To my disappointment, she pushes her chair back and hastily comes to her feet with, “You could say that.”
Clearly, I said something wrong. Not knowing what else to do, I stand too. Taking in the situation, I know what this is. From the stressed look she’s giving me, it couldn’t be more obvious. This is the last time I’m going to see her, and even though we just met, I don’t want it to end on a sour note like this. But before I can say anything, she holds out her hand. “It was nice meeting you.” She gives me a forced, halfhearted smile with, “I hope your thing with the network goes well.”
Really? A handshake? I don’t know what else I could have expected. I mean, it’s not like we were going to hug or anything. I’ve known her for a minute, but still, it feels like there should be more. At the same time, I wasn’t going to ask for her number, so why should I care? I shouldn’t, but I do.
Out of options—at least any that I can think of—with a sigh, I shake her hand. “It was nice meeting you too.”
I cup the back of my neck and clumsily add, “I need to go do some more work on the camp.” I check my watch, not really needing to see the time, it’s just something to do in this awkward situation. “Yeah, I have a couple of hours of work to get done out there before tomorrow.” It’s true, and I was kind of hoping she’d want to tag along, but I can see that’s no longer an option.
“Stay safe,” she says dryly.
And with that, she turns and walks away.
Damn, I don’t even know her name.
CHAPTER 12
Maddie
It seems so obvious now.
When he said it sounded like I’ve had the wrong kinds of relationships, it hit me like a brick right to the forehead. How could I not see it before? They have been wrong, every one of them, clear back to when I had a crush on Cole Dulaney.
I was thirteen and completely obsessed with the eighteen-year-old bad boy who rode a motorcycle. He lived across the street and would work on his bike with his shirt off. I remember how I would watch him, imagining what my first kiss would be like.
Then, one day, when he was in his driveway working on that old bike while I was working on not getting caught spying on him from my bedroom window, red and blue lights suddenly flooded our street. I stood there in horror as officers pointed their guns, yelling at him to get on the ground and put his hands behind his head.
Later, it was all everyone talked about. Cole had been arrested for armed robbery. By the time he got to trial, the evidence was overwhelming. I wastoo young to understand the details at the time, but I believe he plead guilty in a deal that put him behind bars for six years.
After his arrest I never saw him again, and of course I was devastated. My Prince Charming, the most perfect guy in the whole world, at least in my adolescent mind, turned out to be a total loser.
Then there was John Shelby, the hottest guy in school. He was a senior when I was a freshman, so I didn’t think he even knew I existed. Turned out he did. I was standing at my locker talking to Rhonda about nothing in particular when he swaggered up and totally blindsided me by asking me to prom. He had just broken up with his girlfriend, Trish Zollinger, so every girl was wondering who he was going to ask. I’m pretty sure just about every girl who didn’t already have a date wanted to be the one he chose, so I couldn’t believe he was even talking to me. I remember my heart beating so fast it left me with a queasy feeling in my stomach.
In the back of my mind, I knew I needed to ask Mom first, but I just blurted, “Yes!” like an idiot.
That was the first dress I ever made. It wasn’t great, but I thought it was. My first prom dress and I felt like a princess when I put it on. I probably tried it on a little too often, but I was so excited.
Too bad that dress never saw the light of the disco ball.
One week before prom, his ex, Trish, informed my dream date that she was pregnant.
John took her instead, and I cried, even though I knew it was for the best. She was a senior and was carrying his baby, so he had to take her. They got married right after graduation, then two months later, he got another girl pregnant. Trish divorced him before her baby was even born, and once again,the guy I had been crushing on turned out to be a total loser.
By the time my own high-school graduation came around, I still didn’t know what it was like to have a real boyfriend. I liked boys, a lot of them, but I always managed to fall for the ones with dark secrets, like Tony Hayward, who was sleeping with his best friend’s mom, or Frank Pritchard, who was stealing things like computers, printer ink cartridges, and sports equipment from the school and selling them online. He had over twenty thousand in cash on him when he was arrested our junior year. I remember thinking that explained his new Dodge Charger.
There were other boys, but all with their own issues that took them off the eligible-boyfriend list. I had one boyfriend, but all he wanted to do was build model spaceships from the Star Wars movies. He was so boring I wanted to die whenever we were together. Another guy literally called his mother nine times on our first date. He was twenty-five! I was twenty-two, and while I liked that he had a good relationship with his mother, it was clear that she would always come first. A second date was out of the question.
Then there was Jake, and look at how that turned out.
How did I not see it before? I’m drawn to men who don’t have their shit together.
Riggs, on the other hand, seems like the exception. I could tell there was more to him than his good looks. From the limited amount of time we’ve spent together, I can see he’s a considerate, thoughtful guy who just happens to be a billionaire. I can’t lie, that’s a nice bonus, but what really tortured my poor ovaries was when he said he wanted kids. Jake never mentioned wanting children, notonce in all the time we were together.
Everything about Riggs seemed like prime boyfriend material, or it would have if it weren’t for a couple of things. First, he’s never home. How does a guy like that have kids? How does he even keep a girlfriend for that matter? I don’t know any girl, billionaire or not, who could be in a relationship with a guy who was constantly on the road. The other red flag is he’s too good to be true. I’m sorry, but no guy has that much going for him.
Every guy I’ve ever been interested in was all sunshine and cinnamon rolls in the beginning. Then you learn the truth, and the truth is everyone has their issues. Riggs probably wanted to chain me up in his basement next to the other women he has tied up down there. You never know. A giggle forms in my throat at that thought. I’m sure the big guy is a perfect gentleman, but he has to have some issues, right? All men do. But even if the worst thing about him was he left his socks on the floor instead of putting them in the hamper, something Jake always did and I hated it, but even if that was the worst thing about him, what difference would it make? I’m going home, back to Oregon, and he’s going back to where he lives. I couldn’t do a long-distance relationship. What’s the point in that?
I’ve reached the hotel lobby. I guess I’ve been walking without really paying attention to where I was going while lost in my own head. I’ll never see the man again so I should probably stop thinking about him and figure out where my best friend is.
