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“Babe,” I whispered, and held her hands, but she didn’t grasp onto mine as we sat beside each other on the table. “Talk to me.”
“I can’t talk to you here.” Her gaze traveled around the room and I nodded.
“I’ll take you out to lunch. You always eat here—”
“Nancy made my lunch. I don’t wanna go out now. I’m gonna eat and get back to work if you don’t mind.”
I kissed Beth, but her lips went slack, so I took the hint.
I hauled myself to my feet and cupped her chin. “I love you. You know where to find me.”
Her beautiful blue eyes widened and I left her to eat her lunch in peace.
***
The following day, I picked up Nancy from the Pruitts’ house for a late lunch. The house had been empty; she’d insisted that I was allowed in their home, but it’d been weird for me after all that had happened. We’d scheduled lunches four times already but when Mr. Penverick had referred me to associates of his and they’d contracted me for a very involved project, I’d jumped right in. Nancy had been understanding and had told me never to pass up an opportunity to do some work, but I could’ve squeezed her in my schedule sooner.
The waiter served our main courses and I could tell that Nancy was looking at me before I gazed at her. “Is your meal okay?”
“Are you okay?” she asked me.
I nodded and chewed another piece of my French toast. She began to eat her vegetable salad, but she kept studying me. “It’s Beth. She seems ticked off with me and she won’t say what it is. And I tried to talk to her last night.” I sighed heavily, and I understood that Beth may not have feelings for me like she had days ago, or weeks ago.
Nancy reached over and placed her hand over mine. “You’re afraid of losing her, aren’t you?”
I let out a dry laugh. “I told her I loved her.” I shook my head. “The look of horror on her face was priceless. You can’t fake that.”
She settled her hand on the edge of the table again. “Did you tell her what you thought she wanted to hear?”
“In the moment I thought I should tell her, but it isn’t any less true.”
With a glint in her olive green eyes, she sipped some of her drink. “And you’d do it all over again if you had a chance to do it over?”
I gestured with my hands and slightly lowered my head .
“Did you think she’d say it back?”
“I hoped that she would. I had my doubts that she’d say it, but I wanted to tell her.”
Her face reflected deep understanding. “If something needs to be repaired in your relationship, the work has to come from you and her. It’s not just about hard work. It’s about working smarter together, so that your entire relationship doesn’t become this gargantuan effort.” She gave me a half-grin. “It’s how my husband of twenty-two years and I made it last before he passed away.”
***
Pierce raised his chin to me when he saw me sitting at the counter. Nico had put out our scotches on the rocks seconds ago and Pierce looked like he really needed to take a load off. He took his blazer and balled it up. Seamus had recently cut his hair but it didn’t look like he had combed it. We just swigged our drinks and he exhaled harshly. My lunch with Nancy earlier had given me insight into her younger self. She’d fallen in love when she was young too, and her husband’s name was Demetruis. She and he hadn’t had children of their own, but they’d helped raise his nieces. When she’d said that I was someone she would’ve been proud to introduce to her husband if he were alive, I felt honored. Nancy was the only older adult who I wasn’t self-conscious around. She didn’t let me hide from myself. I didn’t want to hide from her, but there were still things I wouldn’t talk about with her because, as crazy it sounded, it would mean that I’d have to have a conversation with myself that would most likely result in Beth never speaking to me again. It was enough that I didn’t feel like she wanted me like she used to.
“Hey Nico,” Pierce said, and he held a finger in the air. He signaled him to send two more scotches on the rocks, and I hadn’t drunk half of mine yet.
It occurred to me that we were sitting on the same stools Beth and Cassidy had been on when she’d came out for her first night in Paloma’s Edge. Man, I missed having her lush body on me. I’d had to do two hundred one-handed push-ups to tire myself enough to doze off last night.
“What’s up?” I asked him as put his glass back on the counter.
“Cassidy did the waterworks act at family therapy today and Dad fell for it until the therapist redirected the focus to the rest of us. She’d made Cassidy’s manipulative patterns noticeable without calling her out on it.”
I motioned with my head. “So Cassidy couldn’t complain about everyone attacking her.”
He swigged another glass of scotch that Nico had quietly served him. He shook his head. “I’ll go for four more sessions ’c
ause I promised Mom, but if Dad doesn’t get his head out of the fucking clouds and Cassidy doesn’t finally admit you and her never were, I am not gonna talk to Dad unless it’s about work.” He paused and twisted his lower face. “I wanna wash my hands of Cassidy, because she is one hot mess who attracts trouble. I can’t protect her. I’d only get mixed up in her in shit.”
