by Emma Vikes
I stared at his outstretched hand, the rain continued to pour over the two of us. “I’m not in the mood for dancing.”
“You were stood up by your date. Your first ever date with a guy because you never had the courage to be with anyone all your life. It sucks,” he said calmly and then I felt his warm hands wrap around my wrists, pulling me up to stand, “but it’s your choice to be stuck in the negative bubble that you’re in or turn it around to something better. So can I have this dance, girl in the orange dress?”
I blinked, letting the memory disperse again and when I looked up, I sucked in a breath, surprised to see Leo standing in front of me. He looked at me, hesitant and uncertain, and in front of him was Max, grinning widely. Slowly, Max said, “Dance with Leo, Momma, please?”
Every part of me screamed to decline and tell Max that I would rather dance with him. But my son looked at me with hopeful eyes, his hand already holding mine and the other holding Leo’s. “Why?”
Max shrugged. “Because...I like...Leo.”
I ruffled his curls, but tugged at my hand, forcing me to stand up. He dragged me and Leo onto the dance floor and then brought our hands together. Leo looked at me, his gray eyes unreadable but he clasped his hand with mine, his other hand wrapping around my waist while mine rested on his shoulder. I looked at anything but at his eyes.
“Ellie.”
Resisting the urge to close my eyes at the sound of his voice saying my name, through gritted teeth, I answered, “What?”
“Look at me.” The dominance rung clear in his voice and I refused to obey. But then I felt a gentle hand on my chin, forcing me to turn my head so our eyes would meet. His gray eyes still remained unreadable for me, but they softened when I finally returned his gaze.
“I’m dancing with you because of Max’s request.”
He nodded his head slowly. “I know. If it were up to you, I know you’d rather slap me than dance with me right now.”
“It’s good that you’re aware of that.”
Leo nodded, spinning me for a moment and when I came back to him, he said, “You used to dream of this, of finding the right love in your early twenties, getting married at twenty-six, and then starting a family with that person.”
I tensed, unsure of where Leo was getting with this. I used to share that dream with him, hoping that he got the message that I wanted it to be him. I was in love and naïve then. Foolish. But I let Leo talk, wanting to know where he was getting with this. “And you wanted it to be with me but I left without any explanation and you found it with someone else.”
My eyebrows furrowed in confusion at the last part and I stared at him. “What?”
Leo cocked his head to the side, a boyish smile on his face. “You found someone, Ellie. And as happy as I am that you did, after last night, I realized that I’d be happier if it’d be me. There’s no ring on your finger yet so I still have a chance.”
I stared at his gray eyes and I could see new-found confidence glistening back at me. His trademark smirk was there again, but it wasn’t made my insides flip. It was the seriousness hidden behind the confidence that was staring straight at me, a sincerity that I used to catch glimpse of before.
“Maybe, for the second time again, maybe it’s really meant to be me.”
CHAPTER 7
Leo
Maybe, for the second time again, it was really meant to be me.
When I saw Megan walking down the aisle in her gorgeous white dress, all I could think of was Eleanor, how she would look in a white gown, flowing and hugging her curves, a veil attached to her head as she walked slowly towards the front of the aisle. Towards me. I couldn’t stop thinking of the wedding that Eleanor used to describe to me when we were still together.
“I want the aisles to be filled with flowers. A spring wedding. Oh my gosh, wouldn’t it be amazing, Leo?” She looked at me, wide-eyed with glee.
“What kind of dress will you be wearing?” I asked her, curious. A lot of people told me that girls would start planning their wedding when they’re ten or twelve. Eleanor seemed like that kind of girl.
She smiled, biting her bottom lip shyly and then grabbed the pencil that rested on the table. She began to sketch on the back of one of her reviewers and then handed it to me shyly. In the drawing, it showed a flowing dress, simple but alluring. The veil was medium-length, and the bride seemed to have her hair in an updo, the bun filled with fresh flowers.
