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It took me a moment to place what she was referring to. Then it came back to me. The art gallery opening. We’d all been there to support Crystal and Stormi. Darby and I had talked for a few minutes that night in front of a painting we both liked. That had been one of our only interactions that evening, but apparently, it had been captured in a photo. She was right. I had felt an attraction that night. Maybe he had too? As the reality of what she was saying to me sank in, a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach overwhelmed me. This was a dangerous woman in front of me. She was not at all what she’d seemed to be. Not now or two years ago when she’d been dating Rob behind Darby’s back. Again, it occurred to me that this was a fun game to her. How many lives could she mess with before it was all finished?
“What do you want?” I asked. “For real. You came to town to see Darby. To rub it in his face that you bagged Rob Wright. But then once you arrived and saw him again you realized that it wasn’t enough to let him be? You needed to know if you could still get him back. But why? I don’t get that part. You got Rob and broke Darby’s heart. Wasn’t that enough?”
“You’re being really weird right now,” Arianna said in her well-honed gaslighting voice. “None of what you said is true. I was trying to be nice and give you some business. It was the least I could do for Darby’s new girlfriend. I have so much and you have so little. Gosh, it seemed like the right thing to do. I had no idea he would be the one to build the gazebo. That was a happy coincidence, because it’s obvious he really needs the work. Poor baby. One can’t live on passion alone. I mean for his work, not you.”
“No wonder the men didn’t know what you were doing. Or who you actually loved. You talk in circles until the other person starts to believe it’s them with the problem. Did you take some kind of gaslighting course at influencer school?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” She set down her glass of wine. “Anyhoo, I must run. I’m meeting Rob for dinner.” She squeezed my arm. “But sweetie, for your sake, please ask Darby about our exchange this afternoon. You deserve someone who’s honest with you. I can’t bear to see someone as nice as you get hurt, especially when this business venture of yours is so tenuous.” She clucked her tongue. “I really do feel for you.”
With that, she turned on one high-heeled designer boot and left the room. I remained, shaking and wondering what the heck had just happened, coming out of my stupor only when John asked me a question. I turned to him and tried to focus on what he was saying. All of this would have to be sorted out later. I had a business to run.
But even as I gave myself these instructions, I couldn’t shake the sense of impending doom. I would have to ask Darby about what happened between them. And I would have to be strong enough to hear what I’d feared all along. He loved Arianna. Not me. No matter how good it seemed from my side, he was obviously pining away for someone else. A sick, manipulative nightmare of a woman. If that was who he chose, even though she would stomp on him again, then he wasn’t the man for me anyway. The sooner I knew, the better. I was fine. I would be fine. It wasn’t as if we were dating for a year or something. Not as we’d pretended to be. When did the line between make-believe and truth blur?
I drove home from the inn about an hour later, alternating between tears one moment and overwhelming rage the next. It was twenty-to-eight by the time I arrived at my apartment. He would be here any moment, and I had nothing to cook. I’d been so distracted I’d forgotten to stop at the store. But it was for the best. I was not cooking for a man about to leave.
19
DARBY
Iknew something was wrong the moment I stepped inside her apartment. Despite being an obtuse male, I picked up on the clues right away. For one thing, there were not the usual good smells coming from the kitchen. Secondly, she stiffened when I tried to embrace her. Thirdly, she wouldn’t meet my eyes. Fourth, she didn’t even notice the flowers, or if she did, was choosing not to comment.
“Hey, everything all right?” I asked.
“I’m fine.” She hugged her middle, as if protecting herself. From what? Me? What had happened?
“Did you just get home?” I gestured lamely toward the kitchen and stepped inside the apartment.Nice, Darby. Ask her why my dinner wasn’t made like a total idiot.
“Not long ago.” Jamie shut the door behind her. “After an interesting talk with Arianna.”
I froze. What had she done now?
“Telling me all about your kiss. Which don’t bother to deny. I saw you.”
“That was not a kiss,” I said, thinking as quickly as I could. “She tried to kiss me.”
“It seemed she succeeded.” She moved away from the door. Better than shutting it in my face, I suppose.
“She didn’t. Trust me. I made sure she knew it was not a welcome advance.” I moved toward her with my hands out in front of me. “Whatever she told you was probably a lie. You know that by now, don’t you?”
“The question is, do you know that? I can’t decide if she’s still duping you or not. After the other night, I thought things were…I thought there was something real between us.”
“It was last night,” I said as gently as I could. “And from my perspective, thereissomething special between us. Whatever you think you saw with Arianna—it’s not what happened.” For a moment, I quieted, searching for the right words to convince her of my innocence. “She came out there with an agenda. I don’t know why, but she doesn’t want me to be happy with someone else. Even though she didn’t want me. Doesn’t want me.”
She collapsed onto the couch. Her hands gripped the edge of the cushions. “Darby, I don’t know if I can do this.”
My heart stopped. It was coming. Of course it was. How was I stupid enough to think this would work out for me? Add Arianna into the mix, purposely misleading Jamie, and I stood no chance. Anger bubbled up from deep inside me. I hadn’t known how much of the hot black tar lived in me until this very moment. Arianna Bush had nearly ruined my life the first time. Now, when things were actually looking up for me, she had arrived to torture me further. “Do what exactly?” My voice sounded flinty and defensive. Already my protective layers were hardening. Soon, no one would be able to get in. I would not make the same mistake. Not again.
“I don’t want to be a fool,” Jamie said. “Or get hurt when you decide you’re still in love with her. Or maybe you’ve already decided that. I don’t know. All I know is this doesn’t make me feel safe. And I want that, Darby. I want to be able to trust you with my heart, and right now it doesn’t seem like I’ll ever be able to.”
“There’s nothing between us. She’s nothing to me, other than a source of intense anger. I’m sorry she got to you. I should have known and called you right away to explain what really happened.”
“What did happen?” She lifted her eyes for a second before returning to gaze down at her knees. Such pretty knees, poking through the ripped denim.
“She told me a bunch of crazy stuff about missing me and that you and I weren’t a good match. I can’t remember half of what she said. I just wanted to get away from her.”
“I need a little time to think,” Jamie said.
“Okay. Sure.” For God’s sake, I might cry right here in front of her. “Jamie, I would not hurt you. Not if I could help it.” I sat on the edge of the coffee table, feeling sick to my stomach.
