“I can’t trust you. I feel like I never even knew you for real,” I whispered.
His face fell before he ducked his head. But when he returned his gaze to mine, the corner of his lip tugged up. “I guess I’ll just have to accept that for now.”
I started to protest that it wasn’t just ‘for now,’ but he took his backpack off his shoulder and started to dig around inside. After a few seconds, he produced a white business card.
“Here,” he said, handing it to me. I thought about objecting, but decided it was easier not to fight him. “It’s got all of my information. My number is on there, and my assistant’s. I’m not going anywhere, so call me when you want to talk.Seriously, Calla. Whenever you want to talk, call me. I don’t care if it’s the middle of the night.”
My heart fell a little at the hope on his face as I scanned the card.
“I don’t want you to be disappointed if I don’t call,” I said shakily.
He gave me a sad smile. “You could never disappoint me.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“And then he just left.Can you believe that?”
Piper nodded as I relayed to her everything that happened over our mother’s worn dining room table.
“Sounds like he’s sorry, honey,” my mom chimed in from the kitchen.
“He’s sorry because he got caught,” I pointed out.
Ever since I’d returned from the show, my mom had made it clear where she stood on the whole Eli situation. She firmly believed we were meant to be and had been nagging me to at least entertain giving him a second chance.
“Itisinteresting that he’s here making his movie without the backing of his dad’s production company.” Piper tapped her chin and leaned back in her chair.
“Probably felt too guilty to take the opportunity,” I said, pushing my salad around on my plate but not actually taking a bite.
“That’s good,” my mom insisted, bustling into the room with a pint of ice cream and three spoons. Her hair was piled on top of her head and she looked younger than her years,wearing a loose-fitting sweatshirt that I could’ve sworn she’d stolen from me.
“How is that good?” I demanded, swiping a spoon from her and popping the lid off of the mint chocolate chip.
“Because that means he’s showing remorse.”
“He should!” I exclaimed. “What he did was awful.”
“I don’t care what you say, sweets. That boy is in love with you. And you can play the hurt victim all you want, but you’re in love with him too.”
I gawked at my mother, once my most trusted ally. Now she’d betrayed me for a man she hadn’t even met.
“I can’t believe you’d say that to me. He hurt me. You’re supposed to be on my side.”
Piper shrugged. “She kind of has a point.”
“Oh my God, not you too.” I groaned and clutched the ice cream to my chest. They didn’t deserve any if they were going to go all intervention on me. “I’m sorry I didn’t find love on the show, but you can’t say that I didn’t grow. I’m leaps better than when I left. I moved. I get out of the house occasionally now. I’ve got half of my next book done.”
“And you’re struggling to finish the rest,” Piper added.
I glared at her. “When did I walk into a pile-on? I can’t believe you two want me to forget everything and just forgive Eli. And for what?” I looked around the table. “Just to get hurt again? Clearly, he isn’t ready for a relationship. No way. I’m much better off on my own.”
Piper got up and snatched the ice cream from my grasp. “Sounds like just another excuse not to put yourself out there again.”
“She’s right, Calla,” my mom said soothingly. “We aren’t claiming that Eli’s intentions were great at the beginning. And you have every right to be hurt and upset. But he followed you here. That has to count for something, right?”
Her hopeful expression gave me pause and I sat straight up in my chair. “Wait a second. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about how he knew where I lived, would you?”
My mom’s guilty expression instantly gave everything away.
