by Julia Wolf
On my way back home, I stopped in front of the shop and peeked in the window. I told myself it was earlier than normal, so Charlie wouldn’t even know I was there. I told myself it was okay I was still sweaty from my run because I was only going to stay a few minutes. I told myself it meant nothing that I’d been carrying around the shop key for the last four days and was finally giving in to temptation.
The shop was dark and quiet when I went inside, and the first thing I noticed was the walls had been painted a teal that was bright even in the dim light. There were also new shelves displaying smaller instruments and framed vintage concert posters. When I looked closer, I realized they were actually paintings of vintage posters. I hated all of it. Sure, it was nice and modern and would probably bring in new customers, but it felt like Abe had been wiped clean from his shop.
My baby grand was still in the same place in the window, but when I sat down, I remembered I hadn’t brought any sheet music with me. There were countless songs I’d committed to memory as a teenager, but I didn’t want to play any of those. I was done with classical for now. Even though I would never stop loving it, playing it reminded me too much of the strict piano lessons of my childhood.
I ran my fingers over the smooth keys, the tinkling sound traveling from my ears down my spine. I sat up straight on the edge of the bench with my arms relaxed in front of me—just the way I’d been taught—and launched into one of the pop songs Joe and I played together often. It was up-tempo, so my mind stayed focused on the quick movements of my fingers and the repetitive lyrics I quietly sang.
When I finished, I rested my hands on the keys and closed my eyes. That would have to be enough for today. I already pressed my luck by coming here.
“Nice!”
I whipped around, and there was Charlie again, looking rather pleased with himself—and rather shirtless.
I stood up. “I didn’t think you would know I was here.” Then I frowned at him. “Where’s your shirt?”
He chuckled and rubbed his defined stomach. “I don’t wear one when I sleep.”
“That really doesn’t answer my question.”
He moved closer. “I was sleeping. Your playing woke me up.”
“Don’t you live by Rachel and Joe? You must have werewolf hearing if you could hear me playing from there.”
They lived off Main Street in a beautiful old house, and when they introduced me to Charlie at their Friendsgiving, they’d said he was their neighbor. My piano playing wasn’t quiet, but I was fairly certain the sound didn’t carry a half mile either.
He laughed. “Werewolf hearing?”
My cheeks heated. I was one-hundred percent sure he could see me blushing this time. “That was the first animal I could think of with really good hearing.”
He looked far too amused. “So, the first animal that popped into your mind was not even a real one. I like that. I’m pretty sure most people would think of a bat, or I don’t know, a dog? But not you, Miss Eliza.”
“Did you ever answer how you heard me playing?” I wanted to get the conversation back on track and away from werewolves.
He pointed to the ceiling. “My bedroom is up there. The sound traveled right up the vent. It was a pretty nice way to wake up, I’ve gotta admit.”
I widened my eyes. “You live upstairs now?”
He ran his hand through his hair, and I realized he did look like he’d just gotten out of bed. His hair was usually neatly slicked to the side, but right now, it was flopping down over his forehead. I didn’t want to know what Charlie looked like when he just got out of bed. That led me to thinking about what he looked like in bed, and that was dangerous territory.
“Yeah, just moved in. I was only renting the place by Rachel and Joe until I found something permanent. Have you been upstairs?”
I shook my head. “No, I thought Abe just used it as storage.”
“He did. No one’s lived up there in years. It’s nice, though. I’ve got more room than I know what to do with, but there’s amazing light for me to paint in.”
I pointed to the posters on the wall. “Did you paint these?”
“I did.”
Of course he did. They were beautiful. It was hard to dislike someone who made such beautiful art.
I gestured to the newly painted walls. “What have you done with the rest of Abe’s shop?”
“Looks good, right?”
“It’s gorgeous. I hate it.”
He scratched his chin and shrugged. “Abe likes it.”
Obviously I had no comeback for that. If Abe liked it, then who was I to say anything? Change was hard for me to process. Order was what ran my life.
“Oh. Well…I should go.”
I started for the door, but Charlie asked, “Were you running?”
Startled, I asked, “What? Why?”
He smiled. “You look like you’re wearing running clothes, and don’t shoot me for saying this, you’re a little sweaty. Not that I’m complaining.”
I wrapped my arms around my exposed stomach. It hadn’t even occurred to me I was standing in front of him in only a pink sports bra and paisley compression leggings. Suddenly, I felt naked.
“I did run this morning. I usually go home and shower before I come here, but I was just stopping in for a few minutes today, so I didn’t.”
Charlie scanned me from toe to head, and I wrapped my arms tighter around myself like a shield. I didn’t know how to handle how much I liked the way he was looking at me. He looked surprised, but almost delighted.
“I don’t think I’ve seen you wear color,” he said.
“You’ve only seen me three time before this. That’s not a good sample size.”
He sighed. “I’ve lived in this town for over six months. I see you walking up and down Main Street all the time.”
“You do? I haven’t seen you! You haven’t spoken to me.”
