Page 58 of Personal Foul
She holds up a picture of them together, his arm wrapped around her waist. Immediately my mind flashes back to us taking pictures on the red carpet before the gala and how Colson held me the same way in those photos.
I knew there was some sort of past between the two of them; that much is clear looking at that photo now.
“Well, you’re clearly not together anymore. What do you want, Molly?”
“I want you to back off and stay away from Colson.”
“Excuse me?”
“You heard me. You couldn’t possibly think this was going to last. You were there for him while I was back in Chicago waiting until I could move down here to be with him, but now I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere.”
Tears prick my eyes, but I refuse to let her see me break. I don’t know what she’s up to or what her plan is, but I’m not going to give her the satisfaction of knowing she’s hurting me.
Even though I can feel the weight of her words crushing my heart.
“I hate to break it to you, but you’re not as special as you seem to think you are. Colson has a history of wanting women he can’t have. It’s the thrill of the chase for him. I was his assistant before we were together and his girlfriend before me was the sister of his biggest rival.”
“If that’s the case then, Molly, you can have him,” I bark out, shouldering past her to round the back of my car. My fingers fumble as I reach into my purse, pulling out my keys, and punching the unlock button.
I glance into the rearview mirror, half expecting to see her still standing there with a smug-ass grin on her face, but she’s nowhere to be seen. Reaching into my purse, I feel around for my phone. A text message from Colson highlights the screen, as I swipe to read it.
Colson:I’m going to love getting you back for that one.
My heart clenches at his choice of words, although knowing he meant it in a different context. I don’t know what to say to him, despite wanting to respond demanding answers.
Needing some distance between us right now, I decide against it and I drop my phone into my purse. Shoving the key into the ignition, I hit the gas and get out of there, not seeing Molly again as I do.
Once I pull out of the parking lot and I’m a few streets away, I finally feel like I have space and privacy, and in those moments, the tears fall. My mind flashes back to the night of the gala and the words Colson whispered in my ear when she left.
He assured me I had nothing to worry about, and it was me he loved. Despite knowing that, it’s like all the time we’ve spent together is now fluttering through my mind causing me to overthink everything. He was there for me, he opened up to me, and he let me think I could trust him.
I hate feeling like he’s made me out to be such a fool and a coward for believing he could ever be different than everyone else who’s disappointed me.
He let me believe he saw a future with me, he wanted to be with me, and we’d have a family together. I actually started to picture our lives together. If there’s anything life has taught me, it’s not to get your hopes up or let your walls down for people. The second you do will be the moment when your entire world can get flipped on its head.
The tears don’t stop streaming until I pull into the garage and turn off my car. I look over to where my phone and purse sit next to me on the empty seat, and my mind flashes back to the time he was with me after the charity event when we almost got caught by the police officer.
It’s the thrill of the chase for him.
You’re not as special as you think you are.
Just like that, everything I had been waiting for ended with the snap of two fingers.
