Riley had the grace to show a smidgeon of guilt. “Does she know?”
“I don’t care if she does,” Teller answered before I could give her my standard—it was none of her business.
I wouldn’t leave it at that. Teller might’ve shown me a nicer side of life, but I had still been raised a Townsend. “You can tell her, and I would love to know Damien’s reaction to hearing how interested his girlfriend is in her ex.”
Riley’s nostrils flared. “Wendi’sfiancé.”
I waited for a jolt of anger or jealousy. The emotional well was quiet. “They deserve each other.”
A sneer twisted her red lips. “They definitely deserved more than they had.”
After talking to Teller tonight, her words clattered to the floor like dull butter knives, each one missing its mark.
“What a coincidence,” Teller said. “So did we.”
Her date appraised her a second before sliding a hand around her waist. “We should get going, bunny.”
Her glare stayed on me. She didn’t move at his first nudge.
“Tell Wendi I said hi.” I was the epitome of politeness.
“Tell Damien he’s a dumbass,” Teller added.
I snorted and covered my mouth. I hadn’t meant to make that sound, but Teller’s comment had been a surprise. And really damn funny.
Riley sucked in an indignant breath, but the guy gave her a firm nudge and murmured something to her.
His words carried to us. “Don’t embarrass me.”
Riley stumbled away with him.
Giggles took over. The audacity. The irony. The drama. Everything I usually tried to avoid but was a magnet for. “I can’t believe we drove to Bozeman to be anonymous. And I forgot I bid fifty-five grand for you.”
“Worth every penny?”
“Well, you paid five of it, and you’re not done with the project yet.”
He chuckled and grabbed my hand over the table. “You handled that well.”
“Really? People usually get upset with me when I talk back.”
“You dished out what she was giving, but you kept your tone civil.” He rolled a shoulder. “Mostly. But she deserved it—and dug herself a helluva hole with that guy.”
“I’m sure as soon as she shows him her tits, he’ll forgive her.”
“You’d get away with a lot if you did that. FYI.”
More laughter bubbled out of me. Before Teller, a run-in like this would have left me stewing for hours, if not days. I’d be more self-conscious the next time I ran an errand, waiting for someone to be rude or to admonish me for what I’d said. But not tonight. Teller gave me props and made jokes.
I was falling so hard for him, tumbling into an abyss I had never thought was for me. If things didn’t work out between us, I’d truly know what heartbreak felt like. The end of my marriage had been a betrayal. An exposure to the reality that life wasn’t as good as I’d hoped, as I’d dared dream.
My heart. My reality. My dreams. I’d been giving them all to him and, with them, all the power.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Teller
Madison had fallen quiet after the confrontation with Riley. I didn’t blame her. I had hoped to cheer her up and distract her, but she was stuck in that brilliant mind of hers. The drive home was close to silent. She commented on the stars we could see above the shadowed outline of the mountains while holding the box of bakery goodies. In the house, she put the box on the island.