“I’m a lurker. You never know where I’ll turn up.” When I frowned at him, he laughed. “I’ve been hanging out in the shop with Abe a lot. He showed me the ropes before I agreed to buy the place. It’s hard not to notice you when you’re right across the street.”
“And yet, I never noticed you,” I said.
“You’re very noticeable, Miss Eliza.”
“Why do you keep calling me that?”
“You’re usually so fancy, I feel like I can’t call you by your first name.”
I sputtered. “Fancy? I’m definitely not that. And right now, I’m covered in sweat and wearing workout clothes.”
He nodded and rubbed his chin, like he was considering my point. “True. But the women I usually hang out with have shaved heads, multiple tattoos and piercings, and live in jeans and combat boots. And I know how fancy you are normally, so you’re still a ‘miss.’”
I wasn’t sure whether I should have been offended or not. I’d never been called fancy or ‘miss.’ Charlie tended to fluster and confound me.
I wrapped my hand around the doorknob.
“I’m going to go. This has all been…very strange.”
“Wait, wait! There was an actual reason I asked if you’d been running.”
I raised my brows and waited for him to continue.
“I’m trying to get into running. I want to run with you.”
My hand fell away from the door, and I stared at him. He’d surprised me.
“Why?” I asked.
“Because I don’t know any other runners around here and running with someone else will motivate me.”
He actually sounded sincere, so I considered what he was asking.
“You can run with me if you want. I run every day and leave my house at six-thirty. I won’t go slow for you,” I warned.
“Six-thirty? Jesus…” He rubbed his face with his hands. “Okay. I can do six-thirty. I don’t know about every day, but I’ll be waiting outside tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow is a ten-mile day,” I said.
“Are you trying to kill me?”
I grinned. “You’re tagging along with me. Besides, you don’t have to stay with me the whole way.”
“I highly doubt I’ll be able to run ten miles. It’s been months since I’ve run one mile.”
I looked at his bare sinewy torso, with its tight, corded muscles, every one perfectly defined. “You look like you’re in good shape to me.” I almost slapped my hands over my mouth. I couldn’t believe I said that!
He chuckled and smoothed a hand down his chest. “Yeah, but not from running. I didn’t say I don’t work out. I’m more of a swimmer and a circuit trainer.”
I was beyond flustered and ready to escape. “I’m going to go for real this time. I have work, and...I guess I’ll see you tomorrow?”
He nodded. “You will, Miss Eliza.”
“Can we go with just Eliza from now on?”
“I will make a concerted effort. You’ll have to try to be a little less fancy, though.”
I groaned and opened the door. “You’re something else, Charlie.”
He took a deep bow. “I try.”
I looked at him for a long moment, somewhat stunned by the last few minutes, and then shook my head in defeat and walked out the door. I could hear him laughing through the glass as I walked up the street.
I had no idea what had just happened in there. I went from trying to avoid seeing Charlie again to agreeing to being running buddies.
He wasn’t what I’d thought he’d be, and he definitely wasn’t like anyone I knew. Charlie was weird, but I was beginning to think of his weirdness as part of his undeniable charm. I was also beginning to think I was more than a little charmed by Charlie Hamada.
Five
Charlie looked like he was sleeping standing up. As I approached his building, I saw him leaning against the brick exterior, his head tilted back and arms crossed over his chest. He didn’t move even when I jogged in place in front of him.
I kicked his foot. “Wake up!”
He jerked his head back and banged it on the brick. “Shit!” Rubbing his head, he gave me a sheepish look. “Oh, hi.”
“Are you ready to run or do you need to go back to bed?”
He rolled his eyes and straightened. “I was just resting my eyes. Don’t try to shame me.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “I would never.” Then I nudged his shoulder with my hand. “Let’s go!”
I took off without looking back, but he caught up with me easily. Charlie was average height for a man, but I was on the shorter side, so his stride was longer than mine. We managed to get in sync pretty quickly, though, and ran side by side down Main Street and onto the trail.
Charlie glanced around the tree-lined path as we ran. “I didn’t even know this was here.”
I looked at him with wide eyes. “Really? I love this trail.”
“I’m not really nature-y.”
“It’s paved!”
He looked around again. “But there are a hell of a lot of trees.”
I snorted. “Do you have something against trees?”
“Not trees per se. I don’t really like being surrounded by them, though.”
I looked at him. He was serious. “I can honestly say in my twenty-eight years on this planet I have never heard anyone say something like that.”
“You’re twenty-eight?”
“I am.”
He shook his head. “Just a baby.”
“Is twenty-eight a baby? How old are you?”
“Thirty-four. When I was twenty-eight, I was still enjoying my misspent youth. Hell, when I was thirty-three I was enjoying it too.”
“My youth has been spent very responsibly. Is it too late to misspend it?” I asked.
He laughed. “It’s never too late. Are you gonna rebel? I’d pay to see that. Rebellious Miss Eliza.”
I nudged him with my shoulder. “I thought I was going to be just Eliza today?”
“You could never be just Eliza.”
I didn’t know why, but that warmed me. I’d felt like just Eliza for too long.
“To answer your question, never in my life have I rebelled. Even as a baby, I probably slept through the night and only cried when I was hungry, just so I’d fit in and not bother anyone.”
