Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 80892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 404(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 404(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
“This is just an offer from a guy I spoke with.”
I had gone into the office looking for answers, but the answers I was getting were only making me regret that decision.
No, they were making me regret everything.
Brady’s excuses, or… whatever he was saying was only making things worse, only sucking more of the oxygen out of the air, leaving me feeling like I might fall over at any moment if I didn’t get the hell out of there.
And did Brady really expect me to believe him about not having made up his mind? The damn fax laid it out pretty clearly. It sounded like a done deal.
And he knew my history with men—even though he’d talked a good game about being blunt and honest and “team work” and all that bullshit… here he was, still trying to talk around the fact that he’d gone behind my back with these negotiations.
“And when did you think you’d make up your mind? This sounds like the process is pretty far along.” My voice cracked, and despite my best efforts, I was afraid I might start crying if I didn’t hurry up and get out. “You said you’ve talked to this guy… when were you going to talk to me? Don’t I at least deserve that much, Brady?”
“Of course, you do,” Brady snapped, his voice rising. “This isn’t some sort of easy decision for me, you know. There are a lot of factors at play here, and I need to make sure I’m doing the right thing—”
“No.” I shook my head, cutting him off again, my eyes finally spilling over. This wasn’t happening, couldn’t be happening. “No, I’m not gonna let you off the hook that easily. You should’ve told me, Brady.”
“I did. I told you on day one that I was thinking about selling this place.” Brady huffed out a breath and shoved a hand back through his hair, his voice lower but still decidedly strained when he spoke again. “But things have changed since then, and I—”
“You’re damn right they’ve changed,” I interrupted.
Whatever he was going to say, I wasn’t trying to hear it. As far as I was concerned, the only thing that had changed was that Brady had lied to me.
“I can’t believe I thought you were actually a good guy. I can’t believe I trusted you to make the right decision. I can’t believe I let myself lo—”
I snapped my mouth shut as the tears kept rolling down my cheeks. No. I wasn’t going to admit that. And I for damn sure wasn’t going to break down in front of Brady. Not like this.
I needed to get out of there.
“Come on, Jo. Just let me explain—” Brady moved to put a hand on my arm, but froze when I jerked it away.
“No. I can’t. I won’t.”
I wasn’t sure if I’d ever been so hurt or so angry in my life. Not even after what my ex had done. And the more Brady tried to make it better, the more I was convinced that I’d been played for a fool.
“You’ve already said everything I needed to hear. Everything, and then some. I’ve gotta go.”
I turned and started to walk out of the office, pulling the door closed again behind me, but then I stopped, lashing out in a last ditch effort to make him understand the pain he’d caused.
“And Brady? I quit. You’re a liar and a coward, and I’m sorry I ever trusted you.”
His eyes went wide again, but I steeled myself against the hurt I saw there and slammed the door shut before either of us could say another word.
I crossed in front of the counter, half-expecting—maybe even hoping for—the door to fly open and Brady to come out and tackle me or something. To make me listen. To make it right.
But he didn’t follow me.
There was no more shouting. No chasing. No tackling. There was just me, stumbling out the front door of the shop and running to my car.
And then, once I was behind the wheel with my door closed and my seatbelt fastened, there were tears. Lots of tears. Tears for my job—my former job. Tears for the way Henry would have felt about selling his shop. Tears for the fantasy that I’d been living with Brady… the future I’d started to believe we might have together.
This chapter of my life—some of the happiest times I’d ever known—was over, and no matter what kind of explanation he might have, it wouldn’t change one fundamental fact: Brady was still thinking of selling… which meant that he didn’t feel the things I did.
He couldn’t.
Because if he had?
Selling just wouldn’t have been an option if Brady had fallen in love with me, too.
Chapter Thirty-Five - Brady
I was stunned. Even the couple of times that Joanne had been upset—even when she had been upset with me—she’d never spoken to me that way. Not with that kind of raw hurt and anger.