“Yeah, he’s texted me a few times, but I haven’t responded. I have nothing to say to him, ya know. Once I’m done, I’m done.” I shrugged.
Ava laughed. “Yup, the classic Addison Ice-Out.” It was also classic Addison to bury my emotions deep down inside and act completely unaffected by a major life event, but I wasn’t about to point that out.
I pointed my knife at her. “Hey. It has worked well for me in life. Once you show me who you are, I believe you.”
Ava held her hands up. “Yeah, but did you really have to ice out the poor Samson twins in first grade? They didn’t mean to take your crayon box. Mom forgot to label it.” She laughed.
“Yes, they knew better. If no one’s name is on it, that doesn’t mean it’s fair game to take,” I said matter-of-factly.
Ava rolled her eyes. “Anyway, so did you get to know Dr.Fuck Me better on the trip?” She waggled her brows at me suggestively.
I shook my head and couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, we had a good time. I learned that he’s actually fromtheAdler family of VRA Media. He has a younger brother. Lost his grandmother, who essentially raised him while his parents were building their empire, to breast cancer five years ago.”
Ava just blinked at me, speechless for a moment. “Holy shit. So, the dude is, like, a billionaire. Why the fuck is he here working as a small-town vet?”
“He said he hated that lifestyle and the people that came along with it. He wanted something for himself that he had achieved on his own. So here he is.” I glanced back up at Ava, whose shocked face had transformed into contemplative.
“Now that you mention it, I always thought he looked familiar when I would see him in town. Now I know why. I’ve seen him on the cover of gossip magazines with some hot socialites on his arm at galas and other events,” Ava said between bites of her sandwich. “Pretty sure he and his brother were the playboys of the West Coast a while back.”
Leave it to my sister to know such random information, but she did go to undergrad and law school on the West Coast, so it made sense. The mention of him with other women made my skin crawl. We all had a past. Hell, I just broke off an engagement, so why did I care? I wasn’t even dating the guy, nor was that even a possibility.
I cleared my throat. “Uh, yeah, I’m sure you have. He is from a very prominent West Coast family, so I’m sure everyone is intheir business.” Unsure of what else to say, I focused on eating my lunch.
Ava stopped eating and studied me for a moment, then waved her finger at my face. “What is this?”
I looked at her, confused. “What is what?”
Ava continued to look at me. “You are totally jealous! Hey, you should be excited. He has clearly been with his fair share of women, so he probably knows what he’s doing. Hell, he could probably make you come multiple times in a night.”
I covered my face with my hands. “Oh my God, Ava. Can you not? And I am not jealous. Why would I be? I just ended an engagement, and I’m one of his clients.”
“Mm-hmm, that doesn’t matter. There’s something there. I can see it in the way you light up when you talk about him.” She smiled and placed her hand on my arm to get me to look at her. “Adds, just have some fun for once. There’s clearly an attraction there. You should go for it. It doesn’t always have to be so serious. Plus, you could probably use a couple of orgasms. I can’t imagine that douchedick delivered very many of those.”
I sat there for a moment thinking over what Ava just said. She was right. I really could use some fun after everything I’d been through recently, and probably an orgasm or two. Not everything I did in life always had to be me working toward a goal or checking something off a list. I mean, what was that saying…the best way to get over someone was to get under someone else?
“I’m not even sure he’s into me. I was getting a lot of mixed signals on the drive,” I admitted to Ava.
Ava scoffed. “Please, everyone is into the James sisters. Look at us.” She waved her hand down her body and mine. I couldn’t help but laugh. Ava always had the confidence that I wish I had and wasn’t afraid to flaunt it. The girl had no shame. “He probably just didn’t know what to do with a girl like you.” She winked at me.
Just then, my phone vibrated on the counter, and I reached over to look at it. My heart rate picked up after seeing who it was…
Dean:
Hey, just wanted to check to see how Dahlia’s doing. Hadn’t heard from you.
I totally forgot to text him earlier after I got to the barn. I smiled and turned my phone around to show Ava the screen. She read the text, and a devilish grin spread across her face. “Ha. I’d say he’s into you.”
My phone vibrated again. I looked down, expecting another text from Dean.
Noah:
Come on, Addison, answer my texts. Are you really going to throw away 8 years like it was nothing?
I turned my phone around again to show Ava. She rolled hereyes. “Fuck that guy.”
I’d never admit this out loud, but a part of me felt guilty ignoring Noah’s texts. We were together for a long time, and it wasn’t all bad. However, after spending time away from him and stepping back to really examine the relationship, it probably should have ended much sooner, and an engagement never should have occurred. Yes, he cheated on me, and the betrayal hurt like hell, but he wasn’t the only one at fault. Relationships were a two-way street, and I wasn’t perfect. Granted, I never cheated on him, but I know I had a tendency to put my horse before him.
I lost myself in that relationship. I poured all of me into it, and everything about me became him. I ignored the red flags I saw out of desperation to keep my support system intact in Boston, which was him and his family, without even realizing how much my life and goals had gotten offtrack.
