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“So, you think I should simply forget about her? Move on with my life?” His face was incredulous, as if the very idea was preposterous.
“Probably so. I don’t think there’s much chance she’ll change her mind. At least not as long as you’re separated by half a country”
“Will you promise me something?”
“Sure, if I can.”
“If she ever moves here, even if it’s a year or two from now, will you tell me?”
“Sure, Josh. But don’t you think you’ll have another girlfriend by then, or maybe even be married?”
His eyes met with hers and held them fast in a piercing gaze. “No, I don’t think so. I’m not giving up hope unless I find out she’s married to someone else.”
She broke off from his intense regard. “Okay. I don’t think that’s wise, but it’s your life.”
“So I have a great idea. Instead of staying here and collecting more bruises, why don’t I walk you back to your place? You can tell me why you think you need to learn how to play a sport for Spencer, and I can talk you out of it before you kill yourself.”
“Do you really think I’m that hopeless?”
“You’re far from hopeless, but you need to pick a quieter sport. And whatever it is, you need to wear padding from head to toe. You just get hurt too easily.” His green eyes danced with laughter. “And after I convince you not to hurt yourself anymore, you can tell me a few stories about Charlie. I only want to hear what she’s doing. Tell me about her rafting, about her signing up for classes and what she’s going to take. I’ll be happy with any news at all. I’m starved for it.”
“Okay,” she agreed, secretly happy her racquetball career had met an early demise.
Spencer paced in the lobby of Emily’s building. He’d gone straight from the dance class, hoping to talk to her. He wasn’t even sure what he was going to tell her. He still hoped to surprise her at the wedding, so he couldn’t really reveal the events of the evening. But he felt almost dirty at the memory of Becca’s touch, and his ears burned from her remark about Emily. He just needed to hold her. He needed to tell her he loved her. He’d said it before. Hadn’t he? He wasn’t sure. But Gherring had warned him he could lose her. He needed to reassure himself. And he needed to reassure Emily.
But when he’d arrived at her apartment, she wasn’t home. And she hadn’t been upstairs at her parents’ place. And she hadn’t answered her phone. So he decided to wait for her. He’d wait as long as it took—all night if he needed to. And so, he paced.
He heard her voice before he saw her face. Her laughter rolled through the lobby. His heart lifted at the sound.
“Emily!” He turned toward the door with a longing smile. But the smile melted from his face when he saw whom she was with. “Josh.”
“I can explain,” she cried, rushing to him. “Josh was teaching me to play racquetball.”
“It’s okay. You’re free to date him if that’s what you want
.” He didn’t mean those words, but he was so angry he could barely control himself.
“This wasn’t a date.” Tears spilled from her eyes.
“Look Spencer. I promise I wasn’t trying to make a move on Emily.” Josh reached out to put a hand on his shoulder, but he shook it off.
“You know what? It’s been a long night, and I’m going home. We can talk tomorrow.” To his intense embarrassment, he felt tears building in his eyes. He wanted to say something more. To clear the air. To hold her and kiss her and somehow make up. To begin again. But instead, struggling to hide his wet face, he hurried to the lobby exit and slipped into the warm night air.
*****
“Emily, I’m so sorry. I should’ve known. I would’ve been just as jealous. I was so bent on hearing about Charlie I didn’t think about what might happen.”
“It’s not your fault. I knew he was upset the last time we were together. I should have asked Steven to teach me, instead.”
“He’ll be okay tomorrow. We didn’t do anything wrong. Deep down, he knows that. He’s only being a guy, you know.”
“I know. It’s just so stupid—and all for nothing. I was terrible at racquetball.”
“Uhmm, yes. You were pretty bad.” He bit his lips trying not to laugh. “I’m sorry, I really am. Look, I’m going to text him and explain the whole thing.”
“That’s not your responsibility.”
“Of course it is. What if he says something to Charlie? I can’t afford a single black mark in her book, even a false accusation could mean the difference between a slim chance and none at all.”
