Page 85 of The Husband Contract
Her jaw drops and she gapes at me, cheeks turning impossibly redder.
“Don’t worry,” I assure her. “I’m not going to do that.”
“I wouldn’t ride you if you paid me a million dollars.”
“I know,” I bite back. “It would have to beten, right?”
She stares at me for a moment, then shakes her head. “Get out.”
“If you say so. Have a nice day reading about your fictional character.”
She rolls her eyes and heads back to the loveseat. I stalk out, Jack following and closing the door behind me. He looks at me, silent.
“What?” I bark out. “I can see the judgment in your eyes.”
“Are you sure that?—”
“Am I surewhat?”
He shrugs, shaking his head. “She’s a spitfire.”
“She is.”
“She’s gorgeous, it’s too bad that she hates you.”
“Yeah. I think that’s why I was drawn to her. I was immediately captivated by her beauty.”
“She likes you.”
“What?”
“She likes you,” he repeats. “Crazy as it sounds, whatever she felt for you—those feelings were genuine.”
Sometimes my friend thinks he knows everything. This time, he’s wrong.
“What are you talking about?”
“Look,” he says in a patient tone, “the opposite of love isn’t hate. It’s indifference. If she didn’t care, she wouldn’t even bother throwing insults at you.”
“She doesn’t love me. She said it was a lie.”
“Well, can you blame her? But she’s not completely over you.” His eyes narrow as he studies my face. “And I thinkyou’renot overher.”
“I was never into her,” I say. I don’t know if those words are true.
“Maybe that’s why you’re conflicted,” Jack says. “Because the Sebastian I know can be cruel and vindictive as they come, and from what I can tell, that girl’s just beensitting in her room reading a book while you figure out what to do next.”
“I’ve been busy thinking about work and how I’m going to make sure I don’t lose my company,” I snap.
“Yeah, sure. But that wouldn’t have stopped you before, if this was all about revenge.”
“Itisall about revenge.” I sigh, realizing he’s right in a way. “Okay. I admit it. I do feel something real for her. And I don’t understand it. I feel like a fucking fool, Jack. Do you know what it’s like to fall for the woman who broke your brother’s heart? What’s wrong with me? Do I have defective genes?”
Jack shakes his head. “No. But maybe you need to speak to Sergio. Maybe you need to figure out what exactly happened and how it all went down.”
“I guess I can try and see what else he has to say.”
“Sebastian, you’re your brother’s keeper. You love him. You’d do anything for him. And I know, after what happened to David, you’ve carried that sense of responsibility toward him. But you have to acknowledge, he doesn’t make good decisions. He’s always been a little all over the place. Maybe this story isn’t as black and white as you think.”
