Running Away

by Jen Andrews

He was confused, and had every reason to be.

  “Can we hang out tonight and start our deal tomorrow, please? I’m exhausted and hungry and can’t think straight right now.”

  He nodded, and I knew he understood.

  “Anything you want, ask. I’m glad you’re here.” On the way to the kitchen, he set my suitcase inside the door of his bedroom. “Let’s get some dinner. Zoey made enough to feed an army.”

  He took my hand again and led me to the kitchen. I loved how he always did that; it was a sweet gesture. I wondered if he had been like that with Cammie. I hated the thought of them together, so I pushed it from my mind. I won’t think about her again, tonight.

  He pulled the fridge door open, took out several covered dishes, and set them on the counter.

  I felt like I needed to help, so I started opening cabinet doors looking for plates. “Are you eating too, Jeremy?”

  “Yeah, grab a plate for yourself, my sister wrapped mine and put it in the fridge when I went to get you.”

  I noticed a plate on the countertop with a piece of plastic wrap covering the food on it. “You left your dinner with your family to come and get me?”

  He nodded.

  “Why would you do that?” This man was surprising me at every turn.

  He turned and rested his hip against the counter. “Because I haven’t seen you in weeks, and I couldn’t figure out what I had done to hurt you. And . . .” He ran his hand through his hair. “I need to make everything right, so I can see if there can be something between us.”

  My mouth dropped open at his candidness, and it caught me off-guard. “Do you want there to be something between us, Jeremy? Is that your intention?”

  “Yes. Ever since the day in the ER, I haven’t thought of anyone but you. I’ve been going crazy since then because I didn’t know your number, I didn’t know your last name, and then the night you stayed here . . .” He crossed his arms over his chest.

  Something was on his mind. I closed the distance between us. “What is it, Jeremy?”

  “I need to apologize for my behavior that night. We’d both had too much to drink, and I shouldn’t . . . um. Shit. What happened in the living room . . . I don’t want to screw things up between us by moving too fast.”

  I felt my cheeks flush. “The day I went to your house and saw Zoey, I was coming to apologize to you about that. I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me, but I don’t regret it. Please, don’t blame yourself.”

  He nodded and a grin eased over his face. “Okay. I promise to be a perfect gentleman from here on out. There will be no more drinking for me so I can keep my head clear.”

  “Let’s heat up our food so you can finish the dinner you left to come and get me.” I raised my eyebrow to hopefully get a bit of the confidence boost I’d needed.

  “I’d do it all over again, just to open my front door and see you standing there with your suitcase.”

  His sweet words were music to my ears, causing my face to heat and blush. I gave him a shy smile then pulled lids off the food containers. Everything looked and smelled great, and I was famished. Jeremy handed me a fork and knife. I placed a piece of chicken onto my plate and gave it to him to put in the microwave for me.

  “You’re not having mac and cheese?” he asked.

  “Um, no thank you. It looks delicious, but I really shouldn’t have any. I haven’t been eating well lately and it’s not exactly on my meal plan.”

  My response didn’t faze him a bit. “It’s not exactly in mine either, but I can’t resist it. Zoey makes me a special batch with fat free cheese and milk so it’s not as fattening. Oh, and she puts jalapeños in it for me.”

  “I don’t mean to be nosy, but do you think you’re overweight or something? Because I don’t think you are.” His body was perfect.

  Jeremy laughed. “Not anymore. But I used to be. I’m just maintaining now.” He took his wallet from his pocket and pulled out a photo.

  When he handed it to me, I saw an overweight teenager with gorgeous olive skin and blue eyes. “I had no idea, and never would’ve guessed you’d struggled with your weight. I’m sorry for making assumptions.” I handed the photo back to him then grabbed my purse from the living room. I gave him a photo of myself from my wallet. “Looks like we have a little bit more in common than I thought.”

  He scanned the photo. “Now it’s my turn to be nosy,” he said, handing the photo back to me. “I don’t think your body could be any more perfect than what it is right now—and I think that body needs to try just one scoop of this mac and cheese. What do you think?”

