Return to Sender

[ P ] : "GOOD OLD FASHIONED LOVER BOY"

Julian couldn't get his tie right. With a sigh, he pulled it free and started over. It was a long day and even longer night—and it was going to be longer still. Though he didn't have much to complain about in terms of how he spent his evening.

Robyn glanced over her shoulder at him, cigarette perched on the lips that were pressed to him only minutes before. There was a familiar mischief sparkling in her hazel eyes. She was a beautiful woman, who despite her age, appeared ageless. Time was kind to her, or maybe it was the money she'd piped into the beauty industry and the connections that bought her.

"Is the tie necessary?" she asked.

"I've got to head back to the office."

She hummed, lighting her cigarette and tossing the lighter back onto the side table. "Being the boss must be tough."

"You know how it is."

Robyn was from old money and she grew up to be a high fashion model and wife of a world renown fashion designer. Her ex-husband was a real bastard but Julian couldn't ignore his achievements in the industry. Plus, he was a respected client that the marketing division of PK Corporation handled.

"Mmm. Well, rest is good for the soul and the skin. You don't want to wake up in ten years, alone, bald, and at risk for heart disease."

Finally, he got the knot for his tie right. "Do you really think I'll go bald?"

She reached up and tugged playfully at his hair. It was thick and smooth—good genetics were on his side. "Well, maybe not the bald part, but you're well on your way to being alone. No woman is interested in a man who lives and breathes work." 

"I'm thirty-eight. I've out-grown my need for romance."

She shook her head, taking a drag from her cigarette. A small, coughing laugh rattled from her chest as smoke plumed around her face. "You only say that cause you've never been in love."

"...We've been meeting for three years now."

"But you don't love me."

He paused at her blunt statement before responding, "I like you and we have sexual chemistry. That's more than enough for me."

She laughed, the creases near her eyes crinkling. Robyn placed a hand against his cheek, patting it gently. "Take it from me, it would do you some good to find yourself in love."

"Is this experience speaking?"

"...Something like that."

He pursed his lips together. The annoyance written on his face made him rather boyish for a moment. 

 Robyn pulled her hand back in surrender. "Look, I'm only saying that if an opportunity comes your way, put yourself out there. You might be surprised to find that sexual chemistry isn't usually enough."

"...Why all this talk about love?"

She turned her face away, staring out the floor to ceiling wall of windows. The glow of the building lights and central nightlife shown like stars in a vast ocean below them. This was one of the best views in the city, Julian willingly paid good money for the sight.

"Lyra is pregnant."

He tilted his head, knowing she was talking about her daughter who she had only begun to grow closer to after an estrangement. He never pressed about the details because it was a level of intimacy he was certain neither of them wanted. "Congratulations."

"Thank you. Anyways, it got me thinking—" She took a drag from her cigarette, the burning tip setting a small glow to her face. He was never a fan of the habit or the smell but he enjoyed Robyn's company so he never complained. "I'm going to sell my home here and move across the pond. I want to be closer to my daughter and grandchild. Things were hard for us in her childhood. But I think it's a chance for us to grow closer and be a family, or at least I'd like to try." 

Julian rose up from the bed, grabbing his watch from the side table. "So, this is goodbye then?"

"It was time well spent," she replied, rising from the bed and adjusting her silk robe.

He smiled, placing his watch on his wrist. "Indeed."

"Don't be a stranger."

Julian crossed the room, grabbed her hand in his and placed a kiss to her knuckles. "If you ever need anything, just ask."

"Of course. Now, you should go before your late—"

It was fitting that things were ending between them as simply and easily as they began. There were no hard feelings. They were friends that lived their lives career focused. He truly wished that this change in her life brought her the happiness she was searching for.

He wasn't sure about all that love talk.

But maybe Robyn was right. If the opportunity arose, it might be worth a second thought.