“What deal?” William squinted at me, the car drifting to the left. The truck that was going around us honked, and William swerved to the right.
“Watch the road, please.” I pointed ahead as we approached an intersection. “If it’s more than lust, the sex is no longer just physical; it’s something special. And I don’t do special. Special hurts.”
We stopped at the traffic light and idled in silence for some time—a rare moment for us. William never usually stayed quiet about anything, especially on the subject of sex or relationships. I tapped my index finger on the top three stones on the bracelet—left, middle, right, left, middle, right, left.
“If you keep playing with the bracelet”—William jerked his head my way—“you’ll unlock it by accident, and poof! Off we go back home.”
My finger froze. I wasn’t ready to part with Andrew, sex or no sex. I enjoyed his company. Too much.
“Look, the universe is telling you to date this perfect male specimen,” he said, pressing the gas and jolting the car forward.
I yanked hair out of my mouth and readjusted my sunglasses. “How exactly is the universe telling me this?”
“By cuffing you to him with the bracelet. So please have fun right now and then don’t stop once we get back home. Find a way to continue seeing him.”
I wanted to remind William that the prospect of long-distance ended his relationship with Rai. But he was finally back to his happy self; there wasn’t a need to ruin his mood.
I laughed dryly. “It wouldn’t work out. We come from different backgrounds. Andrew is Harrods, and I’m Goodwill.” I wished we weren’t. I wished I was part of his upbringing and not mine.
“It won’t work out because you don’t even want to try,” he said tensely.
Whoa. What’s with the attitude?
He sighed. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to say it like that. But you’re so hung up on what that idiot Greg told you over a decade ago that it makes you stupid. Greg’s a loser. And even after all these years you’re still letting him have control over you. You exceeded him in everything, and he had to find a way to hurt you.” William turned the steering wheel and soon parked on a street with a small grocery store, a few restaurants, and several shops painted with colorful murals. There was hardly a soul in sight. “I recently internet stalked him. Guess where he works?”
“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “He has a business management degree. So, he must be a CEO of some sort?”
William made an awful game buzzer sound. “Wrong. He’s a manager at a car dealership.”
I gawked at him. “He owns a dealership?”
“For a clever woman, sometimes you surprise me.” He shut the engine off and turned in his seat. “He’s a fraternity loser who sells cars. The only reason that dipshit graduated from UGA was that his daddy stuffed money into the university. He cheated his way through college. He said what he said because you were smarter than him, and he didn’t know how else to put you down.”
There was nothing wrong with Greg’s job, and I shouldn’t be gleeful. I didn’t make it in my life either. Let’s not forget my metric-ton of debt. I had no right to be gratified by someone’s failure to reach their life goals.
“Don’t you feel better now?” William asked.
“Sure.” I rolled my eyes.
William took my hand and brought it to his chest. “Honey, I want you to be happy. I want you to be stupidly in love. You radiate when you’re in love. I don’t think there’s an esthetician who could make skin glow like yours right now. Don’t you want that soul-connecting feeling that will grow stronger each day?”
He sounded like a commercial. Yes, the feelings Andrew stirred inside me were amazing, but the pain of our inevitable ending would be much worse.
“I’m not in love. Stop saying it.” I gave William a stern stare. My cheeks turned hot. “I just like Andrew.”
“Oh, my god. You’re so digging Dr. Jones,” he said, with a huge grin. “Look at yourself. You’re blushing.” He cackled.
I crossed my arms and narrowed my eyes at him. “Reality check. He has a life in Cambridge, and I have mine in Atlanta.” I didn’t mean to say it in a harsh tone, but it came out that way. I was getting defensive. About what? Not sure, but tears prickled my eyes. “This was doomed from the start. So don’t rent a tux just yet.”
William stopped laughing, took his sunglasses off, and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Yes. You’re right,” he said, shaking his head. “He has a fabulous, rich life in Cambridge, and you live in Atlanta with me.”
I snorted sardonically. “I appreciate you pointing out that he has afabulouslife, and I justexist.”
“Whatever.” It was William’s turn to roll his eyes. “Fine. Do whatever you want. I’m a selfish person anyway, and I need you to be near me, therefore I wouldn’t let you go to live in some other country where people talk with a gorgeous accent and mingle with royalty.”
“I’m glad you made it clear it’s all about you.” I smiled, unbuckling and throwing my seatbelt off.
“It’s always about me.” He winked.
