Page 91 - In Five Years

He stretches, bending over and grabbing onto opposite elbows with his hands.
I stand up and rub the spot on his lower back that I know pinches. He winces.
“Do you want me to drive?” I ask. “I can go. You just drove for five hours.”
“No,” David says, still folded in half. “I forgot to put you on the rental

agreement.”
He lifts himself, and I hear his vertebrae crack on the way up.

“Bye.” He kisses me and leaves, grabbing the keys out of his pocket.
I open the closet to find a hanging rod, but no hangers—as usual, Bella has
stolen them all and taken them upstairs.
I plod into the hallway in search of the coat closet and find Aaron in the

kitchen.
“Hey,” he says. “You guys made it. Sorry, I went for a swim.”

He’s dressed in board shorts with a towel draped over his shoulders like a
cape.
“David went to town to get Ariel,” I say.

Aaron nods. “That was really nice of him. I would have been happy to go.”
“David loves the car, it’s no problem,” I say.
He smiles.

“Morgan is upstairs with Bella.” I point toward the ceiling with my index
finger. I hear their feet moving on the floorboards above us.
“You hungry?” he asks me.

He goes to the refrigerator and takes out three avocados. I’m struck by his
ease, his belonging here.
“Right, you cook,” I say.

He cocks his head at me.
“I just mean, Bella said.”
He nods in response.

What Bella actually said was that he made butternut squash and sage risotto,
but before she could have one little bite they’d had sex on the counter, right there
in the kitchen. I blink away the image and run my hands down my face, shaking

my head.
“So is that a no on guacamole?”
“What? No, yes, definitely. I’m starving,” I say.

“You have interesting ways, Ms. Kohan.”