Page 16 of Meet Me in a Mile

Sixteen

Luke

“T hanks for coming with me,” Lydia said again as she paid for a small bouquet of flowers from a street vendor outside the City Clerk’s Office. “You didn’t have to, and I know it’s eating into our training time. Gosh, is it weird that I’m nervous?”

“It’s not every Thursday afternoon your sister springs a last-minute marriage on you,” Luke said.

“I’m still shocked. Eloping was the last thing I expected from Ashley.” Lydia thanked the vendor for the flowers before pushing through the revolving door. “My mom’s going to lose it when she finds out.”

They entered the lobby. The Office of the City Clerk was like any other government building Luke had ever been inside—stark, absurdly clean and quiet. It was the complete opposite of the youth center. “Manhattan Marriage Bureau,” Luke said, pointing to a small gold sign on the wall. “I think we’re in the right place.”

Lydia headed in that direction, the first door on the right, but before she reached it, someone called her name. It was her sister, Ashley, who Luke recognized from the gym. They’d never formally been introduced, but he spotted her from time to time as he rushed off after clients and she made her way to yoga. She wore a soft white sundress, and beside her stood a tall, bookish man in a suit.

“You came!” Ashley said.

“Of course I came!” Lydia said. They hugged, then Lydia handed her the flowers. “You’re eloping?”

“We’re eloping.”

“And this is what you both want?”

Kurt nodded. “It is. We can have the party later. We just want this moment to be for us.”

Luke watched Lydia smile. “Then let’s get you married.” She turned suddenly. “Oh, Ash, you remember Luke, right? From the gym? And Luke, this is Kurt.”

“Yeah, hi,” Ashley said, reaching out to shake his hand. Luke traded her hand for Kurt’s. “I don’t begrudge you trying to teach my sister how to run. Maybe she’ll come to yoga with me next!”

Luke laughed. “I don’t know about that, but there’s a marathoner in there somewhere.” He was grateful for the reminder of their professional relationship, that they weren’t acknowledging the less professional elements of his friendship with her sister. Not that he expected Lydia wouldn’t have told her—from everything he’d heard they were especially close—but he didn’t think the marriage bureau was the right place to try to sort through his feelings on the subject.

Feelings that became more complicated when he thought about Jack. He hadn’t been able to put a face to Lydia’s office crush until today. He could see why she’d liked him—the guy was basically perfection walking around in a suit—but he wasn’t quite sure where Lydia and Jack stood. Last he’d heard, Lydia was pretty disillusioned by him. Then Jack had called Lydia his running buddy, and as much as Luke had teased her, determined not to make things weird, he’d also been caught off guard at how strange it made him feel.

But it wasn’t Jack she’d asked to come witness her sister’s marriage.

It was him.

“Shall we?” Kurt said, gesturing to the door, pulling Luke from his tangled thoughts.

Lydia looped her arm through his, and Luke felt some of the anxiousness inside him settle.

Kurt led them past security to the reception desk, where they all handed over their IDs. After paying, Ashley and Kurt got a numbered ticket. Kurt tapped the ticket against Ashley’s nose. “Guess this is really happening now.”

Lydia grabbed Ashley’s hand as they all sat down on the green couches, waiting for one of the flashing TVs above the numbered stations to read out their number. Several other groups were gathered in the room as well. It was all quiet, anxious, excited whispers.

When their number was called, they all walked up to the station, then handed over their IDs again. Ashley also handed over a marriage license. Then the clerk passed them a paper. Ashley and Kurt signed first. Then Lydia and Luke signed as the witnesses. It was all very efficient. Once they were done, it was back to the green couches.

“I didn’t know if I was supposed to change or if I should bring anything,” Lydia said to Ashley. “I kind of wish you’d given me more of a heads-up.”

