Page 52 of Deceit

“Yeah,” I finally rasp.

“Be there in fifteen.”

Then, the line goes dead. I pause for a moment before I make my next call. Debating on bothering her since it’s already so late in London before I decide to say fuck it, and I call my aunt Steph.

“Hello?” she answers sleepily.

“Hey,” I smile sadly.

“What’s wrong?” she asks, immediately sounding more alert.

“N-nothing just…stupid stuff. Guys.”

She lets out a breath of relief and I can practically see her sinking back into her bed.

“They are always stupid, all the time. You’ll get used to it, sweetie.”

I laugh at that and nod.

“Is that why you’ve never bothered dating anyone?”

She hesitates for several seconds before she speaks.

“Actually, I’m sort of seeing this guy from my work. It’s nothing serious but he’s nice company. It’s been really….lonely since you’ve been gone.”

My heart pangs hearing that. I hate that she’s been lonely, I hate that I’ve been lonely. I’d do almost anything to be back in London with her, especially right now.

“I’m so happy for you, Steph. You deserve every bit of happiness you can get your hands on. What’s his name? How long have you guys been seeing each other? Tell me everything.”

She hesitates for only a second before she begins telling me that his name is Collin, he’s forty-one and extremely charming. Apparently he has a brother, Dillon, that lives in the states on the west coast. She sounds completely smitten, but slowly her voice becomes softer before she stops talking altogether. I smile to myself as I hang up the phone, just as a knock comes from my door.

My stomach flips, nerves scattering across my body, as an image of Ronan at my door flashes to the forefront of my mind. Thankfully, I hear Maggie shout through the door a second later instead.

“It’s me. Open up, babe.”

I push up from my bed, unlocking the door before opening it to reveal Maggie with four large bags in her hands. I quickly grab one of the slipping bags as she nods her thanks and pushes inside. Closing the door behind her, I pause. He wouldn’t use his keycard to get in here…right? Suddenly, my sense of security has evaporated, and I look around before reaching for the lounge chair in the corner. It’s heavier than I expect it to be, but I’m able to push it in front of the door. Hopefully it will keep him out even if he does have his master key.

When I turn around, I see Maggie watching me with concern in her eyes. She doesn’t ask though, doesn’t pry. Instead, shebegins pulling items out of the bags, until they are scattered across my bed like a cornucopia of junk food.

I look at her curiously.

“What is all of this?”

“Nothing cures a broken heart like empty carbs and high-fructose corn syrup,” she says, as she sits on the edge of the bed and digs into a bag of chips. "Oh, and this!" she says, as she hands me a coffee cup.

"What is it?" I ask.

"Apple cider," she says, through a mouthful of chips.

I wrinkle my nose. "I'm not a huge apple person."

Maggie rolls her eyes. "Just drink it."

Hesitantly, I lift it to my mouth, taking a small sip. The hot spiced cider slides down my throat easily, warming me from the inside in an instant. Oh my god. This is good. Like so good. It tastes like fall in a cup. I take another sip, and another. Maggie's smile growing with each one before I slowly sit across from her.

“I feel so dumb,” I whisper.

“You’re not dumb, far from. He’s an idiot.”

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