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And it was foolish for my heart to even bebroken in the first place. She hadn’t left me. She’d gone home.There had never been any understanding between us that she wouldstay past the week we’d agreed to. So what if she’d cut thingsthree days short?
This isn’t an indication that she doesn’twant to be with you, I tried to convince myself.It’s normalto not move in with someone the instant you start dating.
All of my past relationships had moved fast.Too fast, considering their duration. And Charlotte had leftbecause she wanted to protect us from making the same mistakes. Ishould have been thrilled that my girlfriend was willing to pumpthe brakes for our own good, when I clearly wasn’t able to.
But Charlotte also had a history of running.Scott had said so. Fuck,shehad said so. And the way she’dcome to this decision so suddenly, in the middle of the night, putmy nerves on high alert.
Everything had been fine, until sheoverheard her brother and my sister. Then, something had senteverything into what felt like a downward spiral.
I couldn’t put my finger on what.
Though I’d canceled with my trainer thatmorning, I spent way too long in my gym and expended way morephysical energy than I should have. My arms were spaghetti noodles,and my leg screamed in pain with every step I took after mymarathon session on the recumbent bike. Worse, all that exercisehadn’t quelled my nervous energy.
I’d gotten out of the shower when I noticedmy phone screen illuminated with a text notification.
Scott.
I flicked the screen and read his message:I can’t get ahold of Charlotte. Can you see if shewants to do lunch today?
I looked at the message for a long time. Icould tell him that the reason he couldn’t reach his sister wasbecause she got up in the middle of the night and decided to runaway.
And that it hadn’t escaped my notice thatthis event coincided with our discussion about him fucking mysister.
“Ah, fuck it.” I picked up my phone andtapped out,I’ve got the day off. Come onover.
“Yeah, come on over,” I muttered to myself.“Come over and answer for your crimes, dickwad.”
He answered almost immediately.OMW.
I went to my closet to get dressed. I didn’teven look toward Charlotte’s.She’ll be back. She’ll beback.
She hadn’t been gone for a full two hours,and I was already a mess. So, it was probably good that she’d left.If she could see the inside of my head right now, she’d never setfoot on the entire East Coast ever again.
I gave my head of staff a quick call to lethim know that Scott was on the way and to let him come straight up,and I advised the kitchen that I’d have another guest forlunch.
Then, I sat down and considered what thehell I was going to say to him. It had been easier to be chillabout the whole thing before I’d put two and two together: itwasn’t a coincidence that Charlotte chose to leave right after ourconversation about Scott and Catherine. Something had spooked her.I didn’t know what.
By the time Scott arrived, I’d decided toget everything out in the open, as quickly as possible.
He met me in the formal living room, where Isat in the low, sturdy armchair directly facing the doors.
“Hey, man. Where’s Charlotte?”
“Charlotte is on a flight back toCalifornia,” I said. “She left this morning.”
He looked over his shoulder in confusion,then back to me. “Wait, why?”
“Because she found out that you were fuckingmy sister, got freaked out, and left.” I gave myself a moment ofmean satisfaction at the shock on his face before continuing.“Yeah, as it turns out, the whole time you were worried that mefucking your sister would mess things up for you and me, it wasyoufuckingmysister that caused the problem.”
“Hey,” he snapped. “Don’t talk about themlike that.”
“I’m sorry, was there some other way todescribe what you were doing with my sister? Were you two dating?Were you in love?” I asked.
“Come on—”
“Because from what Charlotte overheard, youwere taking the breakup pretty hard. You didn’t realize that whileCatherine was cheating on her husband with you, she was alsocheating on you with someone else?” I waited for something. Aresponse, maybe. Or a punch.
Scott offered neither. He sighed heavily andwalked like a man in lead boots all the way to the sofa. “I wasgoing to tell you.”