Page 105 of The Art of Ruin

I set my glass down carefully, trying to hide the shake in my hand. “Yes.”

Her mouth tightens. “I thought you’d be older.”

That catches me off guard enough that I blink. “Okay.”

Behind her, Jasper shifts, feigning discomfort, but I can see he’s enjoying this.

The woman’s gaze sharpens. “I don’t understand why you can’t leave us alone.”

For a second, I genuinely think I’ve misheard her. “What?”

“You keep showing up.”

The words are so absurd I actually laugh.

Not because they’re funny.

Because I honestly don’t know what else to do.

“I’m sorry?”

“The market.” She adjusts the baby on her hip. “The restaurant in Tribeca.”

I stare at her. “I’ve never been to Tribeca.”

“And now here.”

She continues as if I hadn’t spoken. Beside me, Isabella goes very still.

I can feel it without looking. The shift in her posture. The way she’s suddenly paying very close attention. My friend is ready to go to war for me, and, God, I love her for it.

The woman straightens. “I think it’s time you moved on.”

A strange calm settles over me.

Maybe because I’ve spent months imagining what I would say if I ever saw Jasper again.

Maybe because reality has turned out to be so much more ridiculous than anything I imagined.

Or maybe because looking at him now doesn’t hurt the way it used to.

Mostly, I just feel tired. “You think I’m following you?”

She lifts one shoulder. “I think some women struggle to let go when they get dumped by a man like my Jasper.”

The comment lands harder than she probably realizes. Because there was a time when she would’ve been right.

A time when I would’ve begged for answers.

A time when I would’ve looked at Jasper and wondered what I could’ve done differently.

That woman feels very far away now.

I glance past her.

Directly at him. “Is that what you’ve been telling her?”

Jasper finally steps forward. “Casey.”