  Jeremy was right. Just a bit wouldn’t hurt and he thought my body was perfect. I graciously accepted his compliment with a full-on smile. “Okay, just one scoop. Especially since it’s jalapeño spicy.”

  He grinned and spooned one scoop onto my plate. “You like it spicy, huh?”

  I shook my head. “No, I love it spicy.” I was only halfway talking about dinner.

  Swallowing hard, he turned away to heat my food. He faced the microwave until it dinged indicating my dinner was ready.

  After his was heated, we sat in the dining room to eat. “Do you always eat in here?” My family sat in front of the TV while we ate dinner. We weren’t very formal.

  Jeremy looked around the room. “This is actually the second time I’ve eaten in here. Zoey only finished the room today.”

  “Zoey decorated your house for you?”

  He nodded.

  “She did a great job. Does she do it professionally?”

  “No. She actually owns a business with Andy. But let’s not talk about them tonight. Can we have a do-over Teagan, from the beginning?”

  He was being serious. We needed a major do-over. Hopefully, a private talk and time spent together would do the trick. “From the beginning then,” I laughed. “But can we do it without you getting stitches in your head this time?”

  At that point, he laughed. Hard.

  Apparently, I’d missed the joke. “What’s so funny?”

  “The note I wrote you . . . after I was at the ER. It said I’d like to talk to you again, but I’d rather not get stitches in my head again to do it.”

  I laughed with him. “Agreed. No more stitches. Hmm, where to begin . . . um, let’s start with the basics. Obviously, my name is Teagan. Middle name, Shea—last name, Donnelly,” I said, feeling like I was in the middle of an interrogation on Law and Order. “Age twenty-seven. I can’t drive a stick shift, which is the reason I didn’t take your car back to my house. Fortunately, I live three blocks away on Shasta Avenue, so it’s not a long walk. I’m currently living with my parents and my sister Shannen.”

  His brows rose. “Three blocks away, huh? Well, I’m Jeremy Douglas James. I’ll be thirty in November. I run a business with my three brothers and Zoey.”

  Holy crap, four boys? And Zoey? I imagined poor Zoey having to deal with four brothers her whole life and no sisters. “Tell me about your family, Jeremy.”

  “Zoey’s been my sister for eleven years now. My mom and dad adopted her when she was fourteen. You know Andy and Hannah. I’m the only one of my siblings who is single. My brothers are all married, except Adam, but he has a girlfriend.” He stopped to catch his breath. “My mom is Mexican, and my dad is white, but speaks fluent Spanish.”

  That explained his gorgeous combination of skin, hair, and eye color.

  “Your turn, Teagan.”

  He’d been so forthcoming with me that I wanted to let him in just a bit more. “Okay, I am one-hundred percent Irish. My mom immigrated here with my nanna and papa when she was little.” I didn’t want to talk about my father now, so I only said, “My birth father isn’t in the picture. Shannen’s dad has legally been my dad since I was three. We’re very close.” I stood to clear our dinner dishes. “Let’s take care of these.” I didn’t want to push things too much, too soon.

  “Sure. That sounds good.” Jeremy grabbed his dishes and followed me to the kitchen.

 
; When we were finished, I was worn out and just wanted to relax. “Maybe we can change into our pajamas and watch a movie. How does that sound?” I felt silly. It probably wasn’t his idea of a good night.

  “I’d say it sounds like a perfect way to spend the evening,” he replied with a grin.

  Jeremy took my hand in his and headed to his bedroom where he pulled a pair of pajama shorts from his dresser then left me in the room, shutting the door behind him.

  When I opened my suitcase, I realized in my daze while packing, I had only brought an old Ramones T-shirt to sleep in. My sleep shorts were still at home on my bed. I pulled the T-shirt over my head but kept my skirt on.

  I found Jeremy on the couch trying to find a movie for us to watch. He looked at my skirt in confusion, causing me to giggle. “I sort of forgot the bottom half of my pajamas.” I smoothed my skirt down.

  “You can borrow whatever you need. Check my dresser and see if you can find something that fits. I like your shirt, by the way. Great band.”

  “Thanks, they were pretty badass. What’s your favorite song of theirs?”

