Page 87 of Cinderella Screwed Me Over
“The renovation wouldn’t be much. After that, there’s hiring the staff and all that. Hopefully four months. Maybe five.”
Five months?A tight band formed around my chest, and each breath I took strained against it. Now what was I supposed to do? There was no point in pouring my heart out if he was going to be leaving.
Jake stacked the papers. “Brent and I just have to decide if it’s worth it. With me gone, he has to do more management and less cooking, which he doesn’t really like. I also need to keep tabs on Vegas. But will another opportunity like this come up? I don’t know.” He tucked the papers into a file. “Sorry, I’m sure this is all really boring to you.”
All I could concentrate on was how he was going to leave. Just like the last guy. Throbbing pain radiated out from my heart, old and new. “It’s kind of eye-opening, actually.”
“What do you mean?” His phone rang and he glanced at the display. “That’s my call.” He gave me a quick peck on the cheek and then answered.
Just when I’d accepted the fact I was in a relationship that might actually be going somewhere, he decided to go somewhere. By himself.
…
Having a breakdown in front of Jake wasn’t an option. That was why last night, while he was still on the phone, I’d gone back to my place and had a pity party involving brownies, Mountain Dew, and an overly violent action flick.
Jake had called me on his way into work this morning and insisted I let him make last night up to me. I told him there was no need—that I’d been the one who showed up unannounced. Not to mention I wasn’t sure how to deal with him anymore, knowing he was probably leaving for several months.
“Just let me take you out already,” he’d said. So I’d agreed—I did want to see him, even though things were turning out differently than I’d wanted them to. In theory, I could still keep things light, and that was the smartest move right now, with his plans up in the air.
Since he had to run documents to FedEx and I was going to be up north with Barbara, we’d decided to meet at Sparrow, this trendy, upscale restaurant Anthony and Stephanie had recommended.
I’d been sitting in the restaurant for thirty minutes by myself, getting more annoyed by the minute. The battery in my cell had died, so I couldn’t even call Jake and ask where he was. Or if he was still coming.
“It’s about time,” I said when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up and saw not Jake, but my ex-boyfriend, Porter.
Not just my ex. But THE ex.
Also known as my relapse. All I could do for a moment was blink, blink, blink, sure he was a mirage.
“I thought that was you.” Porter grabbed my hand and glided me into a hug.
His signature Acqua Di Gio cologne surrounded me, his hand pressed into the small of my back, and I knew it wasn’t a mirage. I took a shaky breath, trying to recover from the shock of seeing him. “In town for a visit?”
“Actually, I just moved back. New York wasn’t for me.” He looked me up and down and then his pale green eyes lit up as he flashed me a smile. “You look amazing.”
It was impossible not to relive a dozen memories of back when we were together and he’d give me that exact same look, completely undoing me with such little effort. I swiped a piece of hair behind my ear. “Thanks. You look good, too.” As usual, his clothing was impeccable. Tonight he wore a fitted, striped button-down that probably cost more than I spent on groceries in a month.
“There you are,” Jake said, coming around the table. “Did you get my message?”
I lowered my eyebrows. “Message?”
“I called to tell you I was running late.”
“My phone’s dead.”
Jake’s eyes flicked from me, to Porter, to Porter’s hand on my waist. Porter dropped it, and there were a couple of awkward seconds before I realized it was my job to make introductions. “Oh. Um. This is Porter. Porter, Jake. Jake owns Blue.”
“The little place on Fifteenth you like to take all your clients to?” Porter asked.
“That’s the one.”
“It’s a great place,” he said to Jake, polite as ever. “I suppose I better get back to my party.” He gave me another quick hug. “It was good to see you again, Darby.”
“Don’t tell me that was another one of your ex-boyfriends,” Jake said as he pulled my chair out for me.
I was still a little irritated at him for being late, so I said, “Okay, I won’t tell you.”
Jake sat across from me. “Man, they seem to be everywhere.”
