Page 93 of The Story of Us
“What’s going on?” she asked, dropping her keys into the bowl she’d made. Eloise was immediately alert, the tension in the air pushing the fatigue from her body.
Nate entered the room with his toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste in his hands. She knew it was bad when he avoided her eyes.
“This is such shitty timing,” he said to the sideboard, “but I’ve got to go to the States.”
She could blame her shocked laugh on the emotional rollercoaster she’d been riding all day. Or the five cups of coffee she’d drunk. The orgasm hangover from last night. The relief Joanie was going to be okay, but seriously, what the actual fuck?
“But what about Charlie’s wedding?”What about me?What about last night?Why won’t you look at me?were what she really wanted to ask.
Nate focused on winding his charger cable into a small circle. “I’ll be back in time for the wedding.”
“I don’t understand.”
He flicked her a quick look before lowering his gaze to his bags, fussing with a zip. “This deal with Jemima Jenkins isn’t quite the slam dunk we thought it was. Garrett’s been harassing me for ages to come along, and I think he’s right. This could be huge for me, and I need to focus on what’s next for my career. It could really open up new doors and new opportunities. I know you understand that.”
Oof.There was no missing the subtext in that statement. Eloise shoved her hands into the pockets of her winter coat. Seemed like there wasn’t much point taking it off.
“What about Echo?”
That stopped Nate in his tracks, the muscle in his jaw that she’d traced with her fingers and then her lips last night ticking.
“Mum and Dad said they’d look after her if you didn’t want to hang around here.”
Who was this man in front of her? She didn’t recognise a single thing about Nate James right now.
“Teddy’s going to run my training session for me.”
Eloise rolled her lips into her mouth and nodded absentmindedly. “Seems like you’ve thought of everything. When do you leave?”
“In a few hours.”
She was such an idiot. She pushed her fingers into the pockets of her jacket and curled her fingers around the satiny liner. “Were you going to leave me a note?”
Pain skittered across Nate’s face, but he pushed it away with his big hands. The ones that he’d touched her with, held her so close. Made her believe he was different. That they were different.
“A note? Jesus. No. I know this is sudden, but if I leave tonight, I’ll be back the day before the wedding.”
“Joanie should be out of hospital tomorrow,” Eloise said to the spot of the wall just to the left of his head. Looking at him would only make this worse. “I was thinking of staying at Mum’s so I can help them both, especially with all the last-minute stuff for the wedding. I’ll head there tonight instead.” No way was she staying here on her own surrounded by the memories she’d so foolishly thought meant something to them both, not just her.
“Sure.”
Sure?Talk about waving a red flag at a bull. Eloise imagined steam shooting out of her nostrils, daggers from her eyes. But what was the point? If he could discard her so easily, she wouldn’t let him know how much it hurt.
Nate nodded and continued organising his stuff.
This was really it.
“I’ll be out of your hair in a few minutes.” Eloise cleared her throat, squared her shoulders. Promised herself that she could fall apart later. Right now, she just needed to keep her tone even. “Last night was fun, but I think it’d be best if we agree it shouldn’t happen again. You’re busy, clearly. I’m leaving. I mean, now, obviously, and for my exchange. And I need to spend as much time with Joanie as I can. Help her get back on her feet before I go. I can’t afford any distractions.”
If someone had told her this was how her day would end, Eloise would’ve laughed and asked what they’d been smoking. This reality was so far removed from all the scenarios she’d imagined, she couldn’t find the words to verbalise how preposterous it was because it didn’t make sense.
What had happened between this morning and now? They’d spent hours at the hospital, and Nate had seemed fine until he disappeared.
“Okay,” Nate mumbled. Having everything they’d shared reduced to just one word was the final nail in the coffin, and Eloise stalked down the hallway, determined not to look back.
* * *
“This is a surprise,”Mary said when she opened the door before Eloise had even got her keys out of her bag.
