Page 31 of The Affair
I waited for the happy couple to leave, waving to Sawyer as they went.
“They looked pleased,” I said, folding my arms across my chest as I took a seat in an antique wingback I’d picked up last month at an estate sale.
“Who? Ted and Jillian? Yeah, they’d been all over the county looking for the perfect Tiffany-style lamp for their new house, and wouldn’t you know it? We had just what they were looking for!”
My brow rose in amusement. “That lamp you sold them was not Tiffany-inspired. It was art deco at best.”
He shrugged, still stoked over his sale. “It’s not my fault they don’t know the difference. Besides, they were happy. Does it really make any difference when and where the lamp was from?”
My mind, of course, began to spiral.
Of course it did.
What if that couple runs into someone and tells them where they bought that Tiffany-inspired imposter, and it gets out that we, in fact, have no idea what we’re selling, and in a matter of months, my parents’ legacy becomes the laughingstock of the antique world?
“No, it’s fine,” I finally answered, my face remaining as neutral as possible
His lip quivered as he glanced over at me. “You’re such a bad liar.”
I finally let out a laugh. “Okay, inside, my liver is about to explode at the idea. Is that what you want to hear?”
“Yes,” he replied. “A little honesty never hurt.”
I watched him for a moment, trying to gauge his next move. “So, are you going to run out there and explain to them that it’s not a Tiffany-style lamp?”
He shook his head from one side to the other. “Nope.” He laughed. “And neither are you!”
“What? You can’t tell me what to do! I’m the boss around here, remember?”
That damn lip of his twitched again, and for some reason, it felt like a challenge.
A challenge I couldn’t refuse.
Feeling bold for the first time in I didn’t know how long, I bolted from the chair and charged for the door. My blood was pumping through my veins as I let out an excited yelp, knowing he was right on my tail.
I wasn’t sure what I’d do if I actually made it outside. Run around like a crazy person down the street?
But I thought I knew I wouldn’t make it past the door.
In fact, I was pretty sure I was counting on it.
A laugh echoed through the empty store seconds before my fingers reached the door, and I was captured. His broad shoulders and large hands held me there, pinned against the old wood frame.
“You’re too controlling,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “You need to learn to let go every once in a while, Elle.”
I could hear what he was saying, but it was hard to focus.
In the twenty years I’d known Sawyer Gallagher, I didn’t think we’d ever been so close.How I could I know someone for that long, be a part of their family, and never really know them?
In the time it took for the breath to exhale from my lungs, for those thoughts to form in my head, I was catapulted back to reality. Someone moved across the street. The clock chimed in the back of the store, and he must have noticed too. His hands pulled away, and I felt him retreat.
“Anyway, what I was trying to say was that who cares if the couple doesn’t quite understand what they got as long as they love it, you know?”
I turned to see a very different version of Sawyer than I’d ever witnessed. Timid, uncomfortable, and hesitant. The casual, could-fit-in-anywhere guy I’d grown used to had disappeared, and I suddenly felt uncomfortable in his presence.
“Right,” I answered. “That makes sense. And thanks for everything you’ve been doing around here. You’ve been rocking the sales. You’re really good at it.”
This seemed to please him because his smile returned for a brief moment. “No problem. I enjoy it. It’s nice to talk to people about something other than bathrooms and kitchens.”