“We barely gave ourselves a heads-up,” Ashley laughed. “We were playing around with the idea, more like a joke every time we sat down to try and plan things, and it just kept sounding better and better. Neither of us knew it was actually happening until we did the paperwork and got the marriage license. Then we booked an appointment and it was suddenly real. You were right, though. Why should our wedding day cater to everyone else’s happiness? Seems like a disappointing start to married life. This way we have all the control.”

“I’m happy for you,” Lydia said.

“Good. Because you’re telling Mom.”

Luke grinned at the momentary look of horror on Lydia’s face. “As your maid of honor, I will bear this burden. But if you don’t hear from me in four to six weeks it’s because she’s killed me.”

Their number was called again and all of their heads perked up.

The next station was a horseshoe-shaped atrium. Ashley handed the paperwork they’d all just signed to an employee, who told them to wait with the other couples in the room. There were doors on either side of the atrium, leading to rooms where the officiants were marrying other couples. Kurt pulled Ashley in for a hug, and Luke hovered close to Lydia, trying to give the couple privacy.

“How do you feel now?”

“So weird. My sister’s about to be married and that means she’s really gone and grown up. I wanted to be just like her, you know, when we were kids. Everything she did I had to do too. Even as we got older, that hasn’t really changed. Frankly, I’m a little surprised I didn’t follow her right to law school.” Lydia shrugged. “Ashley’s always seemed to be following this perfect, traditional life plan, and now that she’s deviating, I’m a little thrown, to be honest.”

“Sometimes life’s more fun when things are unexpected.”

“As long as it makes her happy, I suppose I can roll with the unexpected.”

“Are there going to be waterworks?” Luke whispered. “Should I stuff my pockets with tissues?”

“I’ll hold it together,” Lydia promised, straightening her shoulders. “I am really glad you’re here.”

Warmth surged through him at her words. “Putting moral support on my résumé.”

Lydia laughed.

When their group was called, she took his hand, guiding him through the doors to their right and into a tiny room with pale pink walls. The officiant welcomed them, standing behind a podium. Ashley and Kurt placed their rings and Lydia’s small bouquet of flowers on the podium, then, without any other pomp or circumstance, it began.

As Luke stood there, watching these almost strangers get married, he glanced over at Lydia, her hair a little windswept, her cheeks pink from smiling so much. Maybe it was all the lovey-dovey newlywed vibes ricocheting around the room, but he couldn’t help thinking about how his life had changed since meeting her. Before Lydia, he’d never given a passing glance to the architecture in the city. Now his camera roll was filled with old brickwork and rusty fire escapes because he knew Lydia loved those parts of the city. He noticed the shapes of windows and crumbling archways in gardens. He noticed the way one block differed from another. Sometimes, he even expected to walk around a corner and find Lydia standing there, a sketchbook in her hand.

Before Lydia he might have considered letting this first rejection for his business plan end his dream. Now all he could think about was what she’d said to him the other day about trying again.

The officiant stopped talking, and Kurt and Ashley kissed. Lydia clapped, bouncing up and down on her toes. When she turned to him, her eyes were glazed. “You said you’d hold it together,” he joked.

“Obviously I lied!”

Luke reached into his pocket and produced a tissue. “I figured.”

Lydia took the tissue from him, laughing, and Luke rubbed errantly at his chest, wondering if she realized just how tightly she was tugging on his heartstrings.

“Are you actually going to do some work today or are you just going to keep staring at your phone?” Dara asked. It was still early for a Saturday and Luke started, not quite awake as he leaned against the front desk, waiting for Lydia to arrive for their fifteen-mile run.

“Where have you been the last few days?” Jules asked from the other side of the desk, stapling a workout plan together. “I feel like I’ve barely seen you.”

Luke stuffed his phone back into his pocket. “I picked up a couple more clients.” He figured if the bank turned him down for his business loan a second time, he was going to need to start saving more money himself. Sure, it would mean his dream of owning a gym was years away, but he wasn’t giving it up that easily. “Also, I sort of ended up at a surprise wedding ceremony on Thursday, so I shifted my afternoon around.”