“And I want my groom to wear white,” she whispered, looking at me intently with her golden eyes. I swallowed, feeling the weight of her gaze, knowing why she was staring at me like that. “Crisp-white suit. It’ll be perfect.”
“What if it doesn’t look good on him?”
She tilted her head to the side, her brown hair falling down gently and there was a small smile on her face. “It doesn’t matter. As long as he’s the right person for me. He can wear pink, for all I care. “
It was all I could think of even during the reception. And then Max came to me and pulled me out of my chair, asking me to dance with his mom because she seemed a little sad. I had a feeling that she was upset because of what happened last night. Eleanor had every right to be angry at me because I left her. I couldn’t blame her. I was aware that she thought that maybe it could be me. I was her first love and then I just...I screwed it up because I was scared.
And then all I could think of was trying to do the right things with her, giving it another try. Eleanor was the only girl that I’d been with that I actually cared about. It didn’t matter to me that we never had sex for the five months that we’d been together. We were dating even if neither of us said it out loud. It was as if we both just knew and no matter how much of an asshole I was when it came to girls, I was actually faithful to her.
I didn’t want to admit it then, but Eleanor changed me and then I left and reverted back to my old ways. She was good to me. She was always good to me. And this time, I wanted to be the one that was good to her.
“I’m surprised you’re here for breakfast,” Everett said as he pulled on a shirt, descending down the stairs. His hair was shorter now because Megan had managed to grab a hold of him. It was a good thing I kept mine tied so she wasn’t aware of how long it’d actually gotten now since the last time she cut it.
Rolling my eyes, I pushed the box of Lucky Charms to him and the milk. “You make it sound like we’ve never had breakfast since we moved together.”
Everett’s right eyebrow rose. “You really want me to answer that?”
I munched on my cereal, my eyes focused on Everett. He was on his phone and it was either he was doing work or reading about a scientific breakthrough. I cleared my throat and he looked up at me questioningly. I shrugged, wanting to act nonchalant even when I felt anything but. “So Eleanor’s things are being delivered to her new house here today, huh?”
Everett eyed me. “For someone who you claim was just a past casual sex, you’re awfully concerned about everything that concerns her, Leo.”
“I like her.” The three words were out of my mouth before I could even rethink about saying it. Everett almost dropped his phone, staring at me in shock.
“What did you just say?” Everett asked. His attention was focused solely on me this time. I couldn’t really blame him. Those weren’t the kind of words that you would expect would come out of my mouth.
I swallowed, staring at the lucky charms floating on my milk. “I like Eleanor, okay? I’ve always liked her, differently. It wasn’t just... it wasn’t just sex.”
Everett blinked, once, twice, and then his eyebrows furrowed. “Then why the hell didn’t it work out the first time?”
For a moment, I contemplated whether or not I should tell Everett. Eleanor was my secret. I’d always wanted to keep her as my secret. I didn’t want my brothers to think that there was actually a girl that tamed the Casanova’s heart. But if I wanted to do this right, if I wanted to have another chance with Eleanor, I needed to put myself out there and if I wa
nted Everett’s help, he needed to know my history with her.
“Because I left,” I said quietly, swirling my cereal with the spoon in my hand. I let out a deep breath and looked at Everett evenly. “There was a time before I left for the Amazon that I was with a girl. We were together for almost six months. It was probably the only thing I had that could be considered as a relationship but we never really made anything official.”
Everett licked his lips, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “And how come we never knew about this?”
“Because I kept it a secret. I...I was scared of what I felt for her. For the first time in my life, what I felt for a girl wasn’t just desire.” I couldn’t look at Everett as I said this, still struggling to admit this truth. “I didn’t just want to sleep with her Everett. I wanted to simply sleep for the rest of my life beside her.”
My brother’s gray eyes stared at me intently. “What happened?”
“I had that offer from Maddock. I didn’t...I didn’t tell her. I didn’t know how I was supposed to tell her that I was leaving.”
