Page 167 of The Sinner: James

She studies me, intrigued.

“Well... You’ve bounced back nicely,” she says, a warm smile lining her lips.

“It’s life, and things are the way they are. I didn’t have a choice.”

“I guess...” she murmurs, unconvinced.

She places her fork on her plate.

“Are you done?” I ask.

“Yes.”

I collect the plates, bring a box of desserts to the table, and flip the cover open.

She peeks inside.

“They look good,” she says.

“They are fantastic.”

I scoop up an eclair.

She picks up a Napoleon.

“Mmm... It’s delicious,” she says, enjoying the creamy filling and puff pastry.

“What about you? How are things with Andy?” I ask, brushing crumbs off my lips with a napkin.

She looks away, a sad smile flitting through her eyes.

Chewing, she takes her time to respond, mixed emotions glinting in her eyes.

I touch her hand.

“What happened?”

“We broke up,” she says ruefully.

“I’m sorry.”

She shrugs, trying to smile, but I see the pain in her.

“What was the problem?”

She brushes crumbs off her fingers and sips water before leaning back in her chair and speaking again.

“One of those things,” she says softly, staring blankly at her plate.

“What things?”

She flicks her gaze up, sighing.

“Last semester, he made a new friend...” she says quietly, and my heart sinks.

“She’s a student as well,” she continues. “Two years older than him... He said they needed to study together. They probably did. In the beginning, anyway. Before they hooked up and forgot to tell me. I didn’t suspect a thing because I trusted him. I had no idea it went on like that for months. We were both busy with school and all that. During summer break, I went home, and he did the same, spending time with his parents, or at least that’s what he told me. In the fall, he suddenly started to act strangely. Guarded and secretive, he was so much different than the guy I used to know. He clamped up when I asked him if something was wrong. He didn’t want to talk about it, and I was tormented for weeks. At that point, I knew something was not right. I just didn’t know what. Then, a friend of mine spotted them kissing in a park, and that was the end of it.”

“I’m sorry.”

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