by Claire Adams
“I’m calling because your mother insisted that I apologize,” he said. “And, she’s right. I do owe you an apology.”
I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel while I weighed out his words.
“I doubt Mom convinced you to apologize,” I said, warily. “And, I doubt that you mean your apology.”
“You are wrong, then.”
“Of course, I am. I am always wrong according to you.”
“Noah.” I stopped at the sharpness in my father’s voice. “Your mother and I haven’t been the best examples in your life. We get that, but she’s also right. You can’t blame us for everything that has gone wrong in your life on us. You’re thirty, and that makes you a grown man.”
“This sounds like the beginning of a lecture,” I pointed out. My good mood was starting to swelter away in the heat.
“It isn’t a lecture. All I’m trying to say is that no matter what you do in your life, your mother and I will always be supportive of it.”
Chewing on the inside of my cheek, I smoothed my fingers along the leather stitching on the steering wheel.
My father had never once apologized for anything he said or did. I appreciated the forced sentiment, but I had a suspicion that there was a double motive for this apology. He never talked to my mother, either, and when they did, it always ended up in an explosive argument that lasted for months.
“I don’t know what you’re up to,” I said, slowly, “but I appreciate the apology.”
My father sniffed indelicately into the phone. “You assume that I have some sort of double motive for apologizing to you?”
“Sort of. Can you blame me?”
“I guess not,” he said. “Your mother and I had a surprisingly decent conversation the other day about how your life has changed. She got me to see some things that I didn’t want to accept. If you’re truly happy, Noah, doing what you are doing, then I will support you no matter what.”
A smile stretched across my lips.
“Don’t try too hard to sound like you meant it,” I teased, but a part of me let out a breath of relief. The pressure from my father lifted off my shoulders finally, after years of it. “I know you wanted me to keep going with rugby, but I can’t do it again. It’s only fair, considering what happened.”
“I suppose so, but it’s your life, Noah. You do what you need to do to make yourself happy. I’ll try my best not to make any judgments.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I rolled my eyes in exasperation. He would still make comments. “I’m proud of you and Mom both for not biting each other’s heads off during this conversation.”
He chuckled deeply into the phone. “People can change over time. Your mother and I were never right for one another. That’s why it never worked.” Silence stretched on between us while I waited for him to continue on. “Your mother said that she met Iris last week. She said the two of you seem happy with one another.”
“We are,” I said. “Iris and I love each other. It’s a first for me.”
“It is, so don’t try to second guess it for any reason.”
“I’ll try not to.”
“And, I’d like to meet her soon, if possible.”
“We can do that.”
The front door opened as I arranged a day to meet up with my father for the three of us to have lunch. I looked up to find Iris standing there in a pair of tight black shorts and a simple white tank top that showed off her petite form. Her wavy hair was clipped back as she stepped outside to wave at me cheerfully.
I knew then what Hunter had meant when he talked about Livvy. There was nothing better than coming home to the one person that was your greatest love and best friend wrapped up into one. Those wild days of taking anyone to bed with me were long gone. This was my life now, and I didn’t mind it at all.
And I had Iris right next to me. I couldn’t ask for anything else.
Epilogue
Iris
Two years later
Warm sunlight spilled out on the back patio when I stepped out into the summer morning carrying two cups of coffee. I carried them carefully to where Noah sat on the patio porch stoop, long legs bent at the knees casually as he gazed out across the backyard.
My heart lifted at the sight of him. Two years had flown by us, but I still never got tired of waking to find him out on the back patio shirtless and allowing the sunlight to warm him up.
I reached around him to place the coffee cup in his hand before taking a seat next to him on the patio.
“Thanks,” he said, smiling at me. “I appreciate it.”
“You’re welcome,” I said, returning the smile. “What are you doing out here?”
He tilted his head back to look up at the cloudless sky above us. “Enjoying the summer heat after the bitch of a winter and spring we just had.”
Winter had been a brutal season this year. It snowed non-stop followed by arctic temperatures that made it into history books. That had continued all the through the spring months until the approach of summer finally won a few days ago.
My shoulders were already burnt from spending the past few days outside with Noah cleaning up the yard, but the heat felt delicious as I leaned my head onto his hot shoulder.
“Amen to that,” I said, eyes slipping closed. “I thought summer would never come with the weather we were having.”
“You don’t have any clients this morning, right?”
I sighed blissfully. “No, thankfully. I kept this weekend completely free to enjoy it with you.”
“Good,” he said. I felt his warm lips press against my head in a kiss. “Remember when we thought you wouldn’t be able to graduate two years ago? Times have changed, my dear. For the better.”
I didn't like to think about everything that had happened two years ago. It was still a painful memory at the back of my mind, despite how much Noah and I had grown from it.