His eyes flashed with realization as he shook his head, staring at me with disgust. “So you just left her just like that. You didn’t even say goodbye?”
“I would’ve stayed if I did.”
“You were a coward, Leo.”
I swallowed, biting back a harsh retort, knowing that what he just said was true. “That’s why I want to make things right.”
“Didn’t you tell me that she was taken?”
I shrugged. “There’s no ring on her finger so that has to count for something.”
Everett sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Never did in a million years did I think that I’d be having this conversation with you. What the hell made you make up your mind so suddenly?”
There could be a lot of factors that eventually made me come up with this decision but to be honest, I knew I was done for the moment I saw her again. I had made a mistake seven years ago. Leaving her was the biggest mistake I made my entire life. Now she was back and that had to mean something. Now I had the chance to make it right.
I wanted to make it right.
“She was always on my mind, Ev. She was the constant what if. What if she was the risk I took? What if I didn’t go to the Amazon and stayed there with her? What if she’s...”
Suddenly, Everett slapped me and I snapped out of the Eleanor-induced trance that I was in. I glared at my brother and he raised his hands in surrender. “I wanted to make sure that you’re you and you weren’t abducted by aliens because this is all so sudden, Leo.”
I ran a hand through my wild curls. “I let her go before, Ev. And now the universe brought us back together and I still feel the same way about her. She still has the same effect on me and no matter how much the rational part of me tells me that I should stay away from her, I can’t, Everett.”
“Why not?”
“Because I want to take the risk this time. I want to be the man I didn’t have the courage to be last time, Everett.”
“What about the guy that she’s with?” He asked the question but seemed unsure about it. “What about Max’s dad?”
“Maybe he’s been a good father to Max but he’s been crap to Eleanor if he hasn’t thought of putting a ring on it. He should’ve done so the moment they found out she was pregnant. But he didn’t. Hence, I have a chance.”
My brother stared at me long and hard, as if he was trying to find loopholes with my statement but finally, he let out a shaky breath and shook his head. “Elle said that her furniture will be delivered today. She wanted me to just see over how they put things in the house but she’ll be the one to put them in the right places. It’ll be at 10 AM. I’ll just have to get out of work at that time.”
“Let me come, Ev.”
Everett nodded his head slowly. “But you have to promise me that you won’t be like those crazy obsessed guys, Leo. The last thing I want is to have a case in my hands because of you.”
I let out a laugh. “You handle too many cases, Mr. Forensic Scientist.”
Everett left for work at around eight and I decided to develop the photos I took during the wedding, knowing that Megan would nag me about them if I didn’t do them sooner. I was in my dark room, hanging the photos to dry around me and one picture caught my attention. Eleanor and Max. It was during the party on the first day that we went to Chicago. She and Max were outside and he left his shoes at the side which left his feet in his socks and he was stepping on her bare feet and they were walking around the background. Actually, they were dancing and Eleanor had her head thrown back, laughing as Max looked up at her with his toothy grin.
The rest of the pictures I took of Eleanor were mainly candid photos. There were more pictures of her than Megan and Milo. I knew that I shouldn’t have taken pictures of her without her permission because it made me seem like a stalker but she was too beautiful not to capture, even if she was no longer my muse.
By 10 AM, I was already out of the house and driving to Irving Police Department to pick up Everett. He looked dishevelled and flushed when he got in the car and I eyed him as I punched in Eleanor’s new address on the GPS. “You look stress. Bad case?”
Everett shook his head. “They told me that they were hiring someone I could partner with. There have been too many cases lately that they don’t think it’d be wise for me to handle it myself. They want to speed up the process. ”
“So what’s the big deal?”
My brother let out a shaky breath. “I like working alone, Leo.”
A sly smirk made its way on my lips. “I think it’d be fun if they hired a female forensic scientist to pair you up with.”
Everett ignored me, focusing his attention on his phone. “Eleanor and Max will be arriving after lunch. But I can’t be there to wait for them until then.”
