Page 7 of Undone, Love Times Three

Maybe he won’t notice if I run away while his back is turned.

“Hey, what’s up?” he answers. He doesn’t turn away. “Shit, okay, I’m not far. I can leave the car,” he looks at me, concern etched all over his face. “Yeah, I’m on my way.”

Ryan hangs up the phone. Something is wrong. It’s written all over his face.

“There’s a really bad fire. They need all hands on deck. I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be.” I touch his arm. I’m filled with alarm. Hearing someone is a firefighter and knowing they’re running off to fight one is kind of terrifying. I can’t show him I’m concerned. I have no right. “You should go. I hope everyone is okay.”

“Yeah, it sounds bad. I’m sorry for running out like this. I had an amazing time.”

“It’s fine. That is far more important than me.”

“Hey, don’t say that,” he quirks his lip. “Although…” he cringes as he laughs. “I gotta go.”

He turns, thinks twice and comes back, leaning down he kisses my cheek. My heart stops, I lift a hand to my chest to make sure it is still there as he pulls back. He gives me one of his dimpled smiles and steps back.

“I’ll call.”

Before I can say anything, he turns and sprints down the block. My head drops and I stare at my feet. What did I just do?

The walk to my house isn’t that long. I don’t need to go back to the store. My two staff members have got it covered. I’d planned on taking the entire afternoon anyway. I wasn’t sure whether it would be to drown my sorrows after a bad date or be on a high after a good one.

Never did I imagine feeling both.

Ryan is an amazing guy. He’s everything I’m attracted to. And he had to leave our date to go save people. Alison is an absolute idiot for standing this guy up. I’m going to choose to believe she is a bigger idiot than me.

Someone has to be, after what I just did.

It’s done now. I don’t have his number, and he doesn’t have mine. We live in a small town. Although it’s not small enough that we could run into one another. Especially given I’ve never seen him before. The only thing I can think of where he might find me, is at the florist.

Why did I tell him the name of my business?

Although when he finds out I lied, he will not want to know me anyway. Dating sucked before I took the plunge. Now it downright makes me want to curl up in a ball.

Grams is on one of her health retreat weeks up in Colorado, so I have a house guest for the week. Not that I mind. He’s someone to talk to.

Lurch is in the kitchen when I walk through the house. He tilts his neck up and dips it up and down. It’s his way of saying hello. Or feed me. Or let me out. It’s an art knowing which he wants.

He’s been cooped up all day though, so I open the door to the back yard. He lopes over the step and trundles off to the small vegetable patch I planted just for him, and starts plucking at the leafy greens.

Watching him makes me think of Ryan. Great, is everything going to remind me of him?

Setting the tea kettle on the stove I grab a mug and drop in a Turkish apple tea bag. Once it’s all prepared, I peek through the window and see Lurch sitting on a patch of grass with his head tipped up, enjoying the sun. At least one of us happy.

I spend the afternoon alternating between planning out the concept for a wedding I’ve been hired for, and reliving every moment of my lies.

And avoiding calls from the friend who wants to hear about the date. She has texted me eight times and called three before I pick up the call.

“Henry didn’t show up.”

“What?”

“Yeah, I got stood up. By someone who went through that entire process.”

“Oh no, honey,” she pauses then comes back more upbeat. “He’s an asshat. He’s the only one missing out.”

“Well, blind dates are crossed off my list now, Abs.”

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