Page 18 of Maybe, Probably
“It’s fine. I could tell you were a first time pet owner.” I grab my drink and take a sip. She follows suit quickly, and the pink tint on her cheeks has deepened to a rosy shade. “And I wanted to apologize if I came off as short today. I had skipped my lunch to make sure appointments wouldn’t run behind. I’ve been told I can be a little abrasive when I skip a meal.” Now I’m avoiding looking at her, and I’m not entirely sure why.
I feel her hand cover mine. My eyes shoot to hers, and the zing that goes through my body immediately makes me uncomfortable.
I pull my hand from hers. Harper pulls hers back to her lap and begins playing with them. “It’s okay, no need to apologize,” she says softly. “I know I become almost feral when I miss a meal, especially when I’m so caught up in work. I don’t even realize it until my stomach startedscreaming at me.” She tilts her head up to look at me with a gentle smile playing on her face.
“Well, I feel like I should make it up to you somehow. Could I buy you another drink?”
She looks at me for a moment, then down at her drink. She nods. “Yes, I’d like that. Thank you.”
We spend the next hour just talking. I find it surprisingly easy to talk to her. The silence is filled with Harper rambling but I don’t find it annoying. When she does ask me about myself, she listens and doesn’t interrupt. She follows up with questions, and it’s like a breath of fresh air. My only social interactions lately have been with my parents, staff or animals.
She’s laughing at her own joke when a snort comes out of her. Her eyes widen in horror. “Oh my god, I cannot believe that I actually just did that.” She covers her face with her hands, placing her head on the bar top.
I chuckle. “Don’t worry, it’s endearing.”
“Ugh, of course you would say that.” She says in disbelief. Her head swings up, gaze meeting mine. I raise my eyebrow in question. “I just mean, you’re just so,” She waves her hands up and down my body like I’m supposed to understand what that means.
She sees the look on my face and huffs before continuing. “I just mean, you’re this gorgeous guy, and don’t give me some egotistical smirk or baffle like you don’t already know this. Clearly, you do. But you care for animals, and you have your own shelter. You’re funny, and surprisingly easy to talk to. Never in a million years would I have ever thought that I would bump into you in a bar and strike up a conversation with you, and then you ask to buy me another drink. It’s almost too good to be true, and it just makes me think something is fishy. Like that Chloe put you up to this or something–”
“Hold on.” I interrupt, while putting both my hands up in a slow down motion.
Her eyes are the size of saucers, and I can see panic flaring in her eyes. “Oh my God, this isn’t something like that. Oh my God. I’m so sorry. Howstupid of me. I’m sure you don’t even want to continue this. I’ll go.” She pushes from her seat, but I grab her hand and spin her back around.
“Don’t go,” I say. I can’t let her go under the impression that I think anything bad.
“So, you mentioned my sister. How do you know her?”
She looks away from me, her hands go to her hair as she begins to play with it.
I make sure I keep my tone neutral. “I’m not going to judge. I’m just trying to understand what just happened, If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine as well. You shouldn’t feel like you owe me anything.”
She nods her head, filling her lungs with a deep breath. “No, it’s okay. I mean, I let it slip already, so I might as well get it off my chest.”
And that’s exactly what she does.
She explains everything that’s happened over the last few months. How her ex was distant but she didn’t think anything of it. Their fight before he ended things, how she found messages between him and my sister dating back months. She even said how she found my Capture during a drunken night with her best friend. Although, I don’t think she meant to let that slip, but when she starts rambling I hardly want to make her stop. I love listening to her talk. The moment from the clinic clicks, the missing pieces falling into place. What gets me the most is how poorly this piece of shit treated her. My sister’s actions aren’t surprising and furthermore, I knew I didn’t like Dwight the moment I met him. When she finally finishes I can see the red lining her eyes, evidence she was restraining a cry while telling me this.
“Well fuck Deke. You don’t need him anyway,” I state.
She looks me in the face for a minute, confusion etched between her brows. Then she bursts out laughing. My head tilts in confusion as I try to figure out what’s so funny. She snorts, and covers her mouth while laughing more.What the hell is going on?
When she finally calms down, she finally lets me in on what's so funny. “I’m sorry, did you call him Deke? You know his nameis Dalton right?”
I look her dead in the eyes. “Really? I thought it was Deke or Duke or something. Hmm. Good to know.” I shrug before taking a sip of my drink.
“Wait…I’m sorry, but do you call him Dalton at all?”
“Uh, I don’t know? I guess Chloe did correct me a few times, but I didn't think much of it,” I reply, shrugging as I finish my drink.
She snorts again, “This is fucking gold. Evie will love this.” She sees the question written on my face, answering, “She’s my best friend, and she’s always hated him. So she’s going tolovethis.”
I nod with understanding. We sit in silence for a few minutes, the sounds of karaoke surrounding us.
Then it hits me.
“I think I have the perfect plan.”
Chapter Nine