  He thought about it then replied, “Pinhead.”

  I sang the song in my head and laughed when I came to the lyrics about the guy meeting a nurse he ‘could go for.’ “Very funny,” I said.

  He smiled up at me. “Very funny, but very true.”

  I shook my head and went back to his bedroom for something to wear. I found the pair of boxers I slept in before and pulled them on.

  “What did you find to watch?” I was curious to see what type of movie he’d chosen. I took a seat on the couch next to him and glanced up at the TV.

  “I found a few we can rent. You choose which one you want to watch,” he said while scrolling through the pay-per-view channels.

  “Oh, the scary one, please,” I said when my gaze landed on the latest horror flick. I loved the suspense and the anticipation of being scared.

  He laughed when I told him the plot of the movie then said, “Alright, but don’t get mad at me if I crawl on your lap at the scary parts.”

  During the movie, I felt him jump a few times and I laughed aloud. Finally, I took pity on him and reached for his hand. Our fingers intertwined and it just felt right.

  I awoke the next morning, alone in his bed. I vaguely remembered him picking me up and bringing me in here. I was almost back to sleep when he stepped into the bedroom and pulled a drawer open on his dresser. The clock on the nightstand showed it was almost seven.

  “Good morning,” I said quietly as I watched him rummaging through another drawer. “Are you going somewhere?”

  “I’m sorry I woke you. I was getting some running clothes. Go back to sleep.”

  After sleeping so comfortably, a long, morning run sounded great. Besides, I hadn’t been running since the day I’d gotten the wrong impression about Zoey and Hannah. Today would be the perfect day to take it up again.

  “Can I come with you? I can be ready in ten minutes.”

  “Yes, of course. You can show me where you live.”

  I could hear the smile in his voice.

  “I’ll wait for you in the living room,” he said then left the bedroom.

  Less than ten minutes later, I was dressed, had my hair pulled back, and my teeth brushed. I walked into the living room to find him sprawled out on the couch flipping through channels.

  “Um, are we running or watching TV?”

  He smirked then smiled up at me. “I thought you’d take longer to get ready.” He shut off the TV and tossed the remote onto the couch. “Let’s go.”

  We ran in silence along the streets of our neighborhood, until we neared my house. My dad was in the front yard mowing the lawn, before it got too hot outside and my mom was on the porch swing watching him, or “supervising” as he liked to say. I slowed down to a walk because I was taking Jeremy to meet my parents. He just didn’t know it yet.

  “You tired?” Jeremy asked. He was barely out of breath.

  “Nah, I’m good. I am thirsty, though. Let’s go get a drink.”

  Taking his hand, I led him across the street to my parents’ house. As soon as my dad saw us, he shut off the mower. Grass clippings littered his shoes and socks, and I knew my mom was going to gripe about it later when she did laundry.

  “Hey, honey. What are you out doing this morning?” he asked. “Who’s your friend?”

  Since my dad and I were both already hot and sweaty, I hugged him. “We’re just out for a run. Dad, this is Jeremy James. He lives a few blocks away. Jeremy, this is my dad, Lucas Jennings.”

  The men shook hands. “Nice to meet you, sir,” Jeremy said.

  “Likewise,” Dad replied.

  My mom came down the front steps with three bottles of water. She handed us each a bottle.

  “Thanks, Mama,” I said then introduced her to Jeremy. He was polite but seemed a little nervous.

  To break the awkward bit of silence, I asked, “What are your plans for the day after mowing?”

  “We’re driving over to see Nanna. She’s been asking for you,” Mom replied.

  Crap, I haven’t seen her in almost a week.

  “I’ll go see her today.” My mom smiled and looked relieved. “How is she doing?”

  “About the same. Her therapy is going well and she asks about you every day.” My mom’s concerned expression told me she was worried about her.

  I wanted to go see her before the weekend was over, and I hoped Jeremy didn’t mind. “Let’s get going, Jeremy.”

  He shook my dad’s hand again, and we said goodbye to my parents.

  About a block from my house, he slowed to a walk and stopped. “I’ve never met a girl’s mom and dad before.” He seemed bewildered, and it was cute to see him like that.

