling me Captain. Hell, I wanted to call her Red.

  It wasn’t my place, and I shouldn’t have said it, but the words left my mouth before I could stop them. “Are you happy?”

  She tilted her head, and confusion swirled in her eyes as she tried to comprehend the words that’d left my mouth. I shouldn’t have said anything, but how was I not going to say anything? She was about to tie her life to a loser who didn’t deserve her. Sure, I didn’t know the state of their relationship, and I didn’t know if she was the woman who could magically change a manwhore into a househusband, but the odds were against her on that. No matter how good a woman could be, a bad man would always mistreat her and try to devalue her strengths to make himself feel bigger.

  There was nothing big about Jason. He was a small, small man with an unstable mind. There was no way he’d be deserving of Aaliyah’s love.

  “Am I happy?” She repeated the question, as if hearing her own voice would make it clearer. She smoothed her hands over her dress, and I watched as she did it because every time her hands moved across her figure, I wanted to see exactly where they’d go.

  “I’m getting married in a few weeks,” she said, smiling. That smile…I remembered that smile, the one that made others want to smile along with it. “What’s there to be sad about?”

  I nodded. If she was happy, I was ecstatic for her. Okay, maybe not ecstatic. Not in the least.

  Run, Red, run!

  I pushed out a broken grin as I slid my hands into the pockets of my slacks. “Good. I’m glad. The best of luck with everything.”

  “Thank you.”

  I turned to walk away and was surprised when she called out my name. I looked back to her, and her eyes held a bit of worry. Did she know? Did she know she was about to make a big mistake?

  “Yes?” I asked.

  “Can you, um…it sounds silly, but can you make sure Jason doesn’t drink too much the night before the wedding? He doesn’t really know his limit at times, and I’d hate for him to be too hungover. Ya know, big day and all.”

  Fuck. She was really going to marry that man.

  I gave her that fake smile again. “Of course.”

  Relief hit her, and at least I was able to give her some comfort. “Thank you, Connor. That means a lot to me.”

  Are you happy, Red?

  I wanted to ask her again, but this time, I wanted to really focus on her eyes because those eyes had a way of telling the stories her lips seemed to refuse to reveal.

  As she turned to walk away, without thought I reached out and grabbed her by the forearm. “Red, wait.”

  She appeared confused by my sudden action. I was confused by it myself, but I didn’t let go. My fingers stayed glued to her arm as my lips parted.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “Please don’t.”

  “Please don’t what?”

  “Marry him.”

  Her eyes grew dull as the words hit her ears. She stumbled back and pulled her arm away from me, staring as if I’d slapped her right across the face. I didn’t want to make her feel that way. I didn’t want her to look at me as if I were a complete stranger, but she did Because I was a stranger.

  That hurt more than I could’ve expected it to.

  “Aaliyah, come on, we’re leaving,” Jason called out with a tone I didn’t like. Shit. I hated all of his tones, but I loathed how he used them to order her around.

  She kept her stare on me, appearing hurt by my
insane, but warranted, request. Her eyes stayed with me as she spoke to him. “I’m coming.”

  And with that, she left.

  11

  Connor

  It had been two weeks since I told Aaliyah to not marry my business partner, and I still stood by my request. The day before Jason’s wedding, I learned that he was even more of a trash human than I could’ve imagined. I wasn’t able to stop him from drinking because he showed up to my house already drunk and high. He came five hours later than he was supposed to and crashed in my guest room.

  Then came the morning, when I realized how much I truly hated him.

  Jason Rollsfield was, without a doubt, a piece of shit. That was nothing new to me. Still, when I woke on his wedding day, I was somewhat shocked at the level of shittiness he’d proven himself to be.

  I woke up early in the morning to the sound of something shattering. I sat up straight in my bed, shaken up a bit from the sudden crash, when I heard two voices. That was almost more alarming than the sound of the crash.

  “Shh! Don’t wake him,” Jason said, causing me to wonder exactly who he was speaking to in my house. What kind of person invited others into a home that wasn’t theirs? Jason, of course. I couldn’t wait until this man moved out to California to run the branch there. Sure, I had my fears of him screwing up, but I wanted him as far away from me as possible.

  My curiosity pulled me out of bed, and I walked into the living room space, where I found three things that stressed me out. First, my top-of-the-line bottle of whiskey that’d cost me hundreds, the one I was saving for when I closed the deal on my passion project, sat on the kitchen countertop, opened and almost empty. Second, an expensive lamp a client had gifted me for our closing deal on their property was on the floor shattered into a million pieces. Lastly, Rose.

  Yep, that was right. My new intern, who was pretty much a day over nineteen, was standing next to the broken lamp in my living room. When she looked up and noticed me noticing her, she froze like a deer in headlights. Her eyes bugged out and her skin paled. I wasn’t sure which looked more damaged—her or the lamp. Her brown hair was tangled and wild. She was wearing Jason’s blazer from the night before, and if she was wearing shorts of any kind, they were too short to notice. All I saw was bare legs—bare legs I had no want or need to witness because she was my fucking intern.