Page 48 of Afternoon Delight

Zak

I heard the shop door chime and figured it was Roddie. This was about the time he usually arrived from school.

Out on the floor, Dad said, “You came back for the steamer trunk! I knew you would. I saved it for you.”

It continued to amaze me that he couldn’t remember how to flush a toilet, but knew how to draw in a customer like a seasoned carny.

“We’re not actually together. I’m Roddie. I help you and Zak after school,” Roddie said, then seemed to speak to someone else. “I’ll put my backpack away, then I’ll come help you. I’ll just be a sec.”

“I’m actually here to see Zak,” a woman replied. “Is he here?”

A jolt of recognition went through me. My limbs went numb and I dropped the sanding block I was holding. I quickly began stowing things in the cupboard, thoughts jumping all over the place. Why was Ric here?

“He’s probably in the back,” Roddie said, his voice getting closer. “I’ll get him.”

From the shop, I could hear Erica saying, “Hi, Dale. I’m Erica. I haven’t seen you since Thanksgiving last year. How are you feeling?”

“Erica. Of course. You look well.” I could hear the vagueness in Dad’s voice as he tried to place her.

He had asked me a few times about her, but he mostly lived in the summer I’d been home from college before Mom died.

People he’d met after that either remained strangers or became a version of someone he remembered from the early years—like how he thought Roddie was teenaged Kyle.

As I locked the cupboard, Roddie came to the door, brows raised in question.

“I heard,” I said and stepped into the bathroom to wash my hands.

When I came out, Roddie was still at the door. “I’m gonna go across the street. Mom wants a scone.”

“I’ll get it. Can you stay with Dad for a few minutes?”

“Sure.” He glowered at me like I’d kicked his dog.

I was just as surprised as he was, but I couldn’t keep an eye on Dad and have any kind of serious conversation with Erica. Maybe she brought papers for me to sign?

“Hi.” I came out to find her admiring the Royal Doulton figurine Dad was trying to sell her.

“Hi.” She smiled warmly, her eyes searching mine.

She was pretty, with round cheeks and a few freckles that were downplayed by makeup.

That wasn’t something she usually wore, which suggested she’d made a special effort for this trip.

Her loose hair was held back by her sunglasses, and her blue slacks matched her blazer. She looked breezy and businesslike.

“Dad, this is Erica. We were living together in Vancouver before I moved back here.”

Her smile dimmed, and Dad winced.

“Of course. My memory isn’t what it used to be,” he said. “How are you, Erica? How are your parents?”

She actually wasn’t on speaking terms with her mom, but she smiled and murmured, “Good, thank you.”

Dad took back the figurine and set it inside the cabinet.

“Did I miss a text?” I asked her.

“No. I, um... I came over for a job interview, actually. I wanted to see you before I drove home.”

“Oh. That’s big news.” It landed like a kick in the stomach. Was this how Dad felt all the time? I was reaching for thoughts and coming up empty. “Lemme buy you a coffee. Dad, I’ll be across the street, but Roddie is here.”

Roddie was standing in the office doorway, his backpack gone. He was pretending to read his phone while shamelessly eavesdropping.

I opened the door for Erica.

“I should have called first,” she said as we walked to the corner to cross. I usually dodged traffic like a bolting deer, but I didn’t expect her to risk her life like that.

“It’s fine. You’re not interrupting anything.” My shoulders tingled as I said that. I wondered if Meg was watching us.

“How is he?”

“Dad?” I shrugged. “Zara took him to a day group on Sunday. She said it was tough because he didn’t really want to be there and a lot of the people were a lot further along.

” It had upset both of them to glimpse Dad’s future.

“He’s still pretty independent, so I’m mostly here to turn off the stove when he forgets.

We have our moments, but we have some laughs. ”

I thought of our road trip to Leavenworth, which had been entertaining in its low-key way. We’d talked and joked about that old trip that had been such a disappointment after Disneyland.

“I’ve been thinking about you a lot.” Erica paused outside the coffee shop door. “Feeling terrible for the way things ended.”

“I don’t blame you for setting boundaries.” Her ability to do so was hard-earned. She had reasons for not speaking to her mother. “It’s okay. We’re okay.”

“Are we?”

For some reason, the way she was looking at me had my chest feeling chewed by thousands of ants. I opened the door to the coffee shop and waved her in.

It was quiet, just a pair of women at a window table. One was pushing a stroller back and forth while the other showed her something on her phone.

“Hi, Zak.” Ali paused in her scrubbing to greet me with a smile. “The usual?”

“Just mine. And a scone to go.”

“We only have cranberry muffins left.”

“That’ll do. And...?” I looked to Erica.

“A latte with an extra shot, half oat, half almond milk, and a shake of cinnamon.”

Meg would be appalled.

I paid, and we sat down in the back corner, where there was a hint of privacy.

“Tell me about the job interview.” Why are you here?

“I’ve been watching for something since you left.

This one is in maternity. The interview went well.

Decent salary and a really good benefits package.

No nights.” She widened her eyes to emphasize what a bonus that was.

“I thought I’d see if I could picture living here.

And see...” Her shoulder hitched. “...where we stood.”

Where did she think we stood? I’d sent a bunch of my stuff to storage and still paid my half of the mortgage, but we’d closed our joint accounts.

The sensation in my chest grew itchier and more compressed.

“Nothing has changed on my side. I still have to live with Dad.”

“I know, but if I was living and working here, we could see each other at least.” She leaned forward a little. “I know we rushed into living together, but we also rushed into breaking up. I really miss you, Zak.”

I should have said I missed her too. I could sense her trying to pull those words from me.

The truth was, our ability to cohabit peacefully was as much about the fact that we’d had demanding jobs than about our compatibility as people. We hadn’t weathered much in the way of life’s inevitable storms, but the minute the waves had picked up, we’d fallen apart.

If I had missed her, I would have been texting her all this time. I would have been happy to see her. Instead, I was surprised and a little dismayed. I felt guilty for buying her a coffee, like this was a date when I was promised elsewhere.

“I’m not sure what to say, Ric. If you want to move here—if you like the island and the job—then do it. But things are all-consuming with Dad. I don’t have the bandwidth for a relationship.”

“Here’s your coffee.” Ali set them down. “I assume this is for Meg?” She set the bag with the muffin on the edge of the table. “I gave her extra butter.”

Erica stiffened. “Who’s Meg?”