“After?”
Looking over at me, she nods and says, “Yeah. I’d like that.”
Satisfied with her response, we grab a few more plates and finish up our dinner.
“Sorry I’ve gotta run, but I haven’t been working much lately, and I need to get a few things done,” I explain as we head outside, and I walk her to her car.
“It’s okay,” she says as she unlocks her door and then turns to face me.
I want to touch her, hug her, anything, but nothing about her is telling me that it’s okay as she turns back around to open her door, and before I can even try to do anything, she’s in her seat.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she says, and I wonder if I’m ever gonna get her to let me in.
When I walk into Common Grounds, I don’t see Candace, but quickly notice her boss eying me. She’s obvious and doesn’t even try and hide it. I walk over to the counter where she’s standing with her indigo hair, and for some reason, it totally works on her.
“Candace here?” I ask.
“Mmm hmm,” she playfully hums as she turns away from me and walks into the back.
She pops back out after a couple minutes and says, “She said to give her ten minutes and she’ll be out.”
I nod my head and scan the tats on her arm, asking, “Who does your work?”
“Place next door. My boyfriend works over there.”
“That’s convenient,” I tease.
“My thoughts exactly,” she says with a hint of indecency, and I have to laugh at her vibrant personality. “You got any?”
“Yeah,” I say as I lift the sleeve of my t-shirt to show her the half-sleeve I got a few years back. My mother’s favorite flower is the peony, so I have an almost cryptic interpretation of one surrounded by shaded water with the words, ‘Struggles are not identities,’ woven through the art.
“Nice,” she says as she moves her eyes over it, noting the details. “Any others?”
“No,” I lie. I have another, but I keep it private and don’t ever mention it to people if they ask. “How long did it take you to get all those?” I ask about the full colorful sleeves that run down the length of her arms.
“Here and there for a few years,” she says when I notice Candace out of the corner of my eye.
“Hey.”
“What are you guys talking about?” she asks as she walks over to me.
“Your friend, Ryan, was asking about my tattoos,” Roxy tells her.
Walking towards Candace, who is already in her running gear, I ask, “You ready?”
“Yeah, I just need to put my bag in my car.”
I take the bag out of her hand, and she turns to Roxy to say bye as I start heading out.
Candace is quiet while she listens to me talk about work. She asks a few questions along the way, and I end up venting about some of my aggravation with a couple of the staff that I had to get rid of the other night. But when the conversation shifts to Mark and his band, we start talking about music. When I ask her what some of her favorite bands are, I’m surprised to hear that they sync right up with mine.
We eventually weave into my neighborhood, which is only a couple blocks from her house. We both live right outside Fremont, which Jase’s apartment is in the heart of. Candace stops talking for a while, and when I look down at her, I can see she’s struggling a bit with her breathing.
“You okay?” I ask.
“I’m thirsty. We forgot water.”
“No worries,” I tell her, knowing that my loft is at the end of the street we’re on. When we get close, I slow down and start walking up my drive.
“What are you doing?” she asks, and when I look back, she’s standing in the middle of my drive—anxious.
“Getting you some water. Come on,” I say, trying to act like her being here shouldn’t be a big deal, but by the way she’s hesitantly walking towards me, I can tell that it is for her.
Pulling out my keys, I click the fob and open the garage.
“Do you own this building or something?” she asks, not registering that this is my place, and I guess I can’t blame her because it’s a three-story loft—much bigger than one person should need.
“This is my loft. I live here,” I say with a grin.
“Oh,” she breathes and then stops in her tracks, no longer following me. She doesn’t want to be here, but I want her here. She shifts uncomfortably before walking into my garage and following me up the stairs to the door.
When we walk inside, she stays in the living room while I head straight to the kitchen to grab a couple bottles of water.
“Here you go,” I say as I walk back to her and hand her one.
She takes a big gulp before saying, “This is a great place. How long have you lived here?”
“About five years.” I watch as she moves her eyes around my space, taking it in.
My phone begins to ring, and when I see it’s Max, I answer.
“Hey.”
“Ryan, Michael’s a no-show. Said he has shit going on at home.”
“Hold on a sec,” I tell him and look over to Candace. “Make yourself comfortable. I need to take this call really quick. I’ll only be a few minutes, okay?”
She smiles at me, and I head back to my office, closing the door behind me.
“Okay, I’m back,” I tell him.
“Where are you at?”