Braden’s features grew taut. “Jesus, babe, you’ve no idea how sorry I am.”
I watched in silence as he yanked on his sweater and pulled on his socks and shoes.
And without looking at me once, without a backward glance, he strode out of my apartment as if he couldn’t bear to be around me a moment longer.
The Sister Friend
In an effort to avoid places I’d hung out with Braden, I decided to get my coffee fix in Old Town at Black Medicine. I had my e-reader out and was enjoying an Americano when an unfamiliar voice said, “Is this seat taken?”
I glanced up from my e-reader to find a tall, attractive blond woman around my age smiling down at me. Looking around I could see all the tables were taken, a few by single patrons like myself. “Uh … sure.”
She gave me a bright, beaming smile that was so charming, I found myself smiling back at her. I didn’t know how to continue as she slid into the seat opposite me and sipped at her green tea. Should I be polite and start a conversation, or would she be cool if I continued to read my book?
“What are you reading?” she said, making the decision for me.
I noticed her eyes and I felt a jolt of familiarity shoot down my spine. Her eyes were pale. Pale ice blue.
Like Braden’s.
I scrutinized her, trying to look for other similarities, but that was all I could find. Feeling silly, I shook off my wayward thoughts of Braden. It had been a month since he’d walked out of my apartment and I hadn’t heard from him. Not that I’d expected to.
But I missed him, and I craved his company. Every time I walked out of my apartment, I was hyperaware of my surroundings, actively searching for him. If I saw a man’s head bobbing inches above the crowd, my heart would falter in my chest. Then he’d turn and it would inevitably be some stranger. Disappointment and relief would slam over me with such force, I’d feel fatigued after it.
He was literally causing me adrenaline spikes and crashes with his mere absence.
I was looking for him everywhere, even in strange women’s faces apparently.
“Uh …” I shook the damn man out of my head. “I’m reading Lauren Bacall’s autobiography.”
“I’ve never been much for autobiography reading.” She sipped at her tea. “I’m more of a tearjerker romance kind of girl.”
“You like to be emotionally manipulated by a writer?” I teased.
She laughed. “Exactly!”
I caught sight of the giant rock on her ring finger nestled next to a wedding band rimmed with tiny diamonds. Wowzer. The engagement ring could take an eye out.
The woman noted my study and waved her hand. “My husband. He wanted other men to notice the ring.”
“Possessive sort?”
“He does like me a great deal.”
I laughed. “I’m glad to hear it.”
Quite abruptly, her smile dropped. “I was going to leave. I just popped in to get a green tea to go and then I saw you. I recognized you from a picture on my brother’s phone.”
Her words stopped my breath.
I knew who she was.
“I’m Ellie Sutherland, formerly Carmichael.” She held out her hand and dazedly, I shook it.
“How can I help you, Ellie?”
“Jocelyn, right?”
“Joss.”
“Joss.” She grimaced. “I know this is so strange of me to plonk myself down beside you and start chatting to you like a stalker … I … felt I should.”
“Oh?”
“I know it doesn’t make sense but I promise I’m not a stalker.”
“Good to know.”
We stared at each other. And then Ellie said, “He misses you.”
I felt like she’d wrapped her arms around my ribs and squeezed so hard they’d cracked under the pressure. Instead of answering, I looked into my coffee cup.
“Braden’s never really spoken to me about relationship problems before. Not until you. He cared a great deal for you, Joss.”
“Are you here to make me feel worse than I already do?”
Her mouth parted in surprise and she flushed a little. “Braden said you were blunt.”
“Among other things, apparently.”
“Yes. That’s how I knew you were different from the others. You made him different. You made him how he used to be. It was nice to see … while it lasted.”
“Look, Ellie, I—”
“My husband Adam has somehow managed to talk me into leaving our son with him alone for boys’ night. Let’s grab some Indian food and a couple of beers and talk.”
I didn’t know what to say to Braden’s sister. Frankly, if she were anyone else, I’d think her a lunatic. However, there was something genuinely open-hearted about Ellie that made her request seem less insane.
“We don’t know one another.”
“That’s the whole point of girls’ night,” she teased.
“I think … it would be a little weird if you and I tried to be friends.”
“Not at all. I love moody, sarcastic, intimidating people. They don’t make me at all uncomfortable.”
I laughed because I couldn’t help myself. “And I’m supposed to agree to girls’ night after being called moody and sarcastic?”
“Well, aren’t you?”
“Fair enough,” I ceded, and then I sighed. “Why do you really want to have girls’ night, Ellie?”
Her eyes, eyes so like Braden’s, filled with sympathy. From anyone else, that look would’ve unleashed anger within me. Instead all I felt was sad and alone. Especially when she answered, “Because from what Braden tells me, you could use a friend.”
“Did he put you up to this?”
“No.”
“Then really why are you here?”
“I already told you why. It was pure coincidence but now that we’re here … I’m intrigued to know more. You
only gave Braden half the story and my chronic nosiness can’t cope with only knowing half the story.”
“If I didn’t tell Braden the whole story, why do you think I’ll tell you?”
Our eyes met and held, and I felt a strange connection between us that I couldn’t understand. “Because everyone needs someone to talk to.”
Despite not believing she’d given me her true motive for being here, I found myself drawn to Ellie Sutherland. I told myself it was because I was feeling lonely.
Yet the truth lay deep down inside of me.
I missed Braden and I wanted to be connected to him again. If I couldn’t be around him, then maybe Ellie was the next best thing.
I sighed, giving in to the idea, and flicked my eyes over her. “You know your sweater is inside out, right?”
***
“So your kid is called William?” I said as I dug into my korma.
We were sitting on the couch in my living room, surrounded by beers and Indian food.
Ellie nodded. “Braden told you.”
“Yeah. I forgot how old he is, though.”
“He’s only fifteen months.” She pulled out her phone and showed me a picture of her husband holding their adorable baby boy.
“He’s a cutie.”
“I know.” She sighed happily. “William is cute too.”
I rolled my eyes at her joke. “So from what Braden told me, Adam is his best friend. That must have been interesting.”
“More than you can imagine. But we didn’t come here to talk about me, did we? Let’s talk about you. Get it all out.”
I narrowed my eyes. “If I wanted to talk to someone, I would’ve gone to a shrink by now.”
In answer, Ellie looked around my living room. It was cozy and warm but the picture frames in the room contained only art. Her speculative look made me squirm in my chair. Braden had noted the lack of family photos too.