The Crush

“No. Thank you.”

Moving past him, I carried out a cheeseball covered in slivered almonds and a plate of raw vegetables and dip. I set them on the coffee table in the living room.

“It wouldn’t be a holiday without my sister’s cheeseball,” Nathan said as he reached for a cracker.

“Well, I love cheeseballs.” I smiled. “After all, I’ve lived with one all my life.”

Jace joined his dad on the sofa.

I turned to Phil. “Can I get you something to drink? We don’t keep alcohol in the house, but I have pretty much everything else. Soda, seltzer, sparkling cider?”

“I’d love a sparkling cider,” he said.

“We get wild in this house with the sparkling cider, thanks to me,” Nathan said.

Jace shrugged. “It’s fine.”

I returned to the kitchen to pour Phil’s drink.

When I returned, I checked the time on my phone. “I actually need to pick up the side dishes from Regina’s. I timed it so the turkey would be ready by the time I got back.”

Jace jumped up from the couch. “I’ll drive—help you carry everything.”

What am I supposed to say…no?

I shrugged. “Sure, if you want to.”

Jace tossed his keys into the air. “Nathan, take care of the old man while I’m gone, will ya?”

Phil lifted his glass. “I plan to get inebriated on this stuff.”

Jace and I walked out together. He disarmed his truck, and the moment I stepped inside, déjà vu set in—the smell of his cologne, the leather against my back, his closeness as he sat next to me. The only thing missing was the hint of cigar. This wasn’t the same truck from three years ago, but it might as well have been. It seemed like just yesterday when I’d been a lovesick twenty-one-year-old, lusting after my brother’s twenty-seven-year-old friend. Now I was twenty-four, trying with everything in me to fight the same feelings of lust for the same man, who was now thirty. It seemed the only thing that had changed was our ages.

“Put your seatbelt on. How many times do I have to tell you?” He winked.

“I’m a little distracted by the memories of being in your truck.”

“Most of them good, I hope.” In a seductive tone, he added, “I know we had some good times in my old truck.”

“All except for one.”

“Yeah,” he whispered.

The night Nathan caught us was one of the worst memories of my life.

He turned the key and backed out of the driveway.

About a half mile down the road, he glanced over at me. “I can’t tell you much I appreciate you having us over. I know I make you nervous. Even if you’re trying not to show it, Farrah, I see it in your body language. You’ve given up a peaceful holiday out of the goodness of your heart. I should’ve said no, but I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to distract Dad.” He paused. “And to see you.”

I fidgeted in my seat. “It’s my pleasure. It means a lot to Nathan, too.”

“I feel really lucky to have him as a friend again. He’s always felt more like a brother, though.”

“He’s a good brother, despite all of his faults.”

Jace nodded. “Where’s your boyfriend today?”

“Having dinner with his family. He’s coming over for dessert later.”

He swallowed. “I see.”

My eyes lingered on his Adam’s apple, wandered up to the cleft in his chin...then his lips.

“How long have you been dating him?” he asked.

“A little over a year.”

“How did you meet?”

“He struck up a conversation one day at his family’s liquor store. I was buying wine to bring over to a friend’s house—since I don’t drink anymore around Nathan.” I cleared my throat. “Nathan and Niles don’t get along that great, as you know. I don’t push the issue about him coming to our place. I could’ve gone to Niles’s family’s house today, but I’d rather spend Thanksgiving with my brother. It’s tradition.”

“I know traditions are important to you. Do you and Nathan still have movie night?”

“Actually, that’s the one thing we’ve faltered on. It’s more like every couple of months now.”

“Well, at least you try.”

As we approached the catering place, he slowed the truck. “Is this it?”

“Yup.”

Jace parked, and we both exited the vehicle.

After I gave my name to the woman at the counter, she informed me that my order wasn’t ready yet, that they were experiencing a slight delay due to one of their ovens breaking down. She suggested we return in thirty minutes.

“I guess we have to kill some time,” I said. “We’ll be cutting it close with the turkey. I might have to ask Nathan to take it out. But it’s not worth going all the way home and coming back.”

“No biggie. It looked like there was a café open next door. Let’s grab a coffee or something.”

Jace and I ordered two hot chocolates and took them to his car. The weather in Florida was finally cool enough to warrant a hot drink.