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She laughed, opening a notebook. “Good to know you’re here out of your own free will.”
“As you said, this is part of my terms of employment.”
Already scribbling something down, she nodded. “Let’s get started, then.”
The next hour was as unexpected as my therapist. She was easy to talk to and didn’t push when she noticed me avoiding a topic. I didn’t have to lie on a couch or draw pictures. She also didn’t make me talk about Guyana, something I wasn’t ready to do yet.
The hour passed so quickly that it surprised me when she put down her notepad. “You survived your first session. How do you feel?”
“Still screwed up.”
She laughed, shaking her head at me. “I want to see you twice a week. I know you’re on a job right now, so we can meet late, same as today.”
Getting up, I nodded. “Not like I have a choice.”
Raising a brow at my honesty, she leaned forward. “And here I thought we were getting along.”
“I stayed for the full hour, didn’t I? I’d call that getting along.”
Waving me out, she turned back to her scribbled notes. “Talk to Ines before you leave so she can get you on the schedule.”
Grunting in affirmation, I stopped at the receptionist desk on my way out. “You Ines?”
Giggling once more, the girl put a hand to her chest. “Sure am. How can I help?”
Her voice took on a throaty purr at the end, and she fluttered her lashes as if it were an Olympic sport. I’d usually have asked for her number by now, but I somehow couldn’t muster up enough interest today, Thea’s face flashing through my head.
And wasn’t that the kick in the balls I needed? Because I was lusting after a married woman. A woman for whom I was now passing up the opportunity of a sure thing.
“I need to make regular appointments. Twice a week, after six.”
“Callie said she can schedule you in at seven on Tuesday and Friday. You must be special for her to stay behind. She usually finishes at five, no exceptions.”
I shuffled on my feet, needing to get out of the suddenly stifling office. “See you Friday.”
She gave me a finger wave and a wink. And all it did was irritate me.
What has Thea done to me? Now I can’t even flirt with someone without it feeling wrong.
I stopped for a drink on the way home, refusing to head straight back. If I stayed out long enough, I could avoid seeing Thea.
I already knew it would be another long night with little sleep.
8
THEA
I once again spent thenight wandering the empty house. Archer had been disappearing on Tuesday and Friday nights for three weeks. And it was killing me not knowing where he was going or who he was seeing.
Does he have a girlfriend? Random hookups?
And now William had gone to France to be with Ciel. I should have been used to getting left behind by now, but when the days were long and the nights longer, I had entirely too much time to think.
Archer had been avoiding me as much as possible, only allowing me short peeks of his disappearing form as he walked to wherever I wasn’t. It’d become clear he was avoiding me. The thought hurt, my already bruised heart groaning under the extra strain.
If I wasn’t leaving the house, there would be no need for him to stick close. I was torn between wanting to make up reasons to get out, and shutting myself into my room to wallow in my misery.
I knew I was slipping back into a depression. Usually I could read my body well enough to recognize the signs and take action. But this time doing anything about it wasn’t something I was ready for.
