Page 75 of Wild Dreams

"Surly, huh?" Carol had mumbled something about me being grumpier than usual.

"It's a nice way of saying everyone thinks you're an asshole."

I chuckled without any humor. "That's fair."

Eli remained serious. "So what's the deal?"

I let out a breath. It would be nice to have someone to talk to in this situation. "I've been seeing someone."

"No shit?" Eli asked, because I never talked about women. "Someone from out of town?"

My jaw tightened. I wasn't sure how he'd take the news I was dating a mutual friend. "Not exactly."

Eli shifted in his stool. "Someone in town." At my slow nod, he continued, "Someone I know?"

"Yes." I took a long pull of my water, hoping it would soothe my dry throat.

Eli's brow furrowed. "Who is it?"

I took a deep breath. "Marigold."

Eli was quiet for a second. Then he asked slowly, almost as if he didn't quite hear me, "Marigold. Scarlett's friend?"

"She's the only Marigold I know." She was one of a kind in every way. I'd been lucky to have the short amount of time I had with her.

He leaned close and hissed, "Why would you get involved with her?"

"Because I like her." I ground my teeth together.

"But you're not interested in anything serious, and that's all Marigold wants. Hell, it's what she deserves." Eli must have felt protective over her because of Scarlett.

"I know she does."

"Why would you start something with her when you have no intention of getting serious?"

"I didn't intend for this to happen. It just did. We spent more time together, I realized I liked her, and I was attracted to her. Then she became an addiction. I wanted to see her every night, and I couldn't think of a reason not to."

Eli shook his head. "You weren't thinking obviously."

"I followed my feelings for once. I did something that felt good. You and Scarlett are so happy, and I wanted something for myself."

Eli tipped his head. "Marigold is the kind of girl you marry. She's a forever kind of woman. You don't dick around with someone like that."

My stomach rolled. "I never wanted to hurt her."

Eli's expression was grim. "But you did."

"One night, she was upset about a conversation with her parents, and I was there for her. It felt good. But I made a promise to myself that work comes first. Things were getting too serious with Marigold. What if she needed me, but I couldn't be there for her? It was the exact situation I wanted to avoid, hurting someone that was important to me."

His brow furrowed. "So you broke things off?"

"Not exactly. I took a few days to think about it, and things got busy at work. Two weeks have passed, and we haven't talked about it."

Eli sucked in a breath. "Two weeks without telling her what's going on?"

I nodded miserably, my shoulders slumping from the weight of my actions.

Eli ran a hand through his hair. "Fuck. I can't believe you did that. When Scarlett finds out?—"

---