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“Liz, hey!” he says.
“Hey, Trent,” I respond.
Trent starts to walk in, but Peggy puts up her hand to stop him. “We are under strict orders that no one should come in.”
“What? Whose orders?” he asks her curiously.
“Her bodyguard had an emergency and had to leave. We have to stay locked in until the new bodyguard arrives,” Peggy answers.
Trent’s eyes shift from Peggy to me. He throws up a hand and smiles. “Oh, that’s okay. I’m happy to stay here and offer her protection. If someone wants to get to her, they must go through me first.” He pauses and directs his attention back to me. “Don’t you think it’s okay, Liz?”
He’s probably right. There’s no real harm in him being here. Trent and I have spent countless hours alone in the past several months, andeven when we were engaged, he never lifted a hand to me. He may have been a cheating bastard, but he was never violent toward me.
I do wonder if he knows his wife is a suspect, though. If he did, would he be so quick to offer protection? It’s ridiculous for me even to have these thoughts. Trent and I have known each other for years. He would never allow anything to happen to me.
“It’s fine, Peggy. Let him in.” I feel a twinge of guilt when I think of my bodyguard. Beau isn’t going to be happy if he hears we let Trent inside.
She shrugs and opens the door the rest of the way. “Well, okay, come on in, I guess.”
He hugs Peggy. Then he wraps his arms around me and hugs me against him a little too tightly. “I’m glad I could see you one last time before you left. I was worried you would be too busy,” he says.
I untangle my arms from him. “I’m glad, too, Trent. It’s been so busy lately. I’ve been a terrible friend to pretty much everyone these days.”
“Not at all,” he says graciously. “I’m sure it’s stressful dealing with Ethan, a baby, and moving all at the same time.”
I’m surprised by the understanding and grace he’s showing. I expected him to be upset with me for dodging his calls and texts.
Peggy gasps and walks over to her end table. She picks up a small book. “I almost forgot to give you my gift. Here, I had this made for you. It’s a little photo book from the vacation we took together during our first year of college.”
She hands me the little 5x7 album. I turn it over in my hands, admiring the hard outer cover.
“Peggy, this is so sweet! I love it.” As I flip through the stiff pages, the memories of the trip to her family’s ski lodge return. We took so many photos. That trip was also where I met Trent.He and a friend were also staying at the ski lodge at the same time we were there. I feel a little misty-eyed looking at it. It brings up feelings of nostalgia, remembering all the fun Trent, Peggy, and I had together that winter.
Peggy looks at Trent curiously. “I thought you had a gift for Liz, too.”
He snaps his fingers, looking a little chagrined. “You’re right. I completely forgot to bring it. I’ll just run down to my townhouse and grab it.”
“It’s okay. You don’t have to give me anything,” I tell him.
“No, I have something. I got it, especially for you. You know I only live about a block away. Do you just want to go with me to grab it really quick? You can have your driver pick you up from my place.”
I look at Peggy, then back at Trent, then down at the book. “I don’t know. I promised Beau I would stay here.”
“Really, Liz? You’ve been alone with me a dozen times in the last year. I haven’t let anything happen to you yet, have I?”
Truthfully, I don’t want to be with Trent right now. Ethan would be furious if he found out that Trent and I were together, no matter how innocent. However, it seems best to just get this over with. If I don’t get the gift from him now, he’ll insist on meeting with him later. Besides the too-tight hug when he came in, he’s been fine today. “That’s a good point, I guess. Peggy, are you okay if I go with Trent?”
Peggy smiles. “If you don’t think your bodyguard will come pounding down my door to find you, I’m cool with you going with Trent. I have some errands to run anyway. I just wanted to see you before you left town. You still have some time before the move. Maybe we can still fit in a lunch date?”
“Yes, let’s try to do that. Miss you already, friend.”
“Same!”
I hold onto the little photo album as Trent and I make our way to his house. My heart is heavy and depressed after the goodbye. Just another friend to leave and disappoint. I knew it would be hard to leave everyone I knew, but I didn’t think it would be this hard.
As we walk to his townhouse, Trent puts his arm loosely around my shoulders. “Don’t be sad. It’ll all be okay. You’ll see.”
Chapter 25
