His lips twist, and I remember that it mirrors their situation, as she left her husband and moved in with Noah, although I think it took a little longer than an hour for them to end up in bed.
“Oh God.” I cover my face again. “What have I done?”
“You haven’t done anything,” Abby says firmly. “The guys should be ashamed of themselves for settling their difference with their fists, but boys will be boys.” She giggles. “I’m not surprised at Jude, but I am at Archer. He’s such a nice boy.”
I laugh again, wiping beneath my eyes. “He is. He leapt to my defense.”
“I’m assuming that Jude was hoping for a reconciliation?” Noah asks.
I nod. “I guess he’s changed his mind now.”
Abby rubs my back. “Were you thinking about getting back with him?”
I shake my head. “It was over anyway. I was planning to tell him tonight.”
“I’m very sorry,” Noah says softly. “You’ve been together a long time, haven’t you?”
“Yeah. Two-and-a-half years.” I sigh. “If I’m honest, though, I think it’s been going wrong for some time. It’s like doing a jigsaw puzzle up close. Sometimes you don’t see the whole picture until you move back, you know?”
Abby nods. “Oh yeah.”
I rub my nose. “He doesn’t want kids. And I do.”
“Ohhh…” Abby sighs. “That’s a big hurdle.”
“An insurmountable one, really. I mean, I don’t want to force him to have children if he doesn’t want them. And I don’t think he should ask me to go without them.”
“No, of course not.”
“We’re incompatible. I wish I’d realized before now, that’s all. I feel as if I’ve wasted all that time, especially when…” I trail off.
Abby tips her head to the side. “When you could have been with someone else?”
I frown. “Maybe. I didn’t know that Archer felt that way about me, though.”
“I did,” Noah says. “He doesn’t take his eyes off you when you’re in the room.”
My face turns volcanic. “Oh…”
“So you and Jude are over,” Abby says. “Have you moved out already?”
“Well, I’m staying with my sister right now.” I pull a face. “I need to find myself somewhere else, even if it’s only temporary.” I blow out a breath. “There’s just so much to sort out. The house, all my belongings, finding somewhere else to live, as well as all the emotional stuff.”
“Do you have anywhere lined up?” Noah asks.
“No, not yet. I haven’t even started looking.”
He looks at Abby, and she nods and says, “Well, we have the cottage if you need somewhere to stay.”
I stare at them. “Oh! Really?”
“Yeah,” Noah says, “we had it built last year. Mainly for guests—we have family in other parts of the country who come up from time to time.”
Abby smiles. “It’s small but it has a lovely view.”
I swallow hard. “Oh, that would be amazing. I swear I’ll look for somewhere else long term. I just need a place for a week or two.”
“You can use it for as long as you need,” Noah says gently.
