Page 32 of Craving Cooper

“I was sorry to hear about you and Meredith.”

“Me and Meredith?” I didn’t want to admit I’d barely given her a thought since the weekend, and I did my best to sound interested.

“Yes.” Angela’s brow furrowed, and she looked as confused as I felt. “She told me you’d split up. Not in so many words, but…” She stopped talking, and I did my best to keep a blank expression on my face.

“Oh,” I said. I couldn’t think of anything else that wouldn’t give away that this was news to me. As far as I was concerned, Meredith was still mad at me. She hadn’t broken up with me. But clearly Angela knew something I didn’t. “What did she say?” I asked, curiosity getting the better of me.

“She called asking if I could move her stall at the festival. I’m helping to organize it this year, you see, and Meredith asked if her pitch could be put next to Zeke Hooper’s.”

“And who is Zeke Hooper?” I asked.

“He’s a guy who makes pottery. It’s quite nice, actually.”

“That’s lovely, but what’s the connection with Meredith?”

She smiled. “According to her, they’re an item. That’s why she wanted her pitch moved. So they could be together.”

“I see,” I said, nodding my head, trying to look disinterested.

Angela darted off then, saying something about getting to Willmont Vale and back before one-thirty, and I wandered slowly down Main Street.

Meredith’s involvement with Zeke Hooper made sense of why she hadn’t been in touch since our fight, although there was a part of me that couldn’t help wondering if he’d been on the sidelines all along. It seemed unlikely, given our most recent fight, but the truth was, I had no way of knowing. And I sure as hell wasn’t about to call her. Aside from it not being my style, I was happy at the prospect of being free of her. In fact, I was fucking delirious, and I returned to the office with a spring in my step.

Maybe that explains why I asked Mallory to the Fall Festival.

Who knows?

Either way, it’s too late to worry about it now.

I move over, standing in front of the computer screen to check my schedule. Mr. Bryant is due in in ten minutes, but I can’t decide how to fill the time… other than thinking about Mallory. I let my head fall into my hands. Even if I am a free agent, and even if she fills my every thought, should I have invited her to the Fall Festival with me? Was that the right thing to do, knowing what I want… and since when did I worry so much about right and wrong? Jesus… what’s happening to me? I stand up straight and turn around, shaking my head, just as Greta comes into the room. She closes the door and turns, scowling at me.

“Was that fair?” she says, keeping her voice low.

“Was what fair?”

“Asking that young girl on a date.”

“It’s not a date,” I say, going on the defensive, even though I’ve been thinking of it as just that ever since I issued the invitation.

“You tell Mallory that.” Greta comes closer, narrowing her eyes at me. “She’s a lovely girl. She’s sweet and kind, and far too good for you.”

“Thanks.”

“Well, she is. You’re still mooning over Meredith.”

“I’ve never mooned over anyone.”

“Okay,” she says, holding up her hand. “But you’re still trying to work things out with her, aren’t you?”

“No. We’re through. I wasn’t lying when I told Mallory that.”

“I wasn’t aware you had told her that. You skirted around it.”

“She understood.” If she hadn’t, there’s no way she’d have agreed to come out with me. I can see that, even if Greta can’t. It’s why she asked about Meredith in the first place.

She shakes her head, evidently still less than satisfied. “She was never right for you.”

“Who? Meredith?”

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