“For who?” Dara wondered, ignoring the phones.

“You’re supposed to answer those,” Luke said.

“I like to screen the calls in case it’s someone I don’t feel like talking to.”

“That’s literally the definition of your job.”

Dara shrugged. “Whose wedding?”

“Lydia’s sister eloped.”

“Ah, the client you spend all your time with.”

“I’m training her,” Luke said pointedly.

“Yeah, I can tell,” Dara said, bringing up his schedule on the computer and scrolling through his appointments. Jules peered over her shoulder with interest. “Look at this. Lydia. Lydia. Lydia. Geez, do you ever give the girl a break?”

“We’re building up to a marathon!” Luke said, reasonably. “That’s a normal training schedule.” Dara waggled her eyebrows at him. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re very annoying?”

Dara beamed. “You’re just mad because I uncovered your secret girlfriend.”

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Luke said, trying not to flush. Dara was as bad as the kids at the youth center. “I don’t have a girlfriend.”

“I can see why. I don’t know how your client puts up with you.”

Luke grumbled, walking away from the front desk. “I don’t have to sit here and listen to this. Come get me when Lydia arrives.”

“Good!” Dara yelled. “It’s easier to gossip about you when you’re not around.”

Luke headed back to his office. It was still a disorganized mess, which never failed to amuse Lydia. He collapsed on the leather two-seater against the wall. He needed to stop thinking about her. If Dara and Jules were starting to notice, then maybe he was being too obvious with the way he was currently feeling.

Obviously he hadn’t been looking for something serious, but he’d be a fool if he didn’t acknowledge all the ways they seemed to fit. And though he certainly didn’t set out to fall for a client, somewhere between Lydia kissing him at the pub and running all over the city with her, things had changed. He groaned, running a hand down his face.

“Don’t let her get to you,” Jules said.

Luke lifted his head. Jules was leaning against the doorjamb. “Who, Dara?” He waved off the thought. “She’s always like that with me.”

“What her did you think I was talking about?”

“No one.”

Jules bit her lip. She knew exactly who Luke was talking about.

“I like her,” Luke confessed, staring at the ceiling. What use was there in lying? Jules and Dara could see right through him. “A lot. I think it surprised me how much we connected. It’s just complicated because...”

“You’re training her,” Jules said.

Luke sighed. “I offered to get her another trainer early on, but she declined and we thought it would be okay. It wasn’t supposed to be anything serious, but now—”

“Now you’re attending wedding ceremonies with her,” Jules said, finishing his thought.

“Yes, thank you!” Luke said. “What the hell does that mean?”

Jules laughed. “You could write her a note like in the first grade and ask her to check yes if she likes you back.”

Luke huffed. “If only it were that easy. If I pull the plug as her trainer and ask for more, I’m worried I might freak her out. What if she truly doesn’t feel the same? Then I’ve ruined our professional relationship and screwed up her training because I couldn’t figure out these feelings.” He didn’t want Lydia to panic and stop training altogether because he couldn’t read the signs. Maybe they’d both really just needed some comfort a couple weeks ago when she’d poured her heart out to him about work. Maybe it was a coincidence that he’d been in the right place at the right time and gotten roped into the wedding ceremony. Maybe it all meant nothing. But it was starting to feel real. And he wanted more of that.

“Look, the fact that you’ve fallen for a client is tricky, but you’ve got to figure things out one way or another. Love can be beautiful even when it’s complicated, but this in-between stuff is going to get messy really fast.”

“I know,” Luke grumbled.

“If it helps, I’ve never heard you talk about anyone the way you talk about Lydia.”

Luke flopped back on the couch as Jules walked away. He still had no idea what to do. Did he risk their professional relationship? Did he ask her for more? He needed a sign from the universe.

“Lucas!” Dara’s voice echoed down the hall. “Lydia is here!”

