Chapter Thirty-Three
Charlotte
Charlotte was in the kitchen, holding open the door to the fridge, when she heard Emery come home. She followed his sound, his steps getting louder until he walked into the kitchen. As she took in her boss post-run, she started to squeeze the cold metal door with both hands. He was dressed in a pair of grey sweatpants, a fleece jacket, and sneakers. He was sweaty, flushed, and devastatingly handsome.
But as Charlotte watched him go over to the sink and gulp down a glass of water, she remembered how awkward things had been earlier this morning when she’d stared at him in the towel. She didn’t want him to catch her gawking again, so she glanced back toward the fridge, pretending to search for something.
“I know we missed the meeting,” Emery said from behind her, breaking a silence that had lasted far too long.
His tone didn’t have the stress and anger from before, telling Charlotte the run had helped or maybe he’d had a conversation with Jesse and she had calmed him down. Either way, Emery wasn’t the same person as when Charlotte had heard him on the phone.
Now, she hoped her news would make him feel even better.
“You didn’t miss anything,” she said, seeing a block of Havarti Marion must have picked up on her way here. “I rescheduled our meeting.”
“To when?”
“Two,” she said casually. “That was his only opening.” She finally looked over her shoulder “The inspection department called this morning and asked you in for an emergency meeting and that’s why you couldn’t make it to him by nine.”
“That meeting isn’t until tomorrow.”
“The builder doesn’t know that.”
A faint smile spread across his lips, and it pleased Charlotte so much to see it.
She grinned in response and glanced back at the fridge. “Hungry?” When she didn’t get a reply, she added, “Since Marion is busy cleaning, I was going to make a sandwich if you want one.”
“It’s ten in the morning.”
She gazed over her shoulder once more and teased, “What, you can’t have bread before noon?”
He laughed and she loved that sound. “No, I can.”
“Good, then I’ll make us one that’s more breakfast-ey.”
She filled her arms with ingredients and brought it over to the gas range. It took her several trips back to the fridge before everything was spread out and organized on the counter.
“Coffee or juice?” he asked.
She cracked two eggs into the fry pan. “I’ll grab us drinks, don’t worry.”
He ignored her and went over to the coffeemaker, taking a mug out of the cabinet. “Do you want one?”
She nodded only because he was making it.
“Do you put anything in yours?” he asked.
This was the first time Emery had waited on her and she found it adorable. She pointed toward the refrigerator. “A heavy splash of the flavored creamer. That’s it.”
She reduced the heat on the spinach and put the bread into the toaster and sliced the tomatoes to get them ready. Once the whites of the eggs were cooked, she began to layer the sandwich, finishing the large stack with a piece of smoked salmon. She added fresh fruit to the plates and brought them over to the table where Emery had the coffees, silverware, and napkins waiting.
She was just taking a seat when he said, “I didn’t think to ask Adam if he wanted anything.”
“I did,” she replied. “He ate before he came over and isn’t hungry. I also checked in with Luz to make sure everything is perfect back at home, and it is.”
He shook his head as he put his napkin on his lap. “Thanks for handling it all.”
She smiled and cut her sandwich in half, chewing slowly, letting all the different flavors settle on her tongue.
Emery kept his whole and bit off one of the corners. “Mmm,” he said. Yolk dripped onto his plate and he scooped it up by smearing the top of his sandwich into it. “When I saw you put on the cream cheese, I thought you were crazy.”
Charlotte laughed behind her napkin to hide her mouthful. “I know it seems like an odd choice, but it complements the smoked salmon and tomato so well.”
Several seconds passed before he said, “This is outstanding.”
“If you like this one, wait until you try my grilled cheese with tomato soup.”
The older Charlotte got, the more of a foodie she became, experimenting with the ingredients she could combine to create new tastes. She attributed that to a childhood full of mostly bland carbohydrates. It wasn’t until college when she finally got to sample seafood and different cuts of meat. She hadn’t stopped trying new foods ever since.
“I better keep up these runs or you’re going to put a good twenty on me.”
Charlotte swallowed. “I can stop making the bread—”