Page 59 of Pity Present
Looking mildly hurt, he decides, “I didn’t mean that much to you, then.”
This conversation is exactly what I’ve needed. I don’t want Kyle to remember me as the loser he dumped. And while there’s some truth to that, there’s also the knowledge that he and I would have never been happy together. “Our feelings for each other were similar,” I tell him.
He surprises me by saying, “I’m glad for that. I’ve been worried I was the reason you’re still single.”
Oh, he is.But not in the way he thinks. Even though Kyle and I wouldn’t have been good together, he isresponsible for making me afraid to trust other men. I have to force myself to remember that not all men are liars and cheats. I just need to figure out how not to be attracted to the bad boys who are destined to break my heart.
The waiter brings our coffees and Kyle’s orange juice—note to self: stay away from the juice. Leaning out of harm’s way, I ask Kyle, “Have you met anyone you might be interested in dating here?”
He shakes his head. “Honestly, I think it’s too soon.” Then he sheepishly adds, “When I saw you, I thought the universe was trying to help me fix a past mistake, but now I see it for what it really is.”
“Which is?”
“A warning that you can’t blow through life only looking out for yourself.”
“You know what I think?” I ask him. He shakes his head. “I think it’s a good thing that we saw each other here. It’s closure we both needed to carry on.”
“It’s going to be awhile before I carry on,” he says, “but I really am glad that you’re here.” After a beat, he asks, “How are Ellen and Henry doing?”
“They broke up,” I tell him.
He’s as surprised as I was hearing this, and he only knew them at the very beginning of their relationship. “But they were perfect together!”
“I thought so too, but Ellen feels like she plays second fiddle to Henry’s kids. As such, she was less than receptive when he proposed.”
The waiter arrives and places our meals in front of us. The french toast I ruined up in Blake’s room looked so good that I got it again. Picking up my knife and fork, I change the subject and ask Kyle, “Is there anything that you think the gift shop should carry that they don’t have?”
He smiles. “Watch out, Molly; all work and no play isn’t good for you.”
“Don’t worry about that,” I tell him. “Researching for the resort has been about ninety percent play.” Once again, I wonder why I was booked for two full weeks. My normal jobs are only for three days.
He takes a bite of his pancakes before asking, “What about Blake?”
“What about him?”
“You seem to enjoy each other’s company.” After a beat, he adds, “He seems like a really nice guy.”
For a fraud.But I don’t say that. Full of humility, I tell him, “He likes me as a friend.” Truthfully, he probably doesn’t even like me for that. He just needed someone to glom onto so that it wasn’t obvious he was here to deceive.
“I think he likes you for more than that,” Kyle says.
Now’s my big chance to out Blake for the liar that he is, but for some reason I can’t bring myself to do that.
Not yet, anyway.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
BLAKE
“I’m sorry, say that again,” I tell Gillian.Is her heart made of pure stone? Has the woman no inner kindness at all?
“I said that I’d be happy to get you courtside tickets to a Bulls game, but you need to pony up something on your end.”
“The boy hascancer, Gillian. He’sdying.” How can she not see that it’s her duty as a fellow human to do whatever she can to make his last days good ones?
“Is that somehow my fault, Blake?”Ice. Queen.
“No,” I tell her. “But a normal response to this kind of request would be to bend over backwards and be helpful.”
