Page 92
Story: Every Little Thing
“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?”
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92 (Reading here)
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125