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Irritation spiked. “How did you get that out of what I said?”
“I notice you’re not denying it.”
She should. She really should. Otherwise, here came the sympathy train, which she wanted to avoid. But Katie was her best friend, and Nicole couldn’t lie to her over the long haul. And let’s face it, once Katie got home and found Nicole miserable, she’d know the truth anyway, so what was the point? “Okay, I might be. Maybe. Probably.”
“Nicole...”
“Fine. Yes. I am,” she said, grinding out each word. “What’re you, a master interrogator?”
Katie laughed a little. “I don’t even know what to say to you.”
“No sympathy, okay?” Nicole interrupted before her friend could get going. “I don’t need you to feel sorry for me, really. I’m a big girl. I knew what I was doing, and I’ll be fine. Honestly.” She lifted her chin and squared her shoulders. “I was doing great on my own before and I will again.”
“Of course you will.”
“Thank you,” she said, glad to have her friend’s support.
“But I’m still going to have Rafe beat him up.”
Nicole laughed and shook her head as if Katie could see her. “No, you’re not. You’re not going to tell Rafe. You’re going to pretend you don’t know any of this.”
“Uh-huh. Why would I do that?”
“Because I’m asking you to,” Nicole told her.
“I don’t know, Nicole. I feel like I should tell Rafe what happened.”
She didn’t want one more person to know if she could help it. “Just let it go, okay, Katie? This is between me and Griffin, and it’s almost over, anyway.”
“Damn it,” Katie muttered, “Griffin’s never getting another cookie from me as long as he lives.”
Outside, Connor stood up and headed for the gate between the yards. Nicole leaned toward the window and tilted her head so she could make sure that the, gate was closed. It wasn’t. Griffin must have left it open when he went next door.
Connor was going to run right into a construction area.
“I gotta go, Katie. Connor’s running off to our house, and the guys are working there.”
“Go, go! I’ll see you in a few days!”
Nicole hung up and sprinted for the doorway. She was across the yard and through the gate a couple seconds later. Connor was just toddling toward the house and the sound of the construction crew when Nicole came up behind him and swept him off his feet.
He giggled and shrieked when she lifted him into the air before plopping him onto her hip. Here was her world. Safe and secure and held close to her heart. Whatever else happened, she and Connor would get through it all. Together.
“Escape artist, huh?” She grinned and tickled him until he squirmed in delight. “No visiting our house without me!”
Laughing and pointing, Connor looked at the house and said, “Home!”
She followed his gaze. Home. Where they belonged. The two of them. The way it was supposed to be. Maybe it was time to start moving toward the future. Start letting go of the fantasy and take the first step back to normalcy. Nicole started for the house before she could think about it. It was past time to see what was going on in there. Past time to remember who she was and where she really belonged.
Besides, she could at least warn Griffin that Katie knew what was happening between them—and that his cookie connection had been cut off.
She took the back steps quickly, opened the screen door and stepped into a strange new world.
Griffin and Lucas were arguing over something at the counter, their backs to her, so they didn’t see her come in. Nicole took a moment to simply stare at what had been done to her grandmother’s old, familiar kitchen.
Shaking her head, she looked from the pale-green walls to the light-wood cupboards, from the tiled floor to the granite countertop that was exactly the stone she had once described to Griffin. There was a six-burner gas stove on one wall and a brand-new French-door fridge on another.
This wasn’t the kitchen she had asked for.
This was her dream kitchen.
The one she couldn’t afford.
“Griff!” Connor shrieked and both men spun around to stare at her with matching expressions of guilt.
