“I can certainly try,” he said before returning his eyes to the newspaper.

“It’s supposed to be eighty today. Can Brian come over to swim?” Logan asked.

Lina was in the garage removing grocery bags from the back of her SUV when she heard the closing of a car door, and then Brian walked in, a backpack slung over his shoulder and a lacrosse stick in his hand.

“I told Logan to call me if you were coming. I drove right by your neighborhood. I could have picked you up.”

“I came from my dad’s,” he said, surprising her.

“Oh.” She set down her bags before stepping out onto the driveway, her eyes centering on the Land Rover that was in the process of doing a three-point turn.

“I forgot my cell phone.” Brian dropped his things, running past her towards his father’s SUV, which had completed its turn and was headed down the drive. “Dad, wait!” he yelled.

The brake lights of the vehicle lit up, and then the door was opening and Nick was stepping out of the SUV. Lina’s heart rate quickened as she focused on the man she hadn’t seen or heard from in six weeks. She missed him, and as she watched him open the back door of his vehicle so Brian could retrieve his cell phone, she felt a nostalgic pull that made her walk farther out onto the driveway.

When his head turned in her direction, she raised her hand in greeting. He returned her wave before ducking back into the car, and she felt a lump forming in her throat at the realization he was leaving without speaking to her, but then he was emerging once again. Moments later, he and Brian were walking towards her. His hair was longer, and he wasn’t quite as tan, but it was him, and her heart leapt in her chest.

“You have the same gait,” she called out as they approached.

“Gait?” Brian looked quizzically at Nick.

“We walk the same.” He patted Brian on the back as they came to a stop before Lina. “Be good.”

“You can let yourself into the house,” Lina told Brian. “I think Logan’s already down at the pool.” She watched him until he disappeared into the garage, and then she was turning back to Nick.

“How are you?” They spoke in unison and then both smiled.

“It’s really good to see you,” she said.

“Is it?”

“You know it is,” she said lightly, her eyes traveling over his face. “I hate not talking to you. I feel like there’s a void in my life.” As her eyes met his, she felt a connection pass between them.

“I should go. Emily’s waiting in the car.”

“Emily,” Lina repeated, her eyes moving past him to the Land Rover twenty yards away. “How long have you been together?”

“Lina—”