“Oh,”
I say, disappointed. “Another time then.”
“For
sure.” Will quickly shakes Declan’s hand. “It was
great seeing you, we’ll catch up properly next time.”
“You
can count on it,” he agrees. “Now get to work!”
I
wait until Declan is inside again, then throw my arms around Will’s
neck. “I told you so,” I tease, kissing him lightly. “I
said your designs were amazing.”
He
grins back, hands sliding over my hips. He seems more relaxed now,
and I guess it’s because he’s not trying to make a sale.
“OK, OK . . .” he agrees, “You know
everything.”
“Damn
straight.” I kiss him again. “Even if Declan can’t
come, we should celebrate. I know the perfect spot.”
“Sure
thing.”
We
hop in his truck, and I direct him through the traffic and across
town. “Why does this look familiar . . . ?”
Will asks, after we park on a non-descript street.
“You’ll
see.” I take him to the corner store, and pick out a cheap
bottle of wine and a pack of paper cups. Then I lead him around the
corner, and down the next street. “This is the spot,
right . . . here,” I declare, stopping on
the curb. To the outsider, there’s nothing special at all:
we’re outside a row of office buildings, with cars parked
bumper-to-bumper and pedestrians walking past.
Will
looks around, confused for a moment. Then his face spreads into
smile, realizing why I’ve brought him here. “This is
where we met.”
“Yup.”
I screw off the cap on the wine, and pour into the cups he’s
holding. “I know it’s not exactly an anniversary,”
I add, feeling a little self-conscious. Lord knows I don’t do
sappy romantic gestures, but this time I couldn’t resist. “But
it’s where it all began. You, me, a lost pair of keys . . .”
“And
a pretty pissed off cop,” Will adds, grinning.
“To
new beginnings,” I say, raising my cup in a toast.
“To
us,” he says softly, and suddenly, my chest clenches with the
meaning of it. Because this is the beginning, the first time I’ve
ever looked at the face across from me and
wanted
there to be so much more. A future for the two of us, built day by
day. I’m not planning on forever just yet, and I know, this has
only just begun, but I know without a doubt that William Wyatt
Montgomery means more to me than any man has before—and maybe
ever will again.
I
love him.
I
take a gulp of wine, not ready for that particular conversation, not
just yet. I give him a bright smile instead. “Did you ever
guess that when you stopped to help that damsel in distress, you’d
wind up here?”
“Never
in a million years.” Will steps closer, reaching to bring his
free hand to my cheek. I see something mirrored in his eyes, that
same bright wonder I’m feeling now. “And they say crime
never pays.”
I
smile, feeling weirdly choked up. I meant this as a fun gesture, but
now I can feel the emotion swelling behind my teasing words,
threatening to pull me under.
“Listen,”
Will starts, looking away. “There’s something I need to
tell you.”
I
take another gulp of wine, panicking he’s about to share his
feelings with me. Luckily, my phone buzzes with another text from
Eva.
Just
landed! See you tonight.
“It’s
getting late!” I exclaim, glad for the distraction. “We
better hit the road if I’m going to make it in time for girls’
night.”
Will
exhales, then gives me a wry smile. “Those pillow fights won’t
wait.” Will downs the rest of his cup and tosses them in the
trash. He slings an arm around my shoulder, and I happily snuggle
closer, strolling back to the truck. Was it just a couple of months
ago I was kissing him in the rain, torn between rushing away and
never letting go?
I’m
lucky the universe intervened and delivered him to my door. Otherwise
I might never have discovered what it felt like to be wrapped in the
safety of his embrace, and feel the delicious flutter of
anticipation, thinking of the nights to come. I would be
alone—content in my life, sure, but nowhere near as happy as
this.
“Thank
you,” I say, tilting my face up to his.
“What
for?”
“For
everything,” I say, nestling closer. “For being you.”
The
drive home slips by, easy with chat and laughter, and long silences
that feel so natural, it’s like I’ve known him for years.
It’s twilight by the time we cross the bridge and make it to
the county line.
“Wait,
I think I left my day planner at your place,” I say,
remembering. “Can we stop by and pick it up? I need to make
some calls tomorrow.”
