Page 77 of Tough Nut to Crack

"Has he been mean to you? Was he mean to you back then when you confronted him about it?"

"Confronted him? Do you even know me? I never approached him."

Her lips form a flat line. "That tracks."

"He told me this morning that we need to talk, so I imagine it's going to be more of the same. Probably that we agreed to this sex-only thing, and then I showed up at his house with a smile and a casserole like we're some happy couple. He wants to talk it out, and I feel like it's a waste of time. I don't need him to sit me down like a toddler and explain what this is, but I'm not going to be his toy any longer either."

"What happened with the whole possessive claiming thing?"

I shrug. "Who knows?"

"Maybe the conversation isn't going to be what you think it is."

"How could it be anything else?" I argue. "I have enough trouble in my life right now. I don't need some guy clogging my judgment. It's better this way."

"It's better on my crappy sofa?"

I release a long, slow breath. "Anything is better than having to sit and talk with him while he shoots me down."

"I don't-" Her words halt as she lifts her hands near her ears.

"Thank you," I tell her.

"No," she says, a renewed determination in her tone. "I can't just sit here and let you get down on yourself. You're worthy of love, Riley. And you're also my best friend, so I get to disagree with you. Idon't think the conversation is going to go the way you imagine it will. He's not some teenage boy in need of worrying about his reputation. You're a fabulous, beautiful woman, and he'd be lucky to have you. I think you need to have the conversation, and if it does go the way you think, then kick him in the shin and walk away. But I think you're going to be surprised at the outcome, and not in a negative way. That man is smart enough to see what he has standing in front of him."

"And if he isn't interested?"

"Then you'll know, and you can move on instead of worrying about the answers to questions you're too afraid to ask."

"That simple?"

"I'm not going to try and convince you that it'll be an easy conversation, and you're more than welcome to approach it however you need to, but I'd want to know. The guessing would drive me insane."

"I'd rather just stick my head in the sand," I mutter.

"That's the girl in high school who thinks she only deserves what little amounts people are willing to give her. You aren't that woman any longer. I'll leave you with that to think about," she says as she stands. "I’m just down the hall if you need anything."

I force my eyes closed, but there's nothing that can turn my mind off. I don't want to give my aching little heart any more hope.

I realize that it's Sage's job as my best friend to build me up and help me gain some of the confidence I seem to have lost, but that won't change the way Mac truly feels about me.

I don't know when I finally managed to drift off, but I spent the night on the lumpy sofa tossing and turning, wishing everything in my life was different.

Chapter 32

Mac

Waking alone in her bed is beyond weird. Being in her house all night while she wasn't here is even weirder.

I came in here, wanting to wait for her. I didn't want another damn day to go by without us talking. The woman is so fucking hot and cold it's driving me insane.

She hasn't answered my phone calls, nor has she responded to my texts.

I know she has to be safe. If something happened, I would've heard about it. Hell, Mrs. Easter from across the street would've been pounding on the front door had Riley even broken a fingernail, but knowing that still hasn't stopped me from worrying about her.

I sit up in the bed, letting my eyes drift around the room. The woman leads a simple life. She has few belongings in here, but her kitchen is a different story. She has gadgets and utensils I've never seen before, and would be hard-pressed to figure out what they'd be used for.

She loves to cook, and I love to eat. I think that makes us the perfect couple without even digging any deeper, but there's so much more to her than that, and I haven't even had the chance to really get to know her.

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