Page 43 of Rebel Heart
“And? What’s the deal with her family?” Jamie was looking at me expectantly, like I’d just left him hanging.
“Her last name is Westwood.”
His eyes bulged out of his head as he digested that piece of information. “Wow. Well, there goes Vic’s argument.”
“What?”
“He was worried about her being after you for your money,” Jamie clarified.
“Right. I forgot about that.”
I hadn’t ever once believed that was the case with Jules. She just wasn’t that kind of woman. But the truthof who she was certainly put to bed concerns that any of my friends had about her intentions.
“Alright. So, she asked you to attend her birthday party. I presume you declined, because you’re good at being miserable.”
I had opened my mouth to speak, but quickly pressed my lips together and scrunched my brows. “I’m not good at being miserable. I was having a blast with her until I had to tell her that it was only supposed to be a good time between us.”
Understanding dawned in his features. “Now it makes sense. You’re going out of your mind because you’ve never experienced this before.”
“Experienced what?”
The urge to reach out and smack the smirk off his face was strong. “You like her.”
“No.” The single word came out firm and unwavering. But about two seconds after I said it, I faltered. “Okay. Yes, I do like her. She’s gorgeous. God, she’s beautiful. But she’s honestly a lot of fun to be around. I’ve never met anyone like her. Jules is just a blast to spend time with, and she seems up for trying anything.”
“So, what’s the problem, then?”
I dragged my fingers through my hair and let out a frustrated sigh. “I had to be honest with her, and let’s just say, it didn’t go well. She asked me to leave, and I haven’t seen her since.”
“Again, I’m still not seeing the problem.”
Confused, I asked, “Did you not just hear what I said?”
Jamie nodded. “Of course, I did. But you’ve said over and over that you’re not interested in a long-term relationship. You’ve insisted that you just want to have fun. If that’s what you want, why should it be a problem that she’s not interested in seeing you any longer? I can only assume she’s looking for more than you’re willing to give, and I’ve never known you to be a guy who got hung up on someone who wasn’t interested in just being a fling.”
And there was another trap Jamie set out without me even noticing. He wanted me to admit that things were different for me, that I’d turned some corner and suddenly wanted different things in my life than I’d always wanted.
He was wrong.
“Yes, she thought there was something more than just a good time there for me, so she was upset,” I confirmed. “But like I said, she’s just a lot of fun to be around, and I hate that it ended so poorly. I’m worried that I’ve hurt her, when that was never my intention.”
Jamie countered, “If you don’t feel anything for her, why does it matter?”
“Because I’m not a total dick,” I fired back, shrugging. “I don’t know. I guess I feel guilty about not being honest from the start with her.”
“If you say so.” He shot me a look of disappointment. “So, how long has it been since you’ve seen her?”
It felt like years. “Since the day she asked me to leave her place. It was two and a half weeks ago at this point. Her birthday party was a week ago.”
“Have you talked to her at all?”
Inhaling deeply, I recalled every attempt I’d made. “I reached out immediately afterward with no response. I called her first thing in the morning on her birthday and left her a voicemail. That garnered me a text message late that same night that was little more than a note of thanks. I responded to that, but she went silent again. Three days ago, I tried calling her once more, but she never answered or called back.”
“Did you leave her a message?”
I shook my head. “Not that time.”
For several long moments, we sat in silence. I didn’t necessarily mind. I had enough happening inside my head that a bit of silence was welcome. But there was also a part of me that needed some perspective, because I felt so beside myself about all of it.