My smirk slowly turned into a grin and I looked at my brother. “I can wait for them there.”
“What about your work?”
I shrugged. To be honest, my schedule wasn’t too full this week. It was not a slow season, I just didn’t want to be buried with too much work. “It’s not until tonight. There a vlogger from LA that requested to do a shoot with me and she’s not free until dinner time.”
Everett eyed me. “You sure it’s just a shoot? Because may I remind you, Leo, that you just told me this morning that you’re serious about Eleanor.”
We were a couple of blocks away from Eleanor’s new house. The neighbourhood was nice and I could just imagine Max playing around the neighbourhood. He would love it here. “I am. It’ll be purely professional. You can even come with me and I’ll hook you up with her. You’ve been out of shape lately, Ev.”
Everett narrowed his eyes but didn’t say anything. We arrived at the house and he got out of my car, opening the front door with the keys. “Glad to know that you’re friends with Eleanor enough for her to entrust her keys to you.”
“Probably because she realized that I’m not an asshole like you.”
I whistled slowly. “This asshole is willing to set things right this time.”
“I’ll believe it on your wedding.” I wanted to comment that was too fast but let it slide. We waited for fifteen minutes for the furniture to arrive and helped out with unloading everything. Eleanor didn’t order too much. Just basic things and I had a feeling that she would probably buy a lot more when she’s here. She just wanted to make sure that the basic necessities of a house were already present when they arrive.
Everett left when all of the furniture was unloaded and reminded me that Eleanor and Max were arriving after lunch, probably at 2 PM. While I waited, I assembled the tables and placed the furniture where they were meant to go. I wanted to surprise Eleanor with a furnished house so she could just relax the moment they arrive. That, and I wanted her to know that what I said to her was true.
I wasn’t sure how long I’d been pushing furniture around. Surprisingly, there were carpets and rugs that came with Eleanor’s or
ders so I rolled them on the living room and in the dining table and then placed the light gray L-couch that Eleanor had on top of the beige carpet, and then placed the white coffee table in the center. She had a white console for the TV and I placed it against the wall, making sure that everything looked aesthetically pleasing. The only thing missing in her living room were decorations and I had to resist the urge to head to Target to buy her some.
There was a knock on the door at around 2 PM and I had just finished assembling the bed upstairs. I ran down, trying to make myself look presentable and opened the door with a big smile on my face. “Leo!”
Max jumped in my arms the moment he saw me and I hugged him, kissing the side of his head and then letting him back down on the ground. I looked at Eleanor and cocked my head to the side, grinning. “I think I’d much rather wanted Max’s reaction to yours.”
“What are you doing here?” she asked, eyeing me.
I shrugged and then stretched out my arms. Behind her, I could see the Uber idling outside the house, waiting for us to unload their things. “Welcoming you back to Irving. Welcome home, Ellie.”
She took a cautious step inside, ignoring me and then surveying the new house that she and Max would be living it. We could hear Max upstairs, opening doors and then slamming them shut and then at the top of the stairs, he yelled out, “I...ha-have my o-own...be-bed!”
Eleanor looked at me. “Did you do all this?”
I shrugged, smiling at her shyly this time. “I wanted you to come home to an almost furnished house, Ellie.”
“Leo, if this is about...”
I placed a finger against her lips to shush her. I looked at her golden eyes that were staring up at me wide with surprise. “I meant what I said at the wedding, Ellie. And no matter what you say, you’re not going to change my mind. Now, let me bring your things.”
The driver helped me unload their things from the trunk and I paid him extra, despite Eleanor’s protests. Together, we hauled their suitcases and some boxes that came from Miami inside their new house. Eleanor didn’t ask me to leave and allowed me to help her unload the boxes. I think she was trying to process everything and although it had been three days since the wedding, I hadn’t really hit her up after, so seeing each other like this and telling her that I meant what I said could be a lot to process.