We were one of the “lucky” couples from what I overheard when people talked about us. We had certainly gone about things counter clockwise, but at the end of the day, we both had each other. That was all that mattered.
“Yes,” I said, opening my eyes to take in the green grass. A few patches were still yellow, but the melting snow had helped with watering. “It’s funny how things worked out the way they did. No one thought we’d stay together.”
“Only two people did,” Noah corrected gently. “If I remember, Jen and Hunter were our biggest supporters throughout that time.”
I smiled at the mention of our two closet friends. Jen would be graduating from PHU next year with her English degree. Both Noah and I planned to be in attendance, despite our feelings for Miles.
“They were,” I agreed. “Jen graduates next year. It’ll feel weird going back to that campus after what happened.”
“Just tell Miles to fuck off,” Noah said, not bothering to hide the contempt in his voice. “That’s what I’ve done repeatedly whenever he reaches out about the cursed rugby team. Deleting emails doesn’t even work anymore after two years.”
I laid a hand gently on his tanned forearm to coax him to look up at me. “First off, I know you don’t look at the rugby team that way. You still love that sport. Secondly, he still emails you about that?”
“Every couple of weeks he sends one offering different prices for it.” Noah grinned at me suddenly. “I’ve heard from Kale that Miles’ job is on the line. I think he is trying to get a championship under his belt before he’s booted out in hope that it saves his ass.”
“Could be,” I said, shrugging my shoulders. “None of that would surprise me if it was the truth. He’s greedy for authority.”
Which was humorous now, considering I had gone on to get a degree in accounting while Noah signed a publishing deal with a company in New York, and also accepted a teaching position at the University of Utah. Back then, Miles had seemed like the only authority in the world capable of making our lives a living hell.
“We should go,” Noah said, resting a hand heavily on
my bent knee. “We promised your mother we would be over for lunch today.”
“Right,” I said, and looked away when he turned to look at me. I knew that would catch his attention, but I couldn’t help it. It was still an old habit to dread going to my mother’s house.
He arched an eyebrow when I turned to look at him. “What’s with that tone of voice?”
“I don’t know,” I sighed out, shrugging helplessly. “Old habit to feel dread.”
“Your mother has been sober for over two years, remember? She’s been doing well for a long time now.”
Two years of recovery and sobriety. I still couldn’t believe that my mother had accepted the offer of help when Noah called in a few favors to a clinic in California. “I’m tired of feeling like this,” she had told me at the time. “I want to break free from this hell.”
And that was exactly what she had done after 60 days in rehab. I had been apprehensive with her coming out, but she’d never picked up a bottle again. My mother was slowly coming back to the person I believed her to be and missed dearly. It was nice picking up the phone to call her about something and have a lucid conversation.
“I know. It’s just a habit, is all,” I said, getting to my feet. “Let’s get showered and ready to go before we’re late to this luncheon you two planned behind my back. I still think you two are being secretive over something.”
Noah flashed me a dizzying grin as he rose to his feet gracefully. He tapped me on the nose playfully in passing.
“No secrets between us, darling. Our number one rule, remember?”
I followed him skeptically into the cool house. I had no idea what my mother and Noah were up to, but they were spending an awful a lot of time together whenever I was at my job as a certified public accountant. They met up randomly during the days whenever I was too busy to figure out what they were up to.
Two hours later, thanks to Noah’s frisky grabs in the showers turning into something more, we pulled up into my mother’s driveway with wide smiles on our faces. The front yard was freshly mowed, and the smell of cut grass thick in the air when I stepped out with a bowl of salad in my arms. Sprinklers were misting at the corners of the yard as I walked up the pathway to the front door.
I knocked once before stepping inside. I still found myself bracing for a mess of rotten food and dirty dishes, but not this time. Not for the past two years. The floors were freshly vacuumed, candles were burning on the coffee table, and everything was neat and tidy. I let out a relieved breath as Noah slipped by me to head straight toward the kitchen where my mother finished seasoning a few steaks with salt and pepper.
“You’re both running a bit late today,” she commented, a smile tugging at her red lips.
She embraced me when I set the bowl of salad on the kitchen counter. While still very petite, it was a relief to feel meat on my mother’s body when I hugged her back. I inhaled deeply to only smell perfume and summer air in the strands of her wavy hair that hung loose about her shoulders.
“Noah took forever in the shower,” I explained, and ignored the look he sent searing in my direction. “What can we do to help you out, Mom?”
“I’ve got it all prepared here,” she said. “Why don’t you two go out on the porch? I’ll get you us some coffee to enjoy while we are out there.”
“Sure. Let me-” I cut off when I turned to find Noah winking at my mom, who returned the gesture.
No secrets my ass. The two of them were scheming something together like I had suspected for the past few months. Neither one of them wanted to admit it, either. Whenever I brought it up to Noah, he either changed the subject entirely, or told me to stop being paranoid about it.