Will
turns off the highway. “That’s dangerous territory, going
anyplace near my bed.” He flashes me a smoldering look, and I
groan.
“I
wish, but I’m running late as it is. Eva will be back soon.”
“So?
You’d be amazed what I can do with five minutes.”
I laugh. “Well, in that
case . . .” Will suddenly hits the gas, and we
fly over the bumpy track, winding through the trees. I shriek with
surprise, then laugh, hanging onto the door strap.
“That
buys me another thirty seconds,” he says, pulling up outside
with a screech of the tires. “Get your ass inside and get naked
before I—”
He
stops.
“What?”
I ask, but he’s already flung open the driver’s door and
is out of the truck, striding across the yard to where a woman is
waiting on the front porch.
A
beautiful woman, with glossy brown hair and red lips, wearing a
sophisticated dress and heels, daintily holding a leather handbag.
Something
drops in my stomach, and I feel my skin prickle with a bad, bad
feeling. Still, I force myself to open the passenger door and climb
down, slowly walking across the yard. Will is gesturing angrily, in
low heated conversation, but he falls silent when I get close enough
to listen; his hands jammed in his pockets, his gaze fixed on the
dusty porch.
My
heart beats faster.
“Will?”
I ask, trying to sound calm. “Do you want to introduce me to
your friend?”
Up
close, she’s even more gorgeous than I thought: model-perfect
with blue eyes and pale skin, so chic and put-together in her red
dress, it makes me wish I was wearing something other than my
cut-offs and a plain shirt.
His
sister, I tell myself desperately. He has a younger sister. Who else
would show up like this?
Will
clears his throat. “I’m sorry,” he says, so low I
almost don’t catch it. Then he finally meets my eyes, and my
heart drops for real this time to see the guilty expression in those
steady hazel depths.
“Who
is she?” I ask, trying like hell to keep it together. But it’s
like I’m watching from outside myself, hurtling towards the
edge of a cliff, with no way to stop or slow down. “Will,
what’s going on?”
The
silence is agonizing. Will opens his mouth to speak, but before he
can say a word, the woman steps forward, giving me a brisk smile. “I
apologize. Where are my manners? I’m Helena Carpenter, a
pleasure to meet you.”
I
shake her hand numbly, still confused. “Delilah.” I look
to Will again. “Who is she?”
“She’s
nobody.” Will’s voice is harsh, and I see Helena flinch
at his words. “She’s leaving now.”
Helena
stands her ground. “Just listen to yourself,” she says to
him. “Everyone’s worried about you. All our friends, the
people at your job. You can’t just shut us out. What about our
apartment, all your stuff, our whole life together?”
“I
don’t want it.” Will’s jaw is clenched, but my head
starts spinning.
Friends.
Apartment. Life together.
She
turns back to me, looking regretful. “I’m sorry you’ve
wound up in the middle of this, clearly William hasn’t been
telling the whole truth.”
“Dee—”
Will takes a step towards me, looking desperate, but he can’t
reach me before Helena lands the knock-out punch to my heart, the
last words I ever expected to hear.
“I’m
Will’s fiancée.”
Will
It
only takes two seconds. Two seconds for my new beginning to shatter,
and the life I’ve been building here to crumble to ash.
“Ex-fiancée,”
I correct her desperately, but it’s already too late. I see the
words hit Delilah like a bullet, each one tearing through the
connection we’ve built, the lazy afternoons learning about her
life, and the hot, carnal nights claiming her body for my own.
None
of that matters anymore. Not now she knows the truth.
Pain
flashes across Delilah’s face and I feel it too, ripping me up
from the inside out. But I don’t have time to go to her, to
even try and explain, before she shuts it all down and pastes on a
wide, bright smile, so fake it makes me ache.
“Wow,
you’re right, I guess there’s a lot he didn’t tell
me.” Dee won’t even look at me; she’s still smiling
at Helena. “I’ll leave you two in peace then. Lovely to
meet you.”
“And
you.” Helena smiles back. The two of them are acting so sweet
and civil, it makes me want to break something. But I guess I already
did that, judging by the look on Delilah’s face.
She
turns to leave, but fuck, I can’t just let her walk away.
