Page 42 of The Wicked Virgin

“And then nothing!” I finished emphatically. “Mr. Martin said nothing and I ran out of there.”

Silence from my friend again as she looked into her teacup.

“Well,” she mused. “I know you don’t want to hear this, but …”

“But what?” I pressed, my voice sharp. “What?” Anything would help, I was dying for scraps.

“Well,” she began slowly, “Do you think it’s possible that …? Don’t take this the wrong way, Tammy, but do you think it’s possible that you didn’t give him time to answer? That you were like a rocket exploding in a small space, all fire and fury and vengeance, and then just took off before he could get a word in?”

“No,” I shook my head vehemently. “He had a chance, he could have spoken if he wanted to.”

But Marie shook her head.

“I’m not so sure honey,” she said gently. “Just step back for a moment and think,” she added soothingly. “Today, you rushed out of the office, you rushed up to the Bronx, manhandled your way into your old apartment, and then rushed back down here and burst into the Pink Cherry. Maybe all the rushing around was … ah, a little rushed, and left no time for explanations?” she suggested.

I stopped to contemplate for a moment.

“It’s true, I’ve gotten around a lot today,” I admitted. “Covered a lot of mileage. But that doesn’t mean I cut Nick off in any way or interrupted him.”

“No Tammy,” interjected Marie gently. “What I mean is that you never gave the man a chance to explain. You never gave him a chance to put out his side of the story, relay his point of view. It’s not even a question of interrupting, it’s that he couldn’t get a word in edgewise to begin with.”

And I sat on my stool, pondering as my brain dashed in all sorts of directions. Was it true? Had I been so furious that I’d jumped the gun and fled, without giving him a chance to explain, to put something, anything out there? And sensing my doubt, Marie confirmed it.

“You didn’t give him any time, did you?” she said kindly. “You just hurled the accusations at him and took off, right?”

And slowly, I nodded.

“I guess … I guess I was just so angry, you know? There were two pieces of really strong evidence, seeing Jeanette come out of his apartment and the used panties.” I took a deep breath. “Besides, what could Nick possibly say to justify it? Seriously, you have to admit this shit is pretty damning.”

But Marie just shrugged.

“Honey, I honestly don’t know. But I’m in law school now, remember? I take classes now, and one thing I’ve learned is to listen to the whole story, try and see both sides of the picture before rendering judgment. Tammy,” she said gently. “I know you don’t want to hear this but you may have jumped to conclusions. For someone who was as invested as he was, the behavior just sounds odd. Give Nick a chance to explain, hear him out.”

And with a big sigh, I nodded, exhaling slowly. I felt a little calmer now, like my chakra was aligning once more, the Earth rotating in a way I recognized. Maybe Marie had a point. I couldn’t imagine any possible explanations for what had happened, but it was true that I hadn’t given Nick a chance to explain before I’d jumped the gun and come to my own conclusions.

So I took another deep breath and another bracing sip of tea, the hot liquid scalding my tongue. Tomorrow would be another day and I’d confront the billionaire then … whatever the consequences.