His face was expressionless but finally he nodded. “I have. He asked about you, and I told him you were holding up.”
“Is he okay? Is he hurt?”
A shadow crossed Daryl’s face, and I knew his next words would be a lie. “He’s fine.”
Just the way his voice dropped when he said the word “fine” told me Tristan was anything but that. Fear raced through me at the thought of what condition he was actually in. My heart pounding against my chest, I asked, “Is he hurt? Tell me, please.”
“Don’t worry. If he’s hurting, it’s only because he isn’t here with you.”
Daryl moved to walk away, and I grabbed his arm to stop him. “Would you tell him something for me?”
“Sure.”
“Tell him I’ll be waiting right here.”
I let go of Daryl’s arm and he walked away without saying another word. I sat there for a long time thinking about the night Tristan and I had spent together after getting to know each other right there on that couch. God, that seemed like so long ago, even though it wasn’t even a year that had passed. So much had changed between then and now.
“Nina, are you ready to go?” Jordan asked as she peeked her head into my room.
I swiped the lip gloss across my bottom lip and threw the case in my bag. One last check of my makeup and I was ready. “Pizza Heaven, here we come!”
Jensen was waiting for us, along with my two giant shadows who were never far behind. The five of us stood in the driveway in front of the garage, an awkward silence hanging around us as we eyed one another with curiosity like usual. Even though I lived with these people, for all intents and purposes, they were barely more than strangers to me, people I knew more by the way they dressed than their personalities. Jensen stood stiffly in his usual dark suit, while West and Varo looked more comfortable in jeans and button down shirts, as they always did. Leaning in next to me, Jordan whispered, “Tony’s might be pizza heaven, but I think Varo would be the kind of heaven I want.”
I looked at West and Varo, then turned to Jensen. “We’re going for pizza. Do you guys want to join us? You’re more than welcome.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jordan’s eyes grow wide. Maybe I should have told her about my new idea of being nice to my constant companions. It wasn’t their fault that Tristan wasn’t back yet, so it wasn’t right that I took out my unhappiness on them. My change of heart, however, seemed to surprise them as much as it did Jordan, and while Jensen politely begged off, I thought I saw West’s eyes light up at the mention of pizza. Varo, as always, stood silently with a smoldering glare that I was convinced was the way his eyes naturally looked.
When neither of them spoke, I shrugged and asked, “Any takers? You guys have to eat, don’t you?”
“And we’re a pretty good time,” Jordan chimed in. “It would be nice to see you guys loosen up for once.”
West appeared to rethink his earlier excitement at hearing we were having pizza and said in a low voice, “We’re fine. We’ll be nearby if you need us.”
“Okay. If you change your mind, you know where we are.”
Everyone looked around at each other at my statement of the obvious. Jordan chuckled nervously next to me, thankfully breaking the tension for a moment, and we all left for Tony’s Pizza Heaven like some sad entourage.
I was glad to see that the waitress who’d been working the night Tristan asked me to marry him wasn’t there. I wasn’t up for answering questions about him tonight. A short, older woman took our order, and as I sat silently remembering how much this tiny, out-of-the-way restaurant meant to me, Jordan told me about her boss’s mini-lecture she gave her for being three minutes late that morning.
Sheepishly, I apologized. “I’m sorry. If it makes you feel better, I had a pretty rotten day.”
“Yes. Yes, that makes me feel much better.” She rolled her eyes. “Now that I know you think I’m some kind of harpy, why don’t you tell me why your day sucked?”
“Same old, same old. I’d rather hear about your class.”
“And I’d rather talk about you wearing your engagement ring again. I’m happy to see that, but I’m wondering why now? Was there some news from Grizzly Adams today?”
Jordan’s snarkiness always brought out a smile in me. Looking down at the diamond ring on my left hand, I shook my head. “No, no news. I just thought it was right.”
She raised her hand to cover her eyes. “It’s giving off a glare that’s blinding. That man of yours sure does know how to give a gift.”
I spread my fingers and moved my hand back and forth. “He does.”
“I don’t think my eyes can take what he’ll be getting you after his little absence.”
Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. “Funny. Just drink your flat soda.”
“I want you to know that I’m going to miss us sharing a place again, Nina. It was like old times, except in a place ten times the size. With a pool. And a kitchen you could fit a small house in.”
“You’re just going to miss being so close to my hot bodyguard. Anyway, it’s not like you’re moving any time soon. Daryl didn’t have any news about Tristan or if he’d be coming back,” I admitted sadly.
Jordan reached over and covered my hand with hers. “When, honey. When.”
Nodding, I smiled at her effort to cheer me up. “I know. When. When he’s coming back.”
“And as for Varo, I’m not going to deny it. I’ll be all over him like white on rice the moment he gives me the chance.”
After so much pizza my pants didn’t feel like they fit right anymore, we found Jensen waiting outside for us and got in the car for our ride home. West and Varo didn’t seem to be anywhere in sight, much to Jordan’s disappointment, but I knew that meant nothing. As big as they were, they seemed to know how to blend in so they weren’t seen. All the better. I rarely had anything to say to them, and even though I’d pretended all through dinner that Tony’s didn’t make me sad, the fact was that Jordan had been right.
I still wasn’t ready to deal with all the memories.
Climbing into bed, I closed my eyes to remember when Tristan and I were together, happy and in love.
The warm summer air drifted in through the window, lightly billowing the deep green sheers and carrying the sweet scent of honeysuckle across the room to where we sat. Still dressed in his suit and tie, Tristan leaned against the back of the couch and closed his eyes.