How We Fell in Love: Grace and James's short story Read online

  How We Fell in Love

  Toni Aleo

  Copyright © 2018 by Toni Aleo

  All rights reserved.

  How We Fell in Love is a work of fiction. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  To everyone who stood beside me this summer through my dark period. I am happy to say I am peeking out, and I am trying to find my way.

  Contents

  March 17th

  March 28th

  March 31st

  April 2nd

  April 3rd

  April 13th

  April 14th

  May 3rd

  May 18th

  May 20th

  May 24th

  September 3rd

  September 7th

  November 22nd

  February 3rd

  Twenty years later…

  Present day

  Also by Toni Aleo

  ABOUT TONI ALEO

  Acknowledgments

  March 17th

  I move my hands through my hair as I fall back onto my bed. A long sigh leaves my lips, and I stare up at the blades of the fan as they spin around. I don’t look around or even admire the work I have put into this little apartment. I don’t care. I hate it now, which is utterly depressing since I worked damn hard to make perfect.

  Before, our apartment was the ideal balance of soft and hard. My brother is rough and tough, and though his eyes are as blue as the sky, gray is his color. I played off the gray with a stunning pale purple, my favorite color, and the apartment was flawless. We even had matching recliners where we’d watch the games or play Xbox. It was perfect. But then my brother left for a huge contract to be some big shot hockey player for the Nashville Assassins.

  Stupid twin brother.

  Don’t get me wrong, I’m ecstatic for him. This is what he worked for, what we all strived for, but it’s the first time he’s left me behind. I know they say twins need to live their own lives, but my mom thought that was a load of shit. So we did everything together. She matched our outfits until we were old enough to complain, and I will not admit that age—no matter what.

  Wherever Shea went, I was there, and the same for him. We were in the same classes, the same clubs, the same camps—we did everything the same. I played hockey until I got hurt in college. It was probably for the best since, apparently, Shea got all the great hockey genes. Though, I still had a nice scholarship, and it gave me a chance to focus on my designs. Shea, he continued to kick ass, which is why he’s already being traded to the Assassins.

  He’s badass. What I didn’t realize was that, when he left, I wasn’t going. I don’t know who decided this. Maybe it was me being all stubborn and headstrong, but the last four months have been shit. And I want—no, I need to be where my brother is. Yes, we have that weird twin thing that might disturb normal folks, but to us, we’re just best friends. Even as teenagers, we got along, and now as young adults, nothing has changed. He is my best friend, and the phone calls and emails… Well, they aren’t cutting it.

  I hate how pathetic I sound, but Mom has already given me up, so it’s not as embarrassing when I ask, “Can’t you just come back?”

  Shea laughs loudly. “Grace, I signed a seven-year contract. I’m gonna be here awhile.”

  “Can we cancel that?”

  He scoffs. “No, I like the money.” Ah, I forgot about the millions he’s worth. “But the offer still stands. You are more than welcome. Actually, I’d love it if you came to live here.”

  “I don’t know if I’m the Nashville type.” I scrunch up my nose at the thought. I’m Boston born and bred. I have the mouth of a Bostonian, and I love chowder. Does Nashville have New England clam chowder? Doubt it. It’s probably called Nashville chowder. Ew.

  “You’d have a place. It’s just me right now, and I told you, I have that friend who runs a design and party planning company.”

  “I want to be a designer, not a party planner.”

  “Same thing,” he throws at me. “They make shit pretty.”

  “Not the same thing,” I mutter, but he isn’t listening. “And who is this friend? Your flavor of the week?”

  “Hey,” he laughs. “She’s lasted about four, and she knows about you. She said you have a job here.”

  “Until you break her heart.”

  He shrugs. “She isn’t the one, so I’ll let her down easy when I’m done.”

  “How do you know that? I never know who ‘the one’ is.”

  “Because you don’t give any guy a chance to become ‘the one.’” Well, he isn’t wrong. “How’s Brent, by the way?”

  I groan loudly. “We broke up last week.”

  “You didn’t tell me.” He sounds hurt.

  “I didn’t want to hear ‘I told you so.’”

  “Did he cheat?”

  I nod, and the tears are still a bit fresh. “Yup.”

  “Well then, I told you so because he was sleeping with you when he was married.”

  I grimace. “Well, if it makes it any better, he cheated on me with his wife.”

  “That doesn’t make it better.”

  I shrug. “I thought he was special.”

  “He wasn’t. He was a jackass, and you should have left when you found out instead—” Shea lets out a long breath. This is why I didn’t tell him. I didn’t need all this. “You need a nice fucking dude, sis.”

  I close my eyes. “Haven’t met one.”

  I can hear the disdain in his voice. “You know what? All that doesn’t matter. It’s time to restart. And I’m telling you, you’d love it here if you gave it a chance. People are nice, the team is awesome, and the food is amazing. I’m sure we can find a chowder that is up to your standards.”

  I grumble, though I do like the idea of a fresh start. I am starting to develop an unhealthy type here. I need a new dating sea of sexy fish, and maybe Nashville has that. Yet I’m hesitant. “I don’t know. What about my place?”

  “We’ll sell it. I know a guy.”

  “And my stuff?”

  “We can ship it.”

  “But what if I don’t like it there?”

  “Then you can go back, Grace. Come on, let’s be adults and think critically here.”

  I roll my eyes. “But you won’t come back?”

  A pregnant pause falls between us, and I can just see him running his hands through his hair in frustration. I’m four minutes older than Shea, but no one believes that. Shea is just the kind of guy who runs shit. He’s a leader, and he fights for the people he loves like no other.

  “No, Nashville is home now. I told you that when I left Philly.”

  I want to cry at the simple sentence. It’s so rude. “I know.”

  “You should have come with me instead of going home.” I don’t know if he’s right. I close my eyes as he goes on, “Listen, I know the last couple months have been tough. They have been for me too, but Grace, you can do this by yourself. You know that, right?”

  “Well, duh, I’m badass.” I know I can live here without Shea; I just don’t want to. “I just miss your smelly ass, and I’m hungry. No one is here to order good food. I don’t know where to order from.”

  I hear the grin in his voice. “I told you to learn how to cook.”

  “Eh, keeps my waist in check.” Or not. Pretty sure I’ve gained weight from eating gas station food. Hot dogs and Slurpees are a banging dinner.

  “Nerd,” he laughs, and