Page 52 of Scrap Metal & Love Reforged

Janet's wisdom ran about as deep as the cleavage on that novel's cover.

“Right.”

Unfortunately, I didn’t know. I just knew that being without Seth hurt, and I didn’t want it to. Iwantedto love him. And I couldn’t decide if I had overreacted or not. Thiswasall Seth’s fault, after all. That much was obvious. That part was easy. What wasn’t so easy was deciding if I did or didn't want to try and work it out with Seth anyway.

I raked a rough hand through my hair. Had I overreacted?

“Think about it,” Janet said. “That’s the best advice I can offer. I’m sorry it isn’t more.”

Me too.

“No, that’s alright. Thank you, Janet. That helps a lot, actually.”

If nothing else, Janet’s advice provedIneeded to figure this out myself. Duh. No one was going to figure it out for me, and no one was going to have the magic answer as to what I ought to do. After a second of hesitation, I went to the computer and pulled up the list of appointments. This definitelywasn’tan approved use of the system, but…

“Checking your schedule?” Janet asked.

She’d already returned to her book. From her tone, I couldn’t say whether or not she suspected I had an ulterior motive.

“Yeah.”

I typed in Seth’s name and searched for any future appointments. There was one tomorrow at three—and I happened to be off. That might be enough time for me to figure this all out. I’d think on it, and if I decided that Seth was worth pursuing, I could swing by tomorrow and see him. My stomach churned, full of butterflies at the thought ofpurposefullyseeking Seth out, persuading him to give us another try.

After all, what little I had, I gained through my own sweat, blood, and tears. Why would Seth be any different? Except for the fact that he was rich. Now, I just had to figure out if Iwantedto forgive him, and if Icouldforgive him. And if I decided that I could, maybe this would all work out.

I pulled into the parking lot just in time to see Seth disappear inside the building. I parked and watched through the windows as he checked in with Janet. My chest tightened. It was purecoincidence that I’d arrived hereexactlyafter he did, but that—combined with the fact that I’d literally looked at the schedule to see if he’d be here—I felt like a stalker. I swallowed past the lump that rose in my throat. This was it—what I wanted, right? The opportunity to speak with him and see if we could make this thing work.

Deep breaths. I curled and uncurled my fists, slowly getting off my battered bike. “Well,” I said, “Here goes nothing.”

There was no one around to hear me, but saying the words made me feel just alittlebetter. The worst that would happen was the conversation would go badly, and really, I’d be no worse off than I was now. So maybe this wasn’t the end of the world.

I crossed the parking lot and pulled open the door, my presence heralded by the ring of bells. Janet looked up, blue eyes wide. “I didn’t think you were working today, or did I screw something up?”

Seth, standing at the counter, looked over his shoulder at me. His own expression was somewhere between worried and confused.

“Yeah, I’m not on the schedule,” I said.

Which didn’t make me sound any less like an idiot. I forced a smile and sat in a chair, clasping my hands in my lap. Janet frowned, looking like she thought I was out of my mind, but she turned away. I heard the click of the keyboard. Slowly, Seth turned his head towards her, quietly repeating his information. My heart thundered in my chest. But I was here. They’d both seen me. I had far too much pride to back down now, let alone how stupid I’d look walking out within 60 seconds of…nothing.

Seth passed over his keys and, pausing for only a second, strode away from the counter and lowered himself into the chair beside me. “I can sit elsewhere if you like,” he said.

“That would defeat the purpose,” I admitted. “I came here for you, but don’t let it go to your head.”

Seth let out an anxious laugh. “I won’t. I promise.”

I nodded. “So,” I said. “You’re here, and I’m here.”

I needed to swallow my pride and apologize for overreacting. Even if Seth had lied to me, I think I understood why he did it, and that wasn’t worth sacrificing a promising relationship. Knowing that I felt all that, was different fromadmittingit, though.

Janet got up and went into Arthur’s office. I heard their soft voices rising in the air, but I couldn’t quite make out their words. I inhaled and dug my nails into the palms of my hands.

“Seth, I came here because I wanted to talk to you, um, about us.”

God, was I screwing this up or what? Open mouth, insert foot.

“I’m sorry!” Seth blurted out. “I’m so, so sorry. I know I really messed everything up, and I should’ve told you exactly who I was from the second I found out. I know that.”

I startled at the sudden impact of his words. Seth winced. He seemed suddenly fascinated by the floor.