Page 47 of Heart to Heart

“Of course, sweetie. I only want you to be happy.” He brushed his fingers through the ends of my hair again. A touch without entirely touching. Seemingly innocent but so, so,sofuckingnot.

We had known each other forever; we’d grown up together. Our mothers had been friends for decades. But somehow, even after all this time, he still knew nothing about me. And the kicker was I didn’t think he even wanted to.

“You’re too kind to me.” I grabbed hold of the cart and started tossing shit into it. Lots of random shit because screw him and his persistence and his never-leaving-me-alone “nice guy” bullshit. We’d see how nice he was after buying me half this damn store. I didn’t feel bad, knowing he could afford it. He drove a damn Porsche for eff’s sake. Maybe I could drive him away by being a pain in the ass.

“Retail therapy. I love it.” He chuckled. “Get what you need. I enjoy taking care of the women in my life.” He winked and brushed my hand on the cart with his pinkie. “I’m a generous boyfriend. All the ladies I’ve dated have said I’m a catch. Have you ever been in a Porsche, sweetie? I’d love to take you for a ride and catch up with you, show you what I have to offer. I’m a high value man now, Holly. Not the shy, quiet boy you knew back in school.”

Elizabeth was making gagging noises behind the counter, but Jared was too busy fawning over himself to notice. I met her rolling eyes in the security mirror but had to look away before I started laughing.

Well, shit.

Whatever.

Once my shop was open, I was done with putting up with him.

Maybe honesty would work. It was worth a shot. “Thank you, but I can’t. I’m not dating right now. Not you or anyone, okay? I’ve been through a lot lately. I had an incident before I got back to Sweetbriar. It was serious and I’m still trying to work my way through it. I’m not ready for—”

“Holly, that’s silly and you know it. There’s nothing like getting back on the horse, right? Whatever that little incident was, it’s over now, isn’t it? You’re here, and you’re more beautiful than ever. You look just fine to me. Let it go, babe. It’s time to move on—that’s the best thing you can do. My Porsche is right outside. I’ll take you to lunch at the Riverview, you can order whatever your heart desires, and we’ll get your mind off all your troubles together. Okay, babe?”

“Ummm...”Wow.

I was right. He didn’t care about me one bit. Everyone in my family was practically begging me to talk to them about what happened, and meanwhile, this asshole who claimed he was my friend, kept asking to date me, and swore he wanted to get to know me better, couldn’t be bothered to hear a word of it.

Elizabeth fake coughed out a, “Dick,” and then cleared her throat. “Hey there, Jared,” she shouted. “I see your back to harass my customers. Misogyny is the powerhouse of the incel, am I right, Holls?”

Before I could fully process her words, I barked a laugh, then covered my mouth with a hand.

“If you weren’t the only decent place in town to get gas, I would quit coming in here. You have quite the disrespectful mouth on you, Elizabeth. I do just fine with the ladies, thank you very much. You should spend more time worrying about yourself and your poor prospects rather than poking fun at good men, don’t you think?”

“Whatever you say, bro.” She snorted and went back to texting on her cell.

“She is unbelievable.” He shook his head. “You’re not still friends with her crazy sister, are you?”

“Uh, yes I am. Tess will always be my best friend.”

“You should probably rethink that. But we have time to get into your friends, your choices in attire...” I stood there gobsmacked as his eyes ran over my hoodie and jean shorts clad body before landing back on mine. “All I’m saying is you’re a true beauty. You should dress like it. And Tess, with all those kids...” He shook his head. “You could do better in the friend department.”

I scoffed. “Um...”

Do not punch him in the face. Do not. Punch him. In the fricking face.

Elizabeth and I met eyes in the mirror again. “Holly,” she called out. “Tess just texted me. Can you grab a pack of Pampers and bring them to her? She’s out. Aunt Jen called in sick or I’d do it myself.”

“Of course!” I tossed a pack in the cart and hauled my booty to the front counter. I’d hold off on picking up the condoms today. I absolutely did not want to give Jared any hope that I intended to use them with him.

“I’ve got this, Jared. Tess needs me. I can’t go to lunch with you today.”

“Raincheck?”

“We can talk about it later.”

“Oh, well, I’ll say my goodbyes then.” He kissed my cheek and sauntered to the door.

“You don’t really need all that shit, do you?” Elizabeth gestured to the cart once he’d gone through the door.

“Uh, no. Well, some of it.” I grabbed the Doritos and a Diet Coke and placed them on the counter. I hesitated before adding a Hershey bar and pack of hair ties. “Be right back.” I ran to the aisle where they kept the condoms and grabbed a few boxes. Variety was good, right? I pictured Liam naked with a florescent green dick then put back the colored ones; I’d rather save that image for my monster books and alone time. I dashed back to the counter to add my prophylactic assortment to my pile of goodies. “That’s it. I’ll put the rest of this stuff back.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.” She shrugged and rang me up. “You provided my entertainment for the hour, you’re good.”

---