Irritation swept through me when they both looked at me with guarded expressions. “What are you two up to?” I demanded. “I know you two have been planning something because for the past two months, I’ve heard you both whispering to one another whenever I stepped out of the room.” I wagged a finger at them. “And don’t think I didn’t notice you two meeting up the other day in town. You’re lucky I had a client in my office, or else I would’ve followed you both to figure out what is going on.”
“Nothing,” Noah said. He grabbed ahold of my elbow and pulled me toward the sliding glass doors. “Why do you always have to be suspicious of everything we do?”
I ignored my mother’s laughter. “Because you two are up to something,” I said, defensively. “I know it. I don’t like secrets, Noah. You know that.”
“I know that.”
“So, what is the secret then?” I asked, gazing at them both. “What are you two planning behind my back? My birthday was four months ago, and-”
“Just be quiet for a moment,” Noah cut in over the tirade, tugging me towards the patio. “Trust me. Have I ever done something that made you question me?”
I relaxed at that good point. “No. I just don’t like being left in the dark here.”
“You won’t be in the dark in a minute.”
He opened the sliding glass door and pulled me out by my hand, despite me dragging my feet in the process. I opened my mouth to reply, but stopped short when something soft brushed against my bare toes. I glanced down to the find rose petals, millions of them, scattered along the entire patio.
Speechless, I looked up at Noah as he grinned widely at me. Patio lights twinkled in the trees, swaying slightly when a warm breeze filtered through the backyard. The smell of jasmine and roses filled my lungs.
“What is going on?” I asked, breathlessly.
My heart hammered hard in my chest when Noah clasped both my hands in his. Pressing a tender kiss to them, he looked up at me intensely while we stood in the center of the patio with rose petals brushing against our toes.
“We went into this relationship backwards,” Noah said, softly. “Two years ago, you walked into my classroom, and I knew right there and then you were going to be a part of my life no matter what happened. Everyone tried to bring us down. We didn’t have the best examples in our lives to make relationships work.
“We got through everything together despite people telling us that our relationship would never work. Neither one of us knew what to do when it came to relationships, but we figured it out together along the way.”
Tears filled my eyes instantly when he sank down onto one knee. Breathless from the adrenaline shooting through my veins, I turned to look at my mom in sheer surprise. Tears were flowing down her cheeks, as well, and she nodded encouragingly at me with a watery smile.
“Iris.” I looked back down to take in the small black box in Noah’s palm. My heart threatened to burst open from the joy shooting through me. “I promise to spend the rest of my life figuring out how to keep our relationship working if you would be my wife.”
He opened the box to reveal a sparkling engagement ring. Two years together, and we had figured it out together. I looked down at Noah through the tears in my eyes. There was no one else I ever imagined I could spend the rest of my life with. I loved him more and more every day.
“Yes,” I whispered. “Yes, I’ll be your wife.”
Noah slid the ring onto my finger before rising to his feet. I stared down at it for a moment with a hammering heart and watched the sunlight sparkle off of the large diamond. His arms slid around my waist, and I let myself fall into him as I always did.
We kissed each other as the summer breeze swirled around us. The smell of roses clung to the air, and I knew what the definition of true happiness was right there and then. It was standing there with someone’s hand in your hand, and knowing that everything would be all right, no matter what happened.
It was blind fate like that.
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BAD PROFESSOR
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2016 Claire Adams
CHAPTER ONE
Clarity
I heard my own heels clicking fast across the foyer floor. The next song came over the living room speakers and I breathed a sigh of relief. Addictive rhythms ran through the crowd and grabbed hold of both faculty and students. Other than the occasional tapping toe and slight bounce of the head, it was hard to see, but the party had hit the right tone.
Maybe party wasn't the right word. There was plaid tweed, too many khakis, and a wide array of sweaters. It was definitely an official Landsman College sanctioned gathering. The Dean of Students tried every year to introduce the Honor Council nominees to the faculty in a fun way. This year, fueled by a joke list of movies he was told to watch over the summer, Dean Dunkirk had announced a house party.
Students snuck beers or spiked lemonades in the prerequisite red plastic cups, while faculty drank aged wine or fine spirits out of the same. The music was a mash-up of classic acoustic guitar rock, and toned-down student favorites. I had even moved some of the furniture aside and made hang-out spots with over-sized throw pillows. Ping pong was a big draw on the back, three-season porch. Mason jars of tea lights added a simple elegance and the food was easy, grill-inspired finger foods.
Everything was perfect, and I searched for something to do. I imagined being a full-blown journalist and swept the collegiate crowd again in search of headlines. As I smiled and mingled, I wrote leads in my head.
Cut from the same cloth, student and coach wore the same sweater.
Endless summer, English professor returns from California vacation and continues her taste for Napa wines.