Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 92136 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 461(@200wpm)___ 369(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92136 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 461(@200wpm)___ 369(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
“Oh. Thanks.” Her expression was blank, at least while she was looking at me. When her eyes dropped to Paisley, she smiled. “Hi there, peanut. You doing okay?”
I couldn’t see Paisley’s face, but she wasn’t crying, and she kicked her feet and wiggled her arms like she was happy to see Emme. I was too, but I didn’t let on. “We’re fine,” I answered, as if she’d asked how both of us were doing. “How are you?”
She straightened up and gave me the blank expression again. “Fine. I just got home from work.”
I nodded, taking in her black blouse, pencil skirt and heels. Her curves looked delectable—breasts, hips, calves. “You look nice.”
“Thank you. Want me to take those?” She reached for the containers in my hands, but I didn’t want to give them to her, because then she could turn around and go inside with them and I would be forced to go home and spend another evening all by myself.
“I’ll bring them in,” I offered, and without being invited, sort of side-stepped past her into her apartment. “Should I put them in the kitchen?”
She sighed heavily and shut the door. “Okay.”
I set them on the counter and noticed she had just opened a bottle of Abelard Pinot Noir. One empty glass stood next to the bottle. “Your cousin’s winery, right? They make some great wines. Have you ever tried their Riesling?”
“No.” She walked toward me slowly, her arms crossed over her chest. “I’m not much of a Riesling girl.”
I nodded. The silence that followed was awkward. The apology I owed her was stuck in the back of my throat, I couldn’t think of anything else to say, and she did not appear inclined to rescue me. Could I blame her?
But a moment later she came into the kitchen and took another glass down. “Would you like some?” Her voice held no enthusiasm whatsoever.
It was a fairly lackluster invitation, but I took it. “Okay. Thanks.”
She poured wine for both of us and handed one glass to me. Then without saying anything, she leaned back against the counter and took a long drink from hers. I was trying to think of something to say when she spoke up.
“I saw my cousin on Monday, and she offered me a job up north.”
“Are you going to take it?”
“I haven’t decided yet.”
Immediately there was a pit in my stomach. I didn’t want her to take a job somewhere else, but I couldn’t say that. “You should. That’s a great area.”
“It is.”
I could tell from the look on her face she was hurt. God, I was a fuck-up. I’d come over here because I’d missed her laugh, and all I was doing was making her miserable. I tried again. “Last time we drank wine in your kitchen, there was a barbecued bunny on your counter.”
She nodded.
“And more of a smile on your face.”
“Sorry. Guess it’s been a long day.” She crossed her legs at the ankle and held one arm across her stomach. The message was clear.
Damn. She’s tough. I set my wine glass down without drinking from it. “Emme, come on.”
“What?”
“Stop trying to freeze me out.”
Her jaw dropped. “I’m trying to freeze you out?”
“Yes. It’s obvious.”
Then she laughed, but it wasn’t the kind I’d been waiting for. “That’s a good one, Nate, since you’re the one who acted like a total stranger Monday morning.”
“I did not act like a total stranger,” I said defensively, although I knew exactly what she meant. “I acted like a friend, which is what we are.”
She rolled her eyes. “Okay, whatever. If you want to pretend like nothing happened between us, go right ahead. But we had a conversation about it, and—”
“During which you said you’d be patient with me,” I interrupted.
“And during which you said you’d be open and honest with me.”
“I said I’d try,” I shot back. “I told you, I’m bad at this. I don’t get it.”
She came off the counter and stood up taller. “That’s bullshit, Nate. You’re not bad at this because you don’t get it. You’re bad at this because you won’t let yourself be good. Because you don’t want anybody to need you.”
My temper flared. How dare she throw my own words back in my face! This was why you shouldn’t reveal your weaknesses to people—they used them against you. I was so mad, I couldn’t find the words to defend myself. That never happened to me.
Emme, however, had plenty of words. “Well, I don’t need you. And I don’t need this in my life. So you got what you wanted.”
This is not what I wanted! I felt like screaming. But I just stood there, my hands clenched into fists, my face and neck boiling hot, my jaw locked. Paisley began to cry.
Without saying anything else, I turned around and stormed out. Her door had slammed behind me when I realized I’d forgotten to bring a key and was locked out of my apartment. Fuck!