We take a seat at the table, him across from me. He stirs his coffee and I use my spoon to scoop up a large dollop of my whipped cream. It’s not the canned crap a lot of places like to use. The Blue Ridge Café make everything they sell in house.
Jude sits back in his chair and focuses on me, his gray eyes curious. “So tell me, how’s married life?”
I laugh but there’s no humor in it. “It’s non-existent.” Bringing my hot chocolate to my lips, I take a sip. “Our divorce was finalized a year ago.”
His eyes widen. “Oh wow, sorry to hear that.”
“I’m not,” I say with all certainty. “I should’ve filed for divorce a lot sooner.”
Jude looks down at his coffee. “I knew he was wrong for you.”
I just hate it took me forever to figure that out. “What about you?” I ask, glancing quickly at his left hand. There isn’t a wedding band in sight.
“Well,” he begins, leaning over on his elbows, “I was engaged for a while, but it didn’t work out.” When his eyes meet mine, I tremble. He gives me a sad smile and says, “I didn’t have that connection with her.”
A moment passes between us and I don’t know what to say. I know what connection he’s talking about. Shawn and I never had it. I thought I loved him, but there was always something missing. The only person I’ve ever had a connection to was with Jude. I trusted him completely and he never let me down. He was the only person who ever kept his word, and here I am… a crappy friend.
“Any kids?” Jude asks, lifting his cup to his lips.
I shake my head. “Nope. Shawn never wanted any. Guess it’s a good thing because I have a lot of money saved up. I probably wouldn’t if we had kids.” I hold up a hand. “However, I might have to include my sister as a kid. She’s here in Boone. The girl’s been dying to get me in her sorority.”
“What?” he gasps, almost choking on his coffee. “I can’t believe she’s here. Does she still want to marry me?”
We both laugh and I think back to those days when Anna would convince him to play tea party with him. She would always tell me she was going to marry him some day. I can’t wait to call her and tell her I had a coffee date with her future husband.
“I’m sure she’s moved on,” I tell him. “But if you must know, she gave me hell for what happened between us. She’ll be happy to know you’re here.”
Jude smiles. “The better question is what are you doing back here?”
I finish my hot chocolate and savor the last taste of it. “Well, I got bored with accounting and decided to do what I originally planned.”
“Interior design,” he says, already knowing the answer.
Nodding, I move my cup away. “And in order to get my degree, I need a humanities course. All that was left was Philosophy.”
Jude chuckles. “You and I both got stuck with that class. That’s why I was late. I got the call literally right when it started.”
“Now that we’re on good terms again, you’re not going to fail me, right?”
He lifts his brows. “Depends. Just because we have history doesn’t mean I’m going to take it easy on you.”
“Bring it on then, Professor.” He smiles and I can’t help but stare at him. He seems happy which is something I’ve always wanted for him. “Looks like you got what you wanted. A college professor. You must like it.”
Averting his gaze, he peers out at the mountains and smiles. “I love it, Laura. Don’t get me wrong, it’s hard work trying to teach college kids. Some of them want to learn, but there are a lot who don’t give a shit. One day, those specific ones will grow up. I think we’ve all been there.”
“Exactly,” I agree. “I remember us going to plenty of parties our freshman year.”
Jude’s lips tilt slightly. “Yes, we did.”
There were times when we’d party a little too hard and he would be the one holding my hair back. Or vice versa, he’d be the one who got wasted and I’d stay with him to make sure he stayed hydrated. There isn’t a single memory of my time in Boone without him in it. Losing him was like losing a part of my soul. How could I have ever been so stupid?
Jude places a few dollars for tip on the table and nods toward the sidewalk. “Ready to go?”
I stand and grab my bookbag. “Yep, let’s go.”
As we’re walking down the sidewalk back to campus, something catches my attention. There’s a big sign, covered in pictures of sliced watermelon with the words Watermelon Festival on it. Mouth gaping, I grab my chest. “Oh my goodness, I can’t believe it.”