Page 10 of Breakaway Heart
“She said that now it’s seventy.”
“Holy crap! Okay, look, here’s sixty bucks and we’re done.”
I took the crumpled bills from him, handed them over, and then watched as the unicorn was delivered to its proud new owner.
As he stood admiring his new treasure, I turned and began walking back to my spot at the cafe, before he quickly caught up with me.
“Hi. I’m… Er…Bobby,by the way.”
“Bobby, huh?”
“Uh-huh.”
God, he was a terrible liar. His jaw twitched, his eyes moved nervously, refusing to meet mine, and his shoulders tensed uncomfortably. I knew liars, that’s for sure, and he was painfully bad at it.
“Sure it is, Randy.”
Now he looked terrified and tried to double down on the lie.
“Randy! I said Bobby…Didn’t I?”
“Your necklace says otherwise.”
“Ah… Fuck!” he said, looking down at his own name literally hanging around his neck.
“I’m Lucy. And look, I’m not interested in telling anyone who you are or where you are.”
He considered me for a moment, and whether he could trust me or not. Then decided he might as well.
“I guess I still owe you that coffee, Lucy.”
“I’ll take a beer instead.”
We sat down, and I eyed Randall with intrigue.TheRandall Jackson. The man I’d watched being appalling every day. Now, he had stepped out of the TV screen and was sitting opposite me in a tiny Mexican town, clutching his ridiculous unicorn floaty, and ruining my supposed peaceful holiday.
He seemed even more ridiculous in person than he had looked on the television screen. More clumsy and flustered, with beads of nervous sweat gathering on his forehead. I mean, I’d probably be stressed too, if everyone wanted to parade me through the streets, violently throwing rotten vegetables at me for my crimes.
The most bothersome thing was that, even though he was clearly an asshole, he was still annoyingly attractive, and I found myself blushing without wanting to when his eyes met mine.
“Hey. Really. Don’t tell anyone, okay?”
I raised an eyebrow at him.
“I’m serious! I’m not ready for all that yet.”
“Well, you kind of deserve what’s coming to you. I saw the show.”
He clicked his teeth dismissively.
“They set me up! I’m really not likethat.”
“You actually said girls were basically pets. I mean, seriously?”
“Just because I said it, it doesn’t mean I mean it!”
“That doesn’t makeanysense, Randall… Sorry,Bobby. You want to know what I think.”
He eyed me suspiciously, then cautiously nodded.
