Page 69 of Entwined Hearts

Every car that cruises by pulls my attention from my bowl. I listen for the deep rumble of Colby’s truck, but nothing matches.

I’m so stupid, I think. I shouldn’t have let myself trust someone like Colby.

As I heat water and do the dishes, my fingers shake and my lungs seize. It’s imperative to put this out of my mind. I can’t climb Widow’s Walk with anything but pure focus. It’s too dangerous. But I start to think about the way Colby touched me, his hands moving as if they could read what’s in my heart. A gasp leaves my mouth, and I swat a tear from my eye.

No, I tell myself.I’m not going to let him break me.

I should have texted him earlier. At least then I’d know he wasn’t coming. I could have saved myself a night of anguish.

Headlights swing over the picnic table, but I don’t dare lift my gaze. But then the sound of an engine pulling into the parking space next to my car gets louder, then sighs to a stop. A door opens, but I still stare at the dishes. For some reason, drying my bowl and spoon is a critical task that takes all my attention.

“Anya?” Colby says softly from a few feet away.

I release a slow breath from the tight place inside me.

He waits.

I’m still drying my fork, my fingers working furiously.

Gently, he takes the fork and towel from my hands, then places them on the table.

I squeeze my eyes shut.

Colby pulls me gently into his arms. Letting him hold me, I try to relax. He’s here. He came. But the emotion I’ve bottled up all day won’t go away. It surges through me, making my body sensitive and stiff.

“Who’s Emmaline?” I ask.

Colby’s posture shifts. “Wow, I haven’t heard that name in a long time.”

I step back from him. “Did you sleep with Jake’s girlfriend? Is that why you hate each other?”

Colby exhales a long breath, his eyes guarded. “Can we back up a little bit?”

“Jake said you slept with her.”

Colby’s face tightens. “Jesus,” he groans. “Unfuckingbelievable.”

My need for answers brings on another surge of anger. Why won’t he tell me what happened?

He must see the look on my face because he sets his jaw and crosses his arms. “Look, are we going to have to go through this kind of thing every time you hear I’ve been with someone else? Because we could be here all night.”

My mouth drops open in shock. “That’s what you want to say right now?”

He averts his gaze, but I can see the tension in his face.

“You don’t have to tell me about her,” I say, swallowing my emotions.

“I would never sleep with someone else’s girlfriend,” he says. “That’s not me. I would hope you would give me more credit than that.”

“Okay.” It comes out automatically. But everything starts to spin again.

As I watch him, it’s like I can see the struggle going on behind his eyes. Finally, he seems to make up his mind. “She managed the ambassadors at Tumalo. I didn’t know she could only pick one of us.”

My mind tracks the breadcrumbs. Tumalo is a climbing hardware company. I vaguely remember them being one Colby’s sponsors back before he quit. I can picture their colorful logo on his harness and shoes, their stickers on his truck, his water bottle.

“So, you slept with her. After that, she sponsored you instead of him?”

He crosses his arms. “That’s not what happened.”

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