Page 18 of Center of Gravity

“Very funny. I’ll have you know I was up before nine a.m.”

“Must be a momentous occasion.” I took a swallow from my glass.

“Deadline. Almost the same thing. How’s the cleaning going?”

“It’s gone. I’ve got receipts for all of the donations we can write off, a few boxes of stuff I’ll hang onto until you get back here next. Now it’s just paint and cosmetics.”

“God, you’re efficient.”

“That’s a very nice way to put it,” I teased. We both knew that a project like this would have taken her months. She would have painted a wall, then changed her mind and repainted it. And then repainted it a third time.

Summer laughed. “Love you, brother. So you’re just going to repaint the living room and kitchen and call it done?”

“Nooo,” I drew the word out. “I was, but I got one of the guys from the moving company to help me out and he had a lot of other suggestions. So, now we’re going to paint the entire house.”

“One of the Buffs?” Summer sounded intrigued.

“Yes.” It came out begrudgingly.

“And is he?”

I held another swallow of wine in my mouth, letting it unfold and bloom, slide velvety and rich over my taste buds. I thought of Alex and what he’d taste like. And just as quickly, I crushed the thought. “He’s attractive,” I said when I’d swallowed. “Also young. College age.”

“My, my, do tell me more.”

“Oh leave me alone, you started all of this in the first place.” I had no intention of telling her that I’d encountered Alex before.

She snickered. Then I shifted topics to something else that had been on my mind.

“You think selling the house is the right thing, don’t you? I mean, over keeping it and renting it out?”

Summer hummed a little noise that I knew meant she was thinking, then said, “I don’t know. You know I’ve never been attached to that house, and money is always good. Are you asking me if you can keep it?”

“If I did, I’d buy you out. But no, not yet. Probably not ever. It was just a thought.”

“You like it there.” It was almost a question, and I could tell she was surprised. Though Savannah was less than an hour away, I’d not spent an excessive amount of time on Nook Island with my folks before Mom had gotten sick. A weekend day and night every month or so when they’d both been alive. Twice a month once Mom was gone. Before that, work had always been my priority.

“I do.”

Summer was quiet for another handful of seconds. In the background I heard the drone of cars and other street traffic. She always had a window open, hated feeling confined. I missed her, then. Suddenly and sharply. Before Dad’s funeral, the last time I’d seen her was at Mom’s.

“You sound—” she started, then another pause. “You sound all right.”

“I am.” My reply was immediate even if it wasn’t entirely true. I wasbetter. Better with a chance of good. Maybe. The further I got along in getting the house ready to go to market, the lighter my mental load felt.

“It’s just after all of this Sean business hitting you so hard, and Dad, and…I just worry and I’m far away and so damn rooted to this place. It’s hard to get away.”

“I’m fine, Sum, really. The Sean thing is done.” Mostly.

“Find a pool boy to fuck. God knows there are plenty of those around there.”

“I don’t need any fucking right now. The last thing I need is fucking.”

Summer made a scoffing sound that I childishly mimicked back to her.

“What about work? That still on target and everything?”

“Mm.” I nodded into my glass. “I’m still working it out.”