  “Almost thirty and you’ve never met a girl’s parents? Wow, Jeremy, should I be flattered or scared? Have you ever seriously dated anyone?”

  He shook his head. “No, not really,” he said. “Cammie was as close as I got.”

  Not wanting to talk about Cammie, I took off running and he followed. Running with him was easy because we kept the same pace. Much easier than running with Shannen, that’s for sure. We were a block and a half away from his house when I had an idea.

  “Last person to your house has to fix breakfast.”

  My challenge caught him off guard and I sped ahead of him. I heard him yell out “cheater” as I turned the corner. By the time he reached the corner, I was already down a cleverly hidden walkway between two houses.

  I was positive he didn’t know about the walkway because only people who lived in the neighborhood for years knew about it. As I ran, I looked behind me a few times, and he was nowhere in sight. I made it to his house and waited for him at the gate. He ran up a few minutes later, out of breath.

  “Do you know I’ve been running past your house every morning since I moved back here in May?” I asked.

  He shook his head, still trying to catch his breath.

  “I’ve been watching the progress of the renovation for months. I considered trying to buy it when it went up for sale, but I couldn’t afford it. I love the picket fence. It’s my favorite feature,” I reached out and touched the top of a picket then pushed open the gate and walked up the sidewalk. “So, what are you making me for breakfast?”

  I heard him laugh as he approached. He pulled his key out and let us inside the house.

  Later that morning after we’d both showered and dressed, I asked Jeremy to take me to see Nanna. He wanted to spend the weekend together to get to know each other, so that was what we were going to do. He’d already passed the parent test when I’d led him straight to my house to meet them without warning.

  On the drive to Nanna’s home, I said, “I have some questions, Jeremy.”

  He turned down the radio. “I’m ready to answer them and have nothing to hide.”

  “Why don’t we get the hard questions out of the way first?”

  He agreed.

&
nbsp; “Did you meet Cammie at the hospital when you went to see Zoey and Hannah?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did you have sex with her in the parking garage when you left?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “Why?” Knowing he’d actually done that with her where I worked made me sick, but I needed to know he would tell me the truth no matter what.

  He sighed. “I did it for a few reasons, but once I explain them to you, I need to tell you the repercussions that made me want to change.”

  He looked over at me, waiting for an answer.

  “That’s fair. This should be a two way street.”

  “I had sex with her because I could. I hadn’t been with anyone in a while . . . I met her on my way to see Zoey, we kind of hit it off, and she gave me her number. We made a plan to meet after she got off work an hour later. I’d planned to take her out to see where things went, but when I met her after seeing Zoey, she didn’t let things get that far.”

  “She’s the one who instigated sex in the parking garage, not you?” My mind was officially boggled and I could never see myself doing something like that.

  He nodded. “Yes, that’s what happened.”

  “When was the last time you had sex with her?”

  “It was a few days before I broke it off with her.”

  Jeremy downshifted his car to slow down then stopped at a red light. He glanced over at me while we waited in traffic.

  “On the night I left you at Dub’s, Cammie and Tiffany came into the bathroom. Tiffany told me you had a bunch of girls you were stringing along from their floor at the hospital. She said she was one of many. Is any of that true?” I felt stupid asking the question as soon as I said the words because it sounded so ridiculous.

  His mouth dropped open. “Absolutely not, I don’t know Tiffany, and the only person I’ve dated from the hospital was Cammie. Teagan, I promise I am not a cheater. I don’t do shit like that.”

  “That night we met, I was sitting in my car and saw you leave Dub’s with Cammie.” The incident that night was something I’d seen with my own eyes, so he really needed to have a good explanation.

  “I did, but it’s not what you think.”

  The car behind us let out a long, obnoxious honk of their horn. “Oh shit, the light’s green. Let me pull over.” Once he’d stopped the car at a small park, he said, “When you said you were going into the bathroom . . . you were gone for so long I went to find you and I ran in to Jackie. She told me you’d left. Then Cammie came up and I had to take her home since I’d brought her to the bar with me, although earlier that evening, we’d gotten into an argument and I’d broken up with her—”