If I was actually going to get rid of the letter, it should have been on my terms. My time. My way.
Instead, it had somehow slipped out of my pocket somewhere and was gone forever.
I couldn’t even think about someone else reading it.
That would mean-
My phone started to ring.
I jumped for it, my mind now screaming Amelia! as though I had been expecting her call.
It wasn’t Amelia.
It was Aaron.
“What do you want?” I asked.
“Oh, shit, you sound like death,” he said. “That kind of night?”
“Nope,” I said. “Just woke up.”
“With a bottle next to you I assume.”
I reached for the whiskey and put it on the table in front of me.
“Nope,” I said. “No bottle next to me.”
“Yeah, right. Hey. I’m outside Sasha’s gallery. You planning on meeting me here?”
“That’s today?” I asked.
“That’s today, Josh. Actually, it’s right now.”
“Fuck.”
“Come on. Get up and get over here. If not, I’ll call Rae. She’ll come get your ass out of there.”
“Yeah. Send your girlfriend over here, Aaron. That’s not a smart decision. Women who enter my apartment never leave the same.”
“You’re an asshole, man. Get over here, now.”
I laughed and pulled myself to my feet.
I changed into a new shirt and drank a swig of mouthwash.
That was as fresh as I was going to get for the day.
I opened the front door to Sasha’s gallery and looked at the bare walls. There were some odd-looking sculptures in the middle of the floor. They didn’t make much sense to me, but that was how art seemed to be. One person sees a crooked mushroom shape thing and someone else sees an entire story.
Maybe it was the sunglasses, that I was using to keep my eyes from aching in the back of my skull. That was the problem.
Aaron had two coffees with him and rushed to hand me one.
Sasha wore an elegant dress, like she always did. First time I met her I joked and asked her if she wore that kind of stuff to bed. She shot right back by offering me a chance to find out. That was the foundation of our relationship, which stayed just like that.
“Long night of work?” Sasha asked me.
“Of course,” I said as I took the coffee from Aaron. “Good thing my wife here takes care of me.”
Sasha laughed.
Aaron didn’t.
“What are we doing here again?” I asked.
“We need to book your next date,” Sasha said.
“And talk about next door,” Aaron said.
“Next door?” I asked.
“It’s closing up,” Sasha said.
“So?” I asked.
“You should look into it, Josh,” Aaron said.
“For what?”
“Set up a studio. Lots of people would come to see you.”
“What?” I asked. “That’s what this is? A real estate transaction?”
“It’s not like that,” Sasha said. “Just a thought. We could be working side by side. You have your place. I have mine. We could help each other.”
I rubbed my forehead. “I’m not talking about this right now.”
“Figured that,” Aaron said. “Maybe at the very least, get an idea for your next show here?”
“Sure,” I said. “Pick a date. I’ll be there.”
“Do you have material?” Sasha asked.
“Don’t fucking worry about me,” I said.
“I love when you talk like that to me, Josh.”
“I’m sure you do,” I said. “Looks empty in here when I’m not around.”
“There’s work. I’d survive without you.”
“Keep telling yourself that,” I said with a grin.
“Let’s just all stay in touch then, “Aaron said. “See if we can make something work. It would be good for the building. This area. The town. Everything.”
I reached and pulled my sunglasses down the bridge of my nose. “You done?”
“I’m done,” he said.
“If you two don’t mind,” Sasha said as she started to walk between us. “I have to get this set up.”
Her dress was blood red and looked glittery.
I pushed the sunglasses back up my face and nodded to Aaron.
“It’s always a pleasure, Sasha,” he said. “Call me if you need anything else.”
“You two stay out of trouble,” she said.
“This guy doesn’t know trouble,” I said. “Except one time, he sent a letter without a return address on the envelope.”
“Rebel,” Sasha said without any emotion.
I laughed.
Again, Aaron didn’t.
I waited for the comments to start when we got outside.
“You’re a dick, man,” Aaron said.
I looked at my wrist as though I wore a watch. “That only took you three seconds.”
“I’m important around here. And you talk like I’m some fool.”
“You done yet?” I asked.
“Yeah, I am,” he said.
“That envelope thing was true.”
“Shut up, Josh. I only panicked over that because it was tax stuff. If it got-”
“Calm down, man,” I said as I laughed. “We all know you’re a bad ass. Hey. Anyone who would attempt to get Rae gets a star in my book. And the fact that she sleeps with you? I give you credit.”
“Thanks,” Aaron said. “Speaking of that…”
“You want me to sleep with her?” I asked.
“What? No. Fuck you, man.”
I snorted. “I’m messing with you. I’m not going near Rae. She’d cut my throat and laugh the entire time.”
“Yeah, she would. But what I was going to say is you should come over to the house later.”
“So Rae could kill me?”
“We’ll see how the rest of the day goes.”
“What do you want me over there for?”
“I want to show you the plans for next door.”
“Plans?”
“Just hear it out, Josh,” Aaron said.
“Why don’t you have the stuff with you right now?” I asked.
“Because I know better. If I get you to the house with a beer and have Toby hand you the papers, it’ll be harder to get mad at me.”
I gently slapped Aaron’s face. “I hate you.”
“I know.”
“I’ll be over later.”
I walked away and had nothing but time to kill.
I ditched the crappy coffee and traded it for my phone.
morning love. how’s the pussy situation?
I smirked as I sent the text.
It took Amelia an hour to text back.
I hate you.
That was all I needed from her.
Which was a lie.
I needed more.
Maybe more than she could possibly give me.
Aaron whispered into Toby’s ear.
Toby sat in his booster seat
