Page 74 of Ask Me Something

I simply looked at him. His eyes were full of regret, and all of my frustration evaporated instantly. “Okay.”

“You were preparing for a fight?” he questioned, studying me.

“Yes. Maybe. I wasn’t sure if you’d get it.”

“I do, and I was way out of line. Do you still want me to come over tonight?” He looked wary.

“Yes. You have the key if I’m not there by the time you are. I have a spare if I arrive before you.”

He glanced at me one last time and then left my office.

* * *

When I got home,I was thankful Brian hadn’t arrived yet. It gave me some time to get my thoughts together. I’d felt off after what had transpired earlier and couldn’t figure out why. I’d made my point, he’d apologized, so why was I feeling uneasy? My phone rang with his number, and I picked up, expecting him to tell me he was on his way.

“Hey,” I answered.

“Hi,” he responded, without saying anything else.

“Where are you?”

“I’m, uh, heading up to Connecticut with Mark. I had planned to go in the morning and thought maybe I’d go tonight instead.”

“Okay.” I swallowed hard, trying not to get emotional.

“I crossed a line today,” he said quietly.

“It was bound to happen at some point with either of us.”

“Yeah, I guess. I think it would be good for me to take the two weeks before we see each other again. And maybe next time we have meetings or something big scheduled, not to spend the night together beforehand. It obviously put me in a weird place today, and I’m sorry.”

“You already apologized, Brian.” I rubbed my temples and realized that this newfound arrangement was not as easy as we’d hoped.

“I’ll, um, call you later this week, okay?”

“All right. Have a good weekend.”

Hanging up, I fought the tears. I had no regrets when it came to establishing the boundaries, especially in my office. However, it was clear I wasn’t the type of woman he typically involved himself with. With other girls, he could truly be dominant all of the time, whereas with me, he couldn’t. He’d most likely realized, or soon would, that it wasn’t worth the effort. That I wasn’t able to give him what he wanted. Sighing, I realized PMS was making me overly emotional, and maybe this weekend alone might not be a bad thing.

* * *

I endedup relieved that Brian had decided to spend the weekend with Mark because I started my period on Saturday afternoon and was somewhat moody and bloated. I used the majority of the day to plot out what I’d do with my parents next month when they visited. The fact that they were making the effort meant the world to me, and I wanted to show them a great time while they were in New York City. Once their itinerary was finalized, my agenda for the night included a pint of Ben & Jerry’s Boom Chocolatta and an episode of Game of Thrones. Something about chocolate and grisly death scenes were especially appealing at the moment.

Halfway through the show, a knock sounded at my front door. I paused the TV and put the lid back on my pint of ice cream, sticking it in the freezer before checking the peephole. Shocked, I opened the door.

Brian’s smile faded. “Um, I take it you aren’t big on surprises.”

Considering I was hormonal at the moment and he’d basically told me he needed a break, yeah, I wasn’t big on the surprise. “I thought that you were spending the night with Mark, and you didn’t want to see me for two more weeks.” I was defensive, but damn if he hadn’t put me through a gauntlet of emotions over the last twenty-four hours.

“Uh, right. Goodnight.” He turned to go.

I winced. “Wait. Look, you’re catching me off guard.”

“I should have called.”

“It’s okay. The timing is kind of awkward, though.”

“Why’s it awkward?”

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