Page 64 of Seale the Deal

She looks at me, and I know exactly what the another was.

One night, I was a twenty-five-year-old looking for a good time, she says with another shrug, and then the next day, I was in a relationship with a man over twenty years my senior.

Something ugly twists in my gut. This was a man old enough and experienced enough to know exactly how to make himself important to a young woman at the very beginning of her career.

He offered me a job and… She lets out a slow breath. I don’t know. He was just so charming. I got caught up in it. In him.

You know, I say, in true crime documentaries, they always tell you to watch out for the charming ones.

She chuckles. It’s true. You never think it’s going to be you, then suddenly, you wake up one day, and you’re living a life you never planned.

Why didn’t you quit?

Because it looked incredible on my résumé, she says. And he promised me things.

Like what?

My own eco line. Her expression softens slightly. And I got it. It became my baby. Once, a celebrity wore my design to the Junos… She shrugs. I guess I felt like I’d made it. And so young.

I hear what she’s not saying. She credits him for his success, like maybe without him, none of it would have existed. But I don’t think that’s true. I think wherever she ends up, she will always find success, and she never needed him to get it in the first place. I also remember being that young and feeling like other people would be the reason for my success and completely ignore the work I put in to get there.

If it was your line, I say slowly, why couldn’t you take it with you?

Her laugh this time is bitter.

Because I trusted him too much. He told me it would always be mine. Said I could take it wherever I wanted. She stares out the windshield. He said that using the company lawyer would save me money. We’d been dating five years at that point. I trusted him to make a deal that was fair. I never thought twice about signing that contract because I believed in us so much.

My grip tightens on the steering wheel. The sudden urge to fly to Vancouver just to punch this guy in the face feels alarmingly real.

I don’t get it, I say. You’re smart, loyal, hard-working, and obviously talented as hell. Why would he let you go?

Wrenley huffs a laugh. Pretty sure I aged out.

My stomach turns.

He left me for another twenty-five-year-old. She looks over at me. Sound a little familiar?

Unfortunately.

She gives a tired shake of her head. I guess I became an old maid at almost thirty-five.

Well, where is that old version of you now? I ask. You’re free of him.

She’s recovering, she says softly. Resting in a beautiful little town and figuring out what this new version of herself is meant to do.

Something in my chest tightens.

She sounds so open and hopeful, like for the first time in a long time, she can actually imagine a future that belongs to her. And even knowing that future probably won’t happen here, I still find myself hoping she gets everything she wants and more.

I don’t know what to say, so I just nod, hoping it’s enough to show I appreciate her honesty.

Her phone vibrates, and she pulls it out.

Remi wants to go out tonight, she says. Do you think you can drop me at her place?

A knot settles in my stomach. I tell myself it’s ridiculous to be disappointed. Just because I picked her up doesn’t mean she owes me her evening.

Yeah, of course, I say, changing course to go to Remi’s house.