“Dee—”
I catch her arm, needing her to listen, but she shakes me off with a
sharp gesture and just keeps walking. Not looking at me, not turning
back for a second. She gets in her car and drives away, and just like
that, the best thing that ever happened to me is nothing but dust on
the old dirt road.
Fuck.
The
truth crashes through me. The sight of her leaving. God. What have I
done?
This
is what I was afraid of, deep down. That sooner or later, the past
would rear its ugly head. The shadows I’ve been ignoring,
praying to god they would just fade away of their own accord. And
they did. Every day with her, my past receded, until it felt like
some other life, belonging to some other man, hundreds of miles away.
Barely a memory.
Still,
I should have told her. I even came close, earlier today, but then
the moment was gone. Damn, I should have told her everything, right
from the start!
But
I didn’t. I failed her, and now there’s no going back.
“Will?”
Helena’s voice comes. “Who was that girl?”
“What
the hell are you doing here?” I turn on her, and it takes
everything I have to keep my voice even. My anger contained. Still,
she flinches back.
“You
wouldn’t talk to me, you wouldn’t even take my calls.
What was I supposed to do, William? You can’t just shut me
out.” Helena’s voice cracks. “Why won’t you
just talk to me?”
I
take a deep breath and look at the woman I thought I would spend the
rest of my life with.
“I
don’t know, finding you fucking some other guy might have
something to do with it.”
Helena’s
pretty face crumbles, and then she’s crying, like she has any
right at all. “I’m sorry, you know I’m sorry. It
was a mistake,” she sobs, “it should never have happened,
but we both made mistakes. It wasn’t just me. Our relationship
was broken, but now we need to fix it—”
“No!”
I interrupt, past breaking point. “You don’t get to put
this on me! You’re the one who cheated!”
“But
can you blame me?” Helena cries, tears filling her wide eyes.
Once I would have done anything to keep those tears from falling, but
not anymore. “You were never there,” she insists. “You
were always at work, or in your stupid studio, it was like you
couldn’t even make time for us. You never put me first!”
“Put
you . . .” I echo, staring at her in disbelief.
“Who the hell do you think was paying for that fancy apartment,
all those trips? I was working for our future together, the life you
wanted. At least, I thought you did.”
“I
did. I still do!!” Helena insists, tearful. She comes closer,
grabbing my hands, trying to make me look at her. “It was a
mistake, I promise, it’ll never happen again. I’ll do
whatever it takes to fix this. We can go to therapy, baby, whatever
you want. But we have to fix it, William. This is our future. You
can’t just give up on us.”
I
look at her, and just as quickly as it came, my anger fades away. I
spent years of my life with this woman, but standing here, she’s
a stranger to me now.
“I
already did,” I answer, pulling away. “It’s over.
We could talk about it forever, and it still wouldn’t change a
thing. I don’t love you, and I never will again.”
I’m
not saying it to be cruel, even though I used to imagine a hundred
ways to make her pay. It’s simply the truth.
I
don’t love her anymore, and the love we did have . . . it’s
nothing compared to what I know love can be like now.
Helena’s
face changes. “Is this about her? That Delilah girl?”
“No,”
I tell her honestly. “You broke us all on your own.”
I
left this part of my life dead and buried back in New York City. But
what I risk losing now, that’s something else, something far
more precious than I could ever have imagined. I hurry down the steps
and across the yard.
“Wait,
Will!” Helena’s voice cracks. “Where are you
going?”
“Where
I’m supposed to be.” I wrench my truck door open.
“But,
what about me?” Helena swallows, the truth dawning in her eyes.
There’ll be no dramatic reunion, no happy ending to our broken,
used-up story. “You can’t just leave me here! This place
is practically derelict, and there are no cabs for like, fifty
miles!”
“Do
whatever you want.” I reply shortly. “Stay here for the
night. I won’t.”
I
drive away before she can argue, leaving her stranded there on the
porch. I’m not worried. Helena can take care of herself, even
if she loves to pretend otherwise. If I’m honest, I even liked
that about her: I felt needed, like I was the center of her world.
She had a way of making you feel like the most important guy in the
room, that just walking in with her on my arm marked me out as
special, a guy who’d really made it.