LILY
Halley’s dad looked mad.
I had the impression of a cat that had been dunked in water and come up spitting. Confusion, surprise, and then anger had crossed his face in a matter of seconds. Now it was smoothing out, becoming the blandly charming expression I remembered from our college move-in days. He strode toward me, sliding his phone back into his coat pocket.
“Apologies, Lily. I didn’t see you there.”
He had, though. I’d felt him notice me. I hadn’t realized it was him, but I’d felt eyes sweeping over me with that sixth sense every girl had. “No, I’m the one who should apologize,” I said, trying to regain a sense of equilibrium. “I should have just taken a cab.” I was too embarrassed to admit that I’d been intimidated by the idea. Overwhelmed. That I almost would have rather booked a flight back to Ohio and spent the summer
“No, you shouldn’t have,” Halley’s dad said smoothly, picking up my suitcase as though it held air instead of everything I owned. “I’d never have heard the end of it from my daughter.”
I laughed nervously and fell into step beside him. “I can—” I gestured toward the suitcase.
He snorted and didn’t bother responding. I felt unbelievably tongue tied as we walked in silence to his sleek black Mercedes that probably cost twice what my law degree would. God, I wished Halley was there. I took a deep breath and thought about my bubbly friend who seemed to have never met a stranger. What would she do in this situation?
She’d talk. Breathless sentences, stories that required hardly any audience participation. She’d laugh at herself and make whoever else was there laugh too. I rallied every bit of my nerve and started talking.
It worked, sort of. The terrible silence was broken at least as I told him all about my flight and how excited I was to be in LA and how I was so grateful but also embarrassed because Halley never should have called him, but God he was saving my life.
Halley’s dad nodded, grunted, and smiled in the right places, but I could tell he was only half listening. I had a feeling he was used to slipping into autopilot like this. That was fine with me. I kept one eye on the GPS, watching the time elapse and the distance shrink. I burbled so much that I was thirsty by the time we slipped beneath the city into a parking garage. I hadn’t even noticed the building above it, I’d been so busy talking, but Halley had shown me pictures. I knew a sleek glass building grew tall against the skyline and that from her long, narrow balcony, I’d be able to see the long blue rectangle of the pool surrounded by lounge chairs and planted palm trees.
Despite myself, I started to feel excitement flicker through the nerves I’d felt ever since I boarded the plane. I looked over at Halley’s dad and smiled. He was already getting out of the car, though. The trunk rose behind us, and I saw his large shoulders flex with the effort. So it wasn’t weightless to him after all. I slid out of the car and shouldered my large purse, extending my free hand again.
“Thank you so much–”
“I’ll walk you in,” he said. He’d taken off his sunglasses when we entered the parking garage, and now I could see his eyes–so dark I couldn’t see where the pupils became the iris. God, he was handsome. And there was something devilish in the severity of his pale skin against his black hair and eyes. Halley never tanned either.
Halley.
The reminder of my best friend was like icy water splashing in my face. I couldn’t be checking out her dad. She had nothing but derision for the few women he’d dated while he was raising her. I’d always had a feeling that had more to do with not wanting to share her dad’s attention than anything wrong with the women.
“You don’t have to walk me in,” I tried to insist, but I don’t even know if he heard me. He had turned away and started walking toward the elevator. I had to walk quickly to catch up. The ride to the 30th floor was excruciatingly long. Did he really have to have bought Halley a condo on the top floor? Finally, the elevator doors slid open, revealing a hallway that seemed like it belonged in a five-star hotel. Natural light flooded in from floor-to-ceiling windows on either end of the hallway. It made the wide gray planks of the floor gleam like a dark river running between the cream-colored walls. I followed Halley’s dad as he turned left and walked to the far end. He shifted my suitcase into his left hand and pulled a key fob out of his pocket. I saw the pad flicker from red to green, and then he was pushing open the door.
I think I literally gasped when I followed him in and saw the view, but again he acted as though he hadn’t heard me. He moved quickly, efficiently, setting my suitcase on the inside of the door to the main bedroom and then giving me a quick tour.
“Kitchen, living room, office,” he checked them off in clipped tones, hardly looking at them himself. I couldn’t stop looking. With the exception of maybe his apartment in Paris, I’d literally never been in a place this nice. The neutral gray flooring continued from the outer hallway throughout the floorplan. The kitchen was small, but even I recognized that the appliances were top of the line and the counter was white granite with silver and gold veins shot through. Barstools with thick gold legs and white cushions sat at the bar in lieu of a table. There was an overstuffed pink couch—the biggest spot of color—in the living room, facing the wall that had a flatscreen TV mounted above a long electric fireplace.
I peeked in at the office, which had a full-sized bed against the window and a desk against the wall. When I looked back, Halley’s dad was standing in the kitchen, looking impatient. He quickly wiped the expression from his features, but I was sure I saw it. My nerves flared up again, and I went into bubbly overdrive.
“Thank you so much, again, uh…” I floundered, realizing I had no idea what to call him. In my head, he was always Halley’s dad. Should I call him Mr. Walker? He was going to be my boss after all. But that sounded strange and stiff, like he was as old and grumpy and not…well, hot.
“Call me Con,” he said wryly, like he was reading my thoughts.
My face flushed, hoping he couldn’t really. “Great, thank you so much, Con.” I moved toward him, my sorority party training taking over. Before I could think better of it, I was moving in for a hug. I saw the flicker of surprise on his face, but it was too late to pull out of it. My arms wrapped around his rock-solid midsection. His arms spread, then he rested his hands gingerly on my arms for about half a second before easing back.
“Let Halley know if you need anything,” he said, retreating down the hall. He’d slid his sunglasses back down over his eyes so I couldn’t see his expression. I wished I had something to hide behind, too. I was overcome, first with mortification for hugging him, and then with a breathless sensation of my body tingling everywhere it had come into contact with his.
Even after I heard the door close behind him, I stood in the kitchen for a long time, my thoughts a maelstrom of confusion, embarrassment, and lust all combined, making me feel anxious and strangely excited, and then, suddenly exhausted. I walked into the living room and dropped down on the overstuffed pink sofa. It was the only thing in the condo that felt like Halley. That and the chunky knit blanket hanging over the arm. Halley was always cold. I wasn’t, but I pulled it over me anyway, the cocoon helping to calm my racing heart.
It was going to be a long year.
* * *
Imust have fallen asleep because when my phone began vibrating on the glass coffee table, it jolted me awake. I pushed the blanket back and sat up, reaching for it. I was glad to see Halley’s name on FaceTime, the picture of us at spring break in Miami last year grinning back at me.
“Guess where I am?” I said when I picked up.
“In my condo!” she squealed, seeing it behind me. “It’s so cool to have you there. It makes me want to come visit you.”