Interest sparkles in her eyes, even though her expression is passive. “What, you don’t think he’s attractive?”
Oh, he’s attractive, with his rich dark skin and strong, masculine build… It’s his attitude that I find appalling. Thankfully I’ve not had much to do with him, but every time I have, I’ve come away from it frustrated and disgruntled. There’s just something about him that winds me up, and he seems totake joy in that. Sniffing and looking away, I make sure to keep my answer short and to the point so Ash can’t read into it. “He’s rude.”
“The fact you’re reacting so strongly tells me you do like him.”
I glare at her and find her crossing her arms and pinning me with a stern look.
She clearly hasn’t experienced him like I have, as she would never think this way if she had. “Well, you’re wrong, and he definitely doesn’t like me.”
“Hmm, if you say so.” She doesn’t believe me, that much is clear in the drawl of her voice.
Sighing quietly, she gestures for me to re-join her at the table. In the bakery, we have a small space where two tables are set up for anyone who wants to eat their purchases in the shop. We don’t have much room, so we don’t advertise as a café, but it’s a nice, quiet spot to sit and watch the world go by. The bakery is quiet this morning, which is why Ashley and I decided to sit out the front rather than in the office. None of the staff can overhear us talking over the noise of the machines and soft radio music.
“Why choose?” she begins again as I retake my space and sit beside her. “If you’re equally drawn to them, then date them both.”
Now that’s an intriguing idea. That’s all it could ever be, though. Clay was very clear that he doesn’t share, and what would everyone think if they heard I had two boyfriends? I wouldn’t be able to move around town for all the gossip.
“Oh, look who’s here.”
The note of caution and interest in her voice has me looking up, following her line of sight. Elliot. Oh no, why is he coming in here? More specifically, why is he walking towards us like a man on a mission, his eyes locked onto me? The bell above the doorrings cheerfully, announcing his arrival, and the atmosphere suddenly shifts like a cloud blocking out the sun.
“Elliot–” I begin, trying to catch him before he says something that neither of us want heard by everyone.
However, he cuts me off, striding right over to my table, muscles tight with tension. “You have royally fucked everything.”
Indignant anger courses through me. I will not let him speak to me like that in my shop and glare down at me like he’s superior. Pushing up from the table, I return his glare and place my hands on my hips. “You can’t come barging into my place of business and hurl accusations at me. What are you talking about?”
Forcing out a laugh, he narrows his eyes at me. “You know exactly what you’ve done. Your meddling has made things almost unbearable. You have torn my family apart.”
Now this hurts. Everything I have done was to try to avoid this, but it seems Ashley is right and I have only punished us all. My eyes sting, however I won’t let myself cry, at least, not in front of him. “I broke it off with them! Anything that’s happening now is nothing to do with me.” I realise that I sound uncaring, as though I have wiped my hands of them, but any contact I might have with them will only make things harder for us all. “They are adults and can deal with their own issues.”
Raising his hand, he points a finger at me. “You came in and played with their minds, and now left me with the mess to clean up.”
“Why, Elliot, you sound jealous.” Ashley chimes in, standing and resting her hip against the table. Her comment might sound casual, but with her arms crossed over her chest, you can see she won’t let him get away with insulting me anymore.
Laughing aloud, he looks at Ashley before turning a sneer in my direction. “I don’t think so. I prefer women who don’t use manipulation to get a relationship.”
Ouch, that strikes a nerve. Several, in fact. I try to hide my reaction, but my wince must show on my face as Ash’s whole demeanour suddenly changes.
“Okay, this was fun, but I won’t let you come in here and insult my friend. It’s up to your friends to be grown up and fight their own battles.” Standing tall, she steps towards him, blocking his direct view of me. Smiling sweetly, she raises her hand to wave. “Now kindly, fuck off.”
The entire bakery is watching us, and I’m surprised by the general atmosphere surrounding us. I thought my staff would all be nosey, listening in for gossip. However, I glance around and see that they look angry, almost as if they are protective of me.
Elliot seems to notice this at the same time, slowly looking around him. Huffing out a breath between clenched teeth, he glares at me once more and turns to leave. “Stay away from us,” he says as his final parting words, the bell jingling happily as the door swings shut behind him.
He’s gone. Thank god. The whole encounter has left me feeling shaky, but I try to play it off with a laugh. “What a dick. Can you see why I don’t like him?”
Ash laughs too, but it’s aimed at me rather than with me. “You really still think he doesn’t like you? That was classic jealousy.”
No. I don’t want to think that he has any feelings for me, let alone wanting to be in a relationship with me. We would constantly argue, and it would be a disaster. Slowly, I shake my head and give her a sympathetic look. “I think your Spidey-senses are off this time, Ash. Thank you for sticking up for me though.”
Rolling her eyes, she smiles and opens her arms wide, pulling me against her for a hug. She always knows how to make me feel better. “Always. That’s what best friends are for.”
TWENTY-FIVE
CLAY
Standing in the doorway of my office, I hold back, hovering in place and not quite able to take that final step and enter. It’s been a week and I still can’t make myself go into the room. It’s ridiculous – it’s just my office, it won’t fucking bite me – yet my heart feels like it’s going to shatter the closer I get.
