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“Do I?” He eyed her. “Or do I just treat them how they think they deserve?”
“Oh, likethat’san excuse.” She rolled her eyes.
“Maybe it isn’t.” He finished the iced tea in one long swig. He set the cup down. “I gave you what you wanted from me, though.”
“No, you didn’t.”
“What you asked for, at least,” he said.
“You talked me out of asking for what I wanted. Like fidelity and an actual relationship. You made it clear you weren’t interested in giving me those things.”
“Well, you stuck around,” he said with a shrug. “No one forced you.”
“Maybe not forced me to,” she said. “But with the raven mocker stuff, I felt like I had to rely on you.”
“Yeah, okay,” he said. “I can see how that must have been tough for you. I’m sorry, for whatever it’s worth.”
This was probably the best she was going to get from him. Maybe he was right, anyway. Maybe she shared some of the blame. Tommy was self-absorbed and oblivious. He’d taken advantage of her, but maybe it was asking a lot of him to think he masterminded it all. “Thanks,” she said. “I appreciate it.”
“I didn’t want you to be hurt, you know.” He shrugged. “Maybe you don’t believe me, but it doesn’t make me happy when other people are sad.”
“No, I do believe that.” She crossed the room to him, opening her arms. “Hug?”
“Yeah.” He wrapped his arms around her. “So, we’re still friends?”
She pulled away. “We’re friendly. But I’m never doing you any favors ever again. And don’t do any for me, huh?”
xxii.
NILES HAD FANTASIZEDabout going and asking his dad for the money to open his restaurant, but in his fantasy, Dahlia had been with him. She would show his dad the sketches of the place. She’d talk about the menu they’d created together. She’d make it sound like it was actually a good idea.
If Dahlia was there, Niles’s dad could see that his black-sheep-of-the-family son was capable of locking down a woman like her, and that might sway him into thinking that Niles was finally ready for responsibility and owning a business and accepting this very large loan that Niles was asking for.
But after that conversation with Dahlia, he had to give up on that fantasy.
He realized she was right.
He’d made her into something magical.
It was like that feather inDumbo, where he thinks he needs it to fly, but all along, he’s been doing it on his own power.
So, he went to ask his dad for the loan on his own.
His dad said no. But he said he’d cosign for a loan with the bank if Niles could get one.
“I’d have to liquidate some assets to get hold of that kind of cash to just give you, son,” said his dad. “If you can’t keep up with the loan, I guess I’ll have to go to the hassle of doing that to save your cloaca. Don’t make me do that.”
Niles thought there was no way he’d get a bank to give him a business loan for this kind of thing, but then a building in town that would be perfect for the restaurant he had in mind came on the market. The upper level was an apartment, so Niles could live there, and it seemed really perfect. He got so excited about it, he decided he had to have it, and that he would just work his ass off until he figured out how to get it.
The day before the May Day celebration in Shepherdstown, he got word that the loan had been approved. The reason it had gone through so quickly had to do with the fact he had his dad cosigning, but also because he was going to have to pay the thing back pretty quickly, which was going to be tight, but he thought doable, due to the fact that he was rolling out the restaurant in phases.
The first thing he’d open would be the small hangout space, with coffee and snacks. This would keep overhead low, primarily because he wasn’t planning on having any employees right off the bat. So, he’d be working his tail off, but he’d have cash to pay the loan back.
Of course, if the thing didn’t take off, he was going to be shit out of luck, but he was pretty sure it would. He understood his town, and he knew exactly what would attract the people who lived here.
Well, some of the ideas had been Dahlia’s, actually.
He sent her a text about it, wondering if she minded if he was using some of the theme nights he’d made up.