“I can’t picture a situation where I’d ever find you bothersome.”
“Even when I sneak into your shop and wake you up with my piano playing?”
He bumped into me gently. “Especially not then.”
I looked at my Fitbit. “We’re a mile in. Are you still good?”
“So far. My legs are starting to hate me, but I’ll power through.”
The morning was cool, but Charlie had started to sweat. I kept glancing over to make sure he was still doing okay, and I had to admit, just to look at him. He had on a form-fitting grey compression shirt and black athletic shorts. My ex hadn’t had an athletic bone in his body, so it was nice to be out with a man who shared my interest in fitness. Not that we were out. Not that this was leading to anything other than friendship. But still, it was nice.
“How did you rebel?” I asked.
He waved a hand around. “Oh, the usual. Touring with a band, sleeping with far too many women but never actually sleeping, drinking too much, not reading any of the books I had on my nightstand, and then getting married to someone I only knew for two weeks.”
His words came out breathier than when we’d first started running, and I felt like he’d taken my breath away when he mentioned sleeping with a lot of women and marrying one of them.
“You’re married?” I asked in a quiet voice.
He turned his head my way. “Not anymore. It wasn’t my wisest decision, but I don’t like to quit things I start, so I stuck it out for far too long. Longer than she did.”
“How long have you been divorced?”
“A year. We were only married half that. I’m not sure the domestic life is for me.” He glanced at me again. “How do you plan to rebel, Miss Eliza?”
“Should one really plan their rebellion?” I asked.
He grinned. “I’m pretty sure you plan everything.”
“Maybe my first step in rebelling is not to plan it.”
“That’s a good first step,” he agreed.
I thought about it for a minute. I was ready to shake up my life. Charlie had already pulled me out of my routine, so why not go even further?
“Maybe I will sign up for Tinder. Frannie and Rachel both did it.”
“No,” he said forcefully.
“No?” I asked, surprised by the edge in his tone.
“You don’t need Tinder. I thought we talked about this,” he said.
I shrugged. “Maybe I do. I’ve been single for six months. I don’t want another boyfriend yet, but a little male companionship might be nice.”
“Hey, I’m a male companioning you right now.”
I laughed and hit his shoulder playfully. “I’m pretty sure that’s not a word. And I was talking about s-e-x, you know.”
“If you can’t say the word instead of spelling it, then Tinder is not right for you. I’m telling you—e-harmony.”
I frowned at him. He was sweaty and panting, but keeping up with my rigorous pace. And he was annoying as hell.
“Fine, I want SEX!” I yelled the last word, and it felt like everyone on the trail turned to look at me. Probably because I’d just yelled I wanted sex loudly enough to echo through the surrounding forest.
I was twenty feet in front of him before I realized Charlie had stopped running. I turned around and jogged in place. He was bent over at the waist, his hands on his knees, panting for breath. I ran back to him and put my hand on his shoulder.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“Just leave me here,” he rasped.
“Are you going to make it? I’m strong, but I don’t think I’d be able to carry you back.”
He scoffed and continued panting. “You can’t yell you want sex and expect me to be able to continue moving my legs. It’s not humanly possible.”
>
“Should I abandon you here? I still have two more miles to go before I turn back.”
He waved me off. “Just leave me. I’ll become one with the forest.”
I eyed him skeptically, but he didn’t seem like he was going to move anytime soon, so I turned around and continued my run.
The next two miles weren’t nearly as fun as the previous three had been. Talking to Charlie had entertained me so much, I had been able to ignore the burn in my legs. But the two miles to my turning point and the two miles back to where I’d left him were slow going. I wasn’t able to clear my mind like I usually did, but I also didn’t think of my normal worries. Charlie’s almond-shaped brown eyes, his slightly fuller upper lip that was so utterly kissable, the Japanese-inspired tattoos that colored his arms, and the way he’d reacted when I’d said I wanted sex were all that filled my thoughts.
I didn’t want to date Charlie. There was no question about that. Well, not really. I thought falling into bed with him would be amazing, but also messy, and not in a good way.
But running with him? Bantering with him? That was fun, and I desperately needed some fun in my life. And the fact that he was so very attractive was just a bonus.
I was surprised Charlie was sitting on the side of the trail, exactly where I’d left him. I had expected he would have started walking back toward Main Street, but there he was, waiting for me.
He stood up when I approached.
“Do you have your second wind?” I asked.
“I’m not sure I had a first wind, but I’m ready.”
We started jogging together again and even though I’d said I wouldn’t go slow for him, I did ease my pace up a bit. For someone who hadn’t run in a long time, I was impressed with his stamina…which of course led me to thoughts I didn’t want to be having.
“I’ve thought about your rebellion situation.”
I raised my eyebrows. “Oh, you have, have you?”
“I have. I take rebellion very seriously. I think you should let me guide you.”
“What would that entail?”
“A lot of spontaneity, pushing past your comfort zone, etcetera, etcetera.”
“Spontaneity, huh? That sounds like something I need to plan for.”
