AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You have people around you who will spoil you if you ask.”
I harrumphed, taking a spoonful of oatmeal. “It’s not the same. I wantyouspoiling me.”
She looked away. I wasn’t feeling guilty, though. I had every right to talk about how damn much I wanted her in my life.
“Thanks for the breakfast,” I said.
“Feeling better about eating?”
“Better by miles.” I took a bite of the toast, too—I hadn’t asked for it, but it was knock-your-socks-off good and I was ready to marry her for bringing it to me. Maybe I should have asked her to marry me. We made good wives. “This is the peach-mint jam again, isn’t it?”
She gestured airily. “You said you liked it…”
I wiped the crumbs from my mouth. “What’s it like?”
“Peachy and minty, primarily. And sugary. Bit of pectin.”
“The new job. What do you do, anyway?”
“Oh…” She cleared her throat, looking down. I sipped the coffee, content to wait, and eventually, it got a mumbled answer out of her. “This and that… I do a lot of interoperations logistics, so I’m all over the place. I like it that way, though.”
“So you like the job?”
“Yeah, well enough. Pays well, too. Plus, it’s a win for anyone who likes fancy parties… just got to say hi to the mayor of New York City the other day.”
“Holy crap.”
“Nothing more than saying hi, though. Chitchatted with some construction execs, mostly. That’s generally what it comes down to… catering to rich people’s tastes, sucking up to them, making them feel important. I don’t mind it, though.”
I looked down. “Um… making a lot of new friends there?”
She didn’t say anything. I sipped my coffee again, playing the waiting game, and once again—as always—I won. “Paisley… I really shouldn’t be talking too much about—”
“Shouldnever stopped me. Now spill it.”
She hung her head, a dry smile on her lips. I loved that little tired smile thing she did. I wanted to hold her for the rest oftime. “It’s a busy place. I know a lot of people, and I like them, they like me, but it’s kind of… arm’s-length.”
“Because you keep it that way.”
She pursed her lips. I set the coffee down, shifting the tray to my other side and clearing up the space between us, and I shifted over to her side. I put a hand on hers in her lap, lacing my fingers between hers, and I was relieved to see her breath still tightened, her pulse still quickened when I did that.
“Harper… please tell me what happened.”
“You know what happened. I moved out of here—”
“With her.”
She sighed, sharp and pointed, looking away. “By the way, Emberlynn said hi—”
“I know. I eavesdropped.”
“I—just like that?”
“Tell me what happened. Please.”
“Ican’t.It’s not right.”
I squeezed her hand. “If you’re going to leave, what does it matter? Just get it off your chest. And then… then… then you go back to your other life, leave me behind, but you’ve at least said it. Tosomeone.And you need that. Come on, admit it. It’s been eating you alive, hasn’t it? How long have you been keeping it to yourself?”
