Page 73 of Contingently Yours
I don’t know how long I stare at my silent phone, but at some point, I stagger my way out of my kitchen. It feels like my monster truck just crashed into a damn mountain.
CHAPTER 28
Andrew
A knock at my door disrupts Elvis Presley as he croons out ‘Blue Christmas’ through my stereo system. That I streamed…easily. I release the throw pillow that I’ve been clutching to my chest like I’d been electrocuted and scramble to the door. Lucas… Is it Lucas?
Pleaselet it be Lucas.
Wrenching open the barrier, the fading afternoon light is still brighter than my darkened living room, causing me to shield my eyes. When I drop my hand, it’s not the face I hoped to see.
“Surprise!” Veronica cheers, holding a gallon of Rocky Road in one hand and flashing open her jacket with the other, revealing a silky lavender chemise. “I got back early, and thought I’d surprise you,” she adds, sauntering inside.
“Oh…it’s you,” I mumble, feeling like karma just played a terrible joke on me.
“Don’t sound too excited,” she laughs, shrugging off her jacket. “I’m surprised you’re up, actually. I figured you were napping, and I’d have to call your phone until you came stomping to the door.” Eyeing my miserable state up and down, she smirks. “Or am I not far off?”
Moving forward, I give her a peck on the cheek before rounding the couch again. “I’m kind of busy actually, but…thanks for stopping by. Welcome back.”
Reclaiming my warm spot on the couch, I hug the throw pillow again and pull a blanket over me.
“Busy, huh?”
Peering up at her, she looks equal parts bemused and puzzled. Averting my gaze, I shrug and stare at the flickering flames of the fireplace scene broadcasting on my television.
“Jet-lagged,” I offer, hoping she’ll get the hint.
The couch cushion by my feet sinks down. Actually, she half-sits on them, forcing me to move them out of the way. I feel a hand on my hip, and fingertips playfully walking up it.
“Too jet-lagged for a quick reunion?”
“Not in the mood,” I mumble, remembering the text Lucas sent to me last night. He was trying to brush me off even then.
Her hand freezes and then moves away. “Wow. That’s a first.”
It’s quiet. Peering covertly from under my blanket, I hope she doesn’t suddenly get all clingy on me. She’s never asked for more, but she’s also never shown up unannounced. Glancing around, she frowns at the array of storage boxes I dragged out that hold my ornaments. “What’s with the Christmas tree?”
“I was feeling festive.”
Rising, her heels clip against the hardwood floor as she walks over to it. “You must have run out of festivity if there’s only one ornament on it,” she says with a laugh.
My breath catches in my throat seeing her fingers clasp the little piano. It sways under her touch, and I can just picture the hook I placed on it sliding off the branch, sending it sailing to the floor. I whip the blanket off and pop up. “Don’t touch that! You’ll break it.”
Flinching, she releases it. My heart is in my throat watching it sway momentarily, but then I realize it’s safe. With open, raised palms presented in front of her, the universal sign for not posing a threat, she looks at me strangely.
“Are you sick?”
“No.” I feel sick. Sick to my stomach. Sick over how something I thought was the beginning of the best semblance of a relationship I’ve ever had turning so quickly into a big fuck off. Why was he so angry?
A soft gasp has my gaze snapping back to Veronica. “You met someone…”
It’s not a question. It’s more of a discovery.
Fine. Ten points to her.
Whatever. It’s better this way if she’s shown up like this. It’ll make things easier.
“Yeah.” I shrug. “You’re off the hook. Free to go find all your Mr. Wrongs and Mr. Rights.”
