Page 23 of The Affair
“I feel as though I might have bullied you into this—my presence in the store,” he said after settling into the green chair.
Raising an eyebrow, I gave him an amused expression. “Oh, really? And why would you think that? By the way, have you had any coffee today, Sawyer? Can I offer you some?”
He grinned. “I’m being serious. I don’t want you to feel pressured to have me here, especially—”
“Especially what?”
“Especially if I’m going to remind you of Reed.”
A deafening silence settled in the small room as I processed what he was saying.
He must not have believed he was getting his point across because, after a moment, he continued, “It’s just … I realized, you and I, we don’t have much history beyond you and Reed. I’ve always just been Reed’s older brother, and if I cause you pain by being here—”
“You don’t,” I tried to assure him.
“Are you sure? Because a moment ago, I put my foot in my mouth after about five minutes on the job. I don’t want to hurt you, Elle.”
Looking at him, the way his head tilted slightly and the complete sincerity in his gaze, I could tell he meant every word. He would leave if I asked.
Without hesitation. Without a fight.
This was my chance.
“And it’s not like I can change my last name or the way I look,” he added.
“I mean, you could.” I gave him a once-over. He had the wholehot guy next doorthing going on. Jeans and a well-worn flannel had never looked so good. “Maybe blond highlights? Some contacts? What about a wardrobe adjustment? I heard preppy is in.”
He laughed, and I wondered just how many times he’d been compared to his brother in his lifetime. Or vice versa. The Gallagher family was a legend in this town, and Reed had always been top dog.
“I meant to ask you,” I said, moving on, “how in the world are you even able to work here? I thought the point of a family business was that everyone pitched in? That’s the way it worked here at least.”
Until everyone bails on you …
He casually shrugged. “I told you, I’m doing my own thing. Besides, the company is doing well. They don’t need me.”
I could tell he was being purposely vague, but I didn’t prod.
I also didn’t fire him even though I had ample opportunity.
But there was always tomorrow.
Or at least, that was what I told myself for now.
* * *
If you wereto look at my calendar for this evening, you would see that I’d blocked out a significant amount of time for cleaning and organizing. It’d been my prime area of focus, outside of work, since my mom moved out and the place had been left in a bit of shambles.
If you were to take a peek into my window tonight, however, and observe what I was actually doing, it would not match the carefully-thought-out plans in my calendar.
Instead, I was sitting—more like lounging—on my couch, already halfway into a bottle of red wine I’d dug out from the top of the pantry, while watching a random series I’d found on Netflix and simultaneously scrolling through the local animal shelter’s website for a cat to rescue.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, this was the glamorous life I now led.
I’d narrowed my search down to two feline friends—a nice orange tabby named Louisa or a gorgeous calico gent who went by the name Patches. Personally, I hated the name Louisa for a cat. Who named a cat Louisa? An unimaginative animal shelter employee—that was who. She deserved something better. Maybe Ginger? Or Clementine?
Something to ponder …
Giving the fiery minx another long, hard stare, I took a sip from my wineglass and tried to imagine what it’d be like to have a cat. My mom hated pets, claiming we didn’t have the time to devote to them, and Reed was allergic.
