Reed
Ican’t say I was surprisedto run into my mystery woman from earlier. This was a large resort, but somehow I’d known we’d see each other again. I just didn’t know she’d be part of the wedding. I wasn’t sad about that though. We’d be around each other all weekend and that would make it way easier to get to know her.
I mentally ran through what I knew about April’s mother. Jonathon had told me that she lived in New York City, the same as me. He’d mentioned that she and April had been estranged for many years after her parents divorced. I didn’t recall hearing what had happened to cause the estrangement.
I appreciated that she didn’t tell everyone at the table about our little run-in earlier. I was still embarrassed about it.
Erika looked beautiful tonight. She was wearing a cute dress with cherries on it, and her long brown hair was styled around her face. She looked soft and feminine and when our eyes met earlier, my cock had twitched in interest.
I watched her as we waited for our dinners to arrive. She ordered a soda water, ignoring the wine bottle that was passed around the table, and chatted with my sister Renee. Every so often, Erika glanced at me from the corner of her eye.
My sister caught me staring at Erika and raised an eyebrow at me curiously, but I ignored her.
It was a fairly small group: the bride and groom, my sister, my nephew Mark and his girlfriend, my niece Tammy, April’s father Jack and his wife, plus Erika, and myself. I was pleased to see that Erika seemed to have a cordial relationship with her ex-husband and his wife. I knew that wasn’t often the case.
We ordered dinner, chatting while we all ate. Well, most of us were chatting. Erika was mostly quiet unless someone asked her a direct question. I wondered if she was shy or uncomfortable or both.
The restaurant was known for its locally sourced grass-fed beef, and we all ordered different cuts of steak or thick juicy burgers. Except for Erika. She ordered some kind of large salad with grilled chicken on it, carefully slicing it up and eating in small, deliberate bites.
Feeling me watching her, she glanced up and I met her gaze. Her eyes widened slightly as we stared at each other, the rest of the room falling away. Erika looked a little confused, and I wondered if it was because she was reacting to the strong pull between us the same way I was. I’d never felt anything like this before, surely I couldn’t be alone in how I was feeling?
I heard a chuckle and finally looked away. Renee, April, and Jonathon were all watching us, their gazes speculative. Thankfully, the waitress came to take the plates away, pulling the attention away from us.
When dinner was over, Jack and his wife got up to leave, and my sister did as well, saying she was tired and wanted to go back to her room.
“We’re leaving too,” Mark told us. His girlfriend and sister Tammy pushed away from the table with him. “We’ll be in Franny’s Barn if anyone wants to join us.”
Seeing our confusion, he added, “It’s where the dancing is. April, Jonathon, you should join us later.”
Erika set her napkin down on the table. “I should go back to my cabin.”
“Please stay for a while, Mom,” April asked.
Erika lowered back into the chair as the others walked away, leaving the two of us alone with her daughter and my nephew.
“So Reed,” April started, “You and my mom probably have a lot in common.”
Erika looked skeptical but didn’t say anything.
“What kind of work do you do, Erika?” I asked.
She paused. I’d noticed that she seemed to take a moment to think before she talked.
“I’m a certified alcohol and drug counselor,” she replied. “And you?”
“I work in finance.”
Erika gave me a long look but didn’t add anything. To be fair, a lot of people’s eyes glazed over when they heard that I worked with money.
“You’re both native New Yorkers, and you both are runners,” April announced. “Mom did the New York City Marathon last year.”
I was impressed.
“You got in? That’s so cool. I’ve heard it’s tough to get accepted.”
The race was notoriously hard to get into. So many people wanted to run it there was a lottery or minimum qualifying times for entry.
Another pause.