Page 189 of The Fine Line
“Tom Dunn stopped by before the interview,” he cuts in, his words sharp as glass. “Told me to pass along his congratulations.”
Something twists low in my stomach, sharp and quick.
“When exactly were you planning to tell me?”
“I don’t know,” I admit. “I hadn’t given it much thought yet.”
He smirks, but there’s no amusement in it. “Yeah. Clearly.” He shakes his head, disbelief etched all over his face. “What about us?”
I cross my arms. “Well,uswas a PR move. We got married to save our jobs. Now that I have another one, the contract’s null. Linda can focus her efforts on you. I’ll handle myself from here.”
He looks like I just knocked the wind out of him.
“I’m not talking about PR us,” he says, voice low. “I mean us. The real us.”
I swallow hard. “Let’s be honest, Rhett. There was never arealus.”
“That’s not true.”
I shake my head, the sting behind my eyes growing sharper. “I have to go?—”
“No,” he cuts me off, stepping closer. “This isn’t fair.Youwere the one who was scared to jump into this with me.Youwere the one who thought you couldn’t trust me—that I’d waste your time, break you. So what do you call this, Cub?”
His voice cracks on the last word.
I scoff, humorless. “Are you serious right now?”
His jaw ticks. “How can you pretend the last two months didn’t happen?”
“You’re the master of pretending,” I fire back. “I guess I learned from the best.”
He just stares at me, eyes sharp and searching.
“When were you going to tell me about the job?” he finally asks, quieter now. Almost a plea.
I exhale, frustrated tears starting to burn. “I don’t know.” My voice shakes. “When wereyougoing to tell me about Lauren?”
The name knocks the breath out of him. He goes still, eyes widening faintly before dropping to the floor.
“Yeah,” I say softly. “I know. I saw her messages yesterday morning. So how dare you come at me like this.”
He shakes his head, panic flashing. “That’s not?—”
“Who is she, Rhett?” I cut in, sharp.
His throat bobs as he swallows. “No one to be concerned about.”
I laugh—sharp and bitter. “Oh, great. Good to know. While I’m at it, maybe I just won’t concern myself withyouat all anymore. It’s okay. You’ve got Lauren to think about you.”
He flinches. “You don’t understand?—”
“I don’twantto understand,” I spit. “I don’t care. This was all a mistake.”
“You don’t mean that,” he breathes.
“I do.” My chin lifts. “I knew I couldn’t trust you. I knew you’d ruin this before it even started.”
There’s a beat where neither of us speaks, the air thick with everything unsaid.
