Page 48 of Love and History

Long story short, I hated it.

“I love it,” Cole gushed. “It’s epic. The yard is big enough for a volleyball net, and we could definitely play croquet or bocce ball out here. What do you think, Ez?”

I crossed my arms and nodded. “It’s…nice.”

“I’m so glad you both like it. I know you said you’re looking to move in by September first, but the owner is going to want to sign the lease sooner. If you’re interested in finalizing this, you can take your time moving in August. Think about it and call me.”

“Thanks, we will,” Cole replied. He waited till she was at her car to turn to me. “Dude, this is perfect. The rent is reasonable, and you can’t get a better location. It took me five minutes to get here from work and it’ll take over an hour to get to Pasadena. It’s a no-brainer. Want to go for it?”

I cast a critical gaze at the boring gray box of a house. It had zero character. No wraparound porch, no ghostly dark foyer, no beautiful fireplace, no ornate molding, no creaky stairs. No nerdy roommates.

No Holden.

But the harsh reality was this—I had no claim to the house or the guy. Whatever we had was too new to quantify, and it was too soon to ask awkward questions like “What next?” When the lease was up, my time with him might be up. And I needed a place to live.

I stuffed my hands into my pockets and inclined my head. “Yeah. Let’s do it.”

7

HOLDEN

“Mornin’, sunshine.”

I pulled my sweater on and shuffled to my bedroom doorway where Ezra stood bearing a gift of bagels and coffee. To be clear, it was a toasted everything bagel from my favorite bakery in Old Town. And the coffee was piping hot.

“For me?”

He shook the white paper bag before setting it on my desk next to the coffee and a stack of napkins. “For you. I would have left this downstairs, but I didn’t want to explain bagels to Tommy and Cole.”

I fiddled with the buttons on my cardigan as I peered into the bag. “You bought me a bagel?”

“Yeah. No biggie. I went to the gym this morning and stopped by on my way home. Eat it while it’s hot.”

“Why? I mean…thank you. That was thoughtful of you. That’s my favorite bakery, and I love their bagels and—”

“I remembered.” Ezra’s lips twitched on one side in an almost shy smile. Then he went all Ezra on me and sniffed his armpit. “I’m gonna shower. I stink. Hey, I have a study group tonight. I’ll see you after that, Shakespeare.”

I moved to my doorway and crossed my arms. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He stripped his T-shirt off as he sauntered down the hall to the bathroom.

That sexy beast had bought me a bagel. I clutched the bag like a Valentine and sighed…one of those embarrassing lovesick sighs that told a story all its own. I’d have a hard time reminding myself that our situation was unsustainable when he was so…nice and thoughtful. If I wasn’t careful, I’d forget he wasn’t boyfriend material.

So what if we were roommates and he was in the closet? So what if secrecy made me feel guilty? I could do this for a little while because…I liked him. A lot.

I picked at the bagel instead and sipped my coffee dreamily.

Darn that Ezra.

* * *

“Read chaptersfive through seven before our next class, and be sure to focus on Kepler’s laws of planetary motion.” I tugged at the Elizabethan collar popular during Kepler’s time meaningfully and pointed at the equation on the board. “Specifically, the calculus. Any questions?”

I scanned the lecture hall, inclining my head toward the eager young man with curly dark hair in the middle section.

“Yes, sir. Would you please go over the property of the flattening ellipse on model Three A?”

I turned to the slide projected on the opposite side of the board, adjusting my glasses as I prepared my reply. This was my final class of the day and the hundredth time I’d taught Applied Mathematics and Physics to freshmen. At least it felt that way.