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With that, I pushed my way out the door. I tried not to look but I caught a flash of a shocked expression on Callum’s face.
8
CALLUM
“Late night?”
I looked up from the breakfast table to see Liz entering. I was nursing a pounding headache as I cradled a coffee mug in my hands. I groaned at my sister, unable to form words. She smirked at me and went to pour a mug of her own.
I had barely slept. After Darcy walked out last night, I sat in my dressing room trying to figure out what had happened. The memory of our time together kept flashing through my brain, perfect and tantalizing. But then I saw Darcy standing at the door.
We don’t have to pretend this was anything more than it was.
What had she meant? I couldn’t figure out why things had changed so quickly. I thought there was a true connection between us. Something we were both starting to recognize. But after last night, I was pretty sure Darcy didn’t feel the same way I did. And yet she had slept with me...
“What time did you get home?” Liz asked as she took a seat next to me.
“Maybe three?” I guessed.
After Darcy left, I got dressed and sat in front of the mirror. I stared at myself, trying to figure out what was going on. But every time I looked, my mind flashed to Darcy on the counter, her legs wrapped around me, her back pressed into the wall.
“And Darcy?” Liz asked. I wasn’t in the mood for Liz’s intrigue. And I definitely wasn’t ready to tell my sister all the details of last night. If Darcy wanted Liz to know, she could tell her.
“Earlier,” I grumbled. I left it at that. Let Liz think what she wanted.
Eventually, some custodian of the theater had come down to knock on the door and ask me to leave. I had snapped at the man, but I knew it wasn’t the cleaner I was frustrated with. How had I let things go so badly with Darcy?
“Where are the kids?” I asked, needing something else to talk about. I was used to energetic breakfasts with my niece and nephew fighting over the cereal box. This morning the house was quiet.
“We dropped them with the grandparents last night,” Liz explained. “They love it, and it gives me and Eric a break.”
I sipped my coffee black, glad for the hot liquid that burned its way down my throat.
“Hey, don’t worry about Darcy.” I kept my eyes on my mug as Liz spoke. The last thing I wanted was to talk to my sister about my sex life. My shoulders stiffened, and I had to force myself not to snap at Liz.
“She’ll come around,” Liz continued. “You know she was engaged, right?”
I remembered hearing this. Mostly because I remembered the strange sadness I had felt when I saw the engagement photos on Instagram. It had felt like the closing of a door. So I was flooded with relief when one day on the phone Liz said she no longer had to help Darcy plan a wedding.
“And her father passed away. It’s a lot for one person to deal with. All in the course of maybe eight months. So, I’m not surprised she isn’t ready to jump into something new.”
Darcy had told me both these things in the hardware store, but I didn’t have many of the details.
“What happened with her fiancé?” I grumbled, letting my curiosity get the better of me. Liz’s eyes grew wide as she slid closer to me.
“Don’t tell her I said this, but I never liked the guy. He was the sort of dude who insisted on splitting checks at dinner and keeping tabs on who paid for the last tank of gas. Very…transactional.”
I felt an instant dislike bubbling in my chest.
“No joke—he kept lists on who chose the TV show they would watch each night. And his workout schedule always trumped any plans they might have. Eric and I invited them to join us for a weekend vacation, and they couldn’t come until Saturday morning because he had to go to the gym Friday night.”
“Sounds like a selfish ass.” If Liz’s stories were true, it was a good thing Darcy had gotten away from this guy. She deserved better than a husband who was wrapped up in himself. A question started banging in my head, joining the headache pressing against my eyes.
“Do you think …” I stopped myself.
“What?” Liz asked. I debated whether I should talk to her about this. I remembered the way she would tease me about girlfriends when we were teenagers. But Liz and I were finding a nice adult relationship. Maybe she could bring some insight to the situation. After all, she was Darcy’s best friend.
“Do you think Darcy sees me that way? Wrapped up only in myself?”
