He didn’t come within five feet of her, and he didn’t make eye contact as he scuttled around the room and gathered clothing for a dinner that would undoubtedly be horrible and stilted.
She was wearing her goddess dress again, and he didn’t even give her a second glance.
So much for Amazon queens. She should have known better.
At that moment, something broke inside her.
Fuck her anxiety. Fuck her hives. She had things to say to Thomas McKinney, and he was going to listen, like it or not.
“No.” This time, the voice that emerged from her mouth wasn’t tentative, Anxious Callie Voice. It wasn’t even smooth, competent, Professional Librarian Voice. This one was new. Loud. If she had to give it a name, she thought she might call it Callie’s Had Enough of This Shit Voice. “No, I didn’t have a good afternoon. I’d thank you for asking, but since you’re the cause of my crappy day, I think I’ll forgo that pro forma response.”
He spun to face her, his firm jaw going slightly slack.
She sat forward in her chair. “I don’t know what the hell happened this morning. I’m sorry I called you a mess, but I already apologized for that, and I did so sincerely. If you’re still angry about it, we can talk it over, but I don’t think what I said was unforgivable.”
“It’s not—” His words stuttered to a halt. “Callie, no, that’s not?—”
“But I suspect that’s not the problem at all. Maybe once the cameras were about to leave, you realized you’d gotten swept up in this whole experience, and you started considering everything you’ve learned about me these past three days. Maybe you finally realized being with me would be an enormous pain in your ass, and you don’t want to hurt my feelings by saying so.” She rose to her feet. “But now’s your chance. I’m topped up on Benadryl, so do your worst. Tell me why you don’t want to look at me or touch me anymore, despite everything you said j-just”—her voice wavered—“this morning. Tell me I’m too needy or too anxious. Tell me I’m too much for you.”
Her breath hitched, but she refused to scratch at her hive-ridden chest.
His eyes had closed with her words, his face scrunched into an expression of pain she understood. He was a good man, and he didn’t want to hurt her feelings.
But she was going to force him to do it, because she was done being silent and wondering what might have been different if she’d only said something. Advocated for herself. Asked questions and clarified what was happening in her world.
If he was going to dump her so abruptly, she was damn well going to know why.
When his eyes opened again, she jerked in shock.
They weren’t opaque anymore. They were wet, like hers.
But he didn’t reach for her or move closer.
“I know, Callie.” The words were choked. “I know.”
She threw her hands in the air, infuriated and befuddled. “What does that even mean?”
Her heart drummed through several beats of silence.
“I—” His deep breath lifted and lowered his chest. “I came back with breakfast this morning, and you were in the bathroom. I overheard your conversation with your friend.”
What?
Oh.
Oh, shit.
“Thomas.” She took a step toward him. “How much did you hear?”
“I’m so sorry.” His shoulders slumped, and he gazed down at his sneakers. “I shouldn’t have listened to a private conversation. But most of all, I’m sorry for making you so miserable. I’m sorry I didn’t realize how much I was hurting you. I’m sorry you thought for even a moment I considered you too much. And I’m sorry that because of me, you’re forcing yourself to have another awkward conversation that’s giving you hives.”
The defeat in his voice tore at her heart.
“The hives don’t matter. I have medication to help with that.” She exhaled through her nose and took another step toward him. “If you heard everything, then you know I’ve changed my?—”
He backed away, toward the door. “I don’t know how to make this right. But clearly there’s no way we can have a future together. So I figure the best thing I can do for you is let you have a relaxing vacation and talk to Bridget about our schedule as soon as we get back. I promise I’ll try to avoid you in the future. But if that’s not enough, let me know, and I’ll see whether I can find somewhere else to work. Maybe a research library in Plymouth.”
What? What the hell was he talking about?