Luke jumped to his feet, hurrying out to meet her before Dara could start spouting off words like girlfriend in front of Lydia. He smiled, perhaps too wide, but he worried she might be able to see the longing in his face if he didn’t. “Ready?”

Lydia matched his smile. “Absolutely not. But let’s do this.”

“You’re usually a little more enthusiastic,” Luke said, leading her outside.

“Something about fifteen miles feels daunting,” Lydia said as they warmed up.

Luke couldn’t help but think that she’d found the perfect word to describe how he felt. This thing between them felt daunting. But he wasn’t supposed to be thinking about that.

“I mean, I made it this far, so I can’t just go back, but there’s still an awfully long way to go.”

Her words twisted the feelings inside him. He cleared his throat. “We don’t have to think about all those miles today. We just focus on this run. On taking the next—”

“Step,” Lydia cut in, rolling her eyes with a smile. “Yeah, yeah, I know. I’m gonna put that on a T-shirt for you.”

“It’s excellent advice.” They set off together, and Luke led her toward the East River Greenway, entering at 34th Street so they could run along the waterfront. “How’s your sister taking to married life?”

“Great,” Lydia said. “Ash and Kurt just left on a spur-of-the-moment honeymoon and I had to call and tell my parents about it all.”

“Well, you’re still alive, so I take it your mother has come to terms with the decision?”

“She kept saying she was going to pass out while we were on the phone.” Lydia made an amused sound. “My dad thinks it’s great. Says it’s gonna save him tons of money.”

“I suppose that’s one way to look at it,” Luke said. It was a cloudless day, the sky a vivid blue, while the water of the East River sparkled under the sun’s reflection. In the distance he could just make out the Williamsburg Bridge. They fell into a comfortable silence, his world narrowing to the sounds of Lydia’s breathing, the length of her stride and her mile pace as they ran through the swerving, greenery-filled pathways of Stuyvesant Cove Park.

“I can’t believe we haven’t run through here before,” Lydia said as the path widened. She’d come so far since that first run where she could barely keep her breathing under control, never mind carry on an entire conversation. They were joined by other runners and cyclists and weekend waterfront strollers as they entered the East River Promenade. It was filled with green spaces, benches and trees.

“What?” he teased. “Were you getting sick of running around the gym?”

“I mean, I think I trip over the same curb every time we circle the block. You have to admit this is a nice change.”

“I’m just kidding,” he said. “You’re right. You can’t beat running along the waterfront. I was actually trying to save this stretch for when the trees started to change colors. We’re a little early for that still, but we’ll come back another weekend.”

Lydia shot him a surprised look.

“What?”

“I didn’t know you put that much thought into these runs.”

“What do you mean?”

“Like you considered when the leaves would change just so that we’d get to run beside all the pretty fall colors. That’s really...thoughtful, I guess.”

Luke didn’t know if he was supposed to chuckle at that, but he couldn’t help himself. “Do I not seem like the thoughtful type?”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“You seem to be saying a lot of something without knowing what you mean.”

Her cheeks flushed, the rosy color of exertion darkening.

Lydia cleared her throat. “It’s nice,” she said finally. “That you put that much thought and time into planning these runs. That you care enough—”

“To make sure you don’t die of boredom?” he suggested.

Her lips twitched. “It’s nice,” she said again, softer this time, and he had to look away to stop himself from staring too hard.

“Well, I’m glad you like the view, ’cause this stretch of the greenway is only about four and a half miles, so we’ve gotta do a few laps this morning.”

Lydia hummed in approval, settling back into her form. They slowed a few times, long enough for Lydia to snap photos of various parts of the skyline that piqued her interest as they passed the Manhattan Bridge and then the Brooklyn Bridge. But all Luke could think about was the blush in Lydia’s cheeks and how genuinely she’d said it’s nice .

Jules’s words from earlier rushed back so fast it almost made him breathless. If he could navigate all these complicated and messy feelings, if he could figure out what they meant, maybe this thing between them would get to be beautiful.