“Well, that’s your mistake. Although I suppose a part of me knew you were more trustworthy than my other so-called friends, who are now gossiping about me on tennis courts and over Facebook after the FBI raid. You’re living in a fantasy world, if you think women can trust each other. How many good women friends do you have? True friends. Ride-or-die friends.”
“Funny you should mention that,” I said. “Not long before you came to me, I met two women who fit the bill. If I didn’t have many friends before, it was partially due to the odd hours of my job but mostly due to seeing the world in just the way you described—not thatI realized it at the time. Heck, I have one neighbor who brought me a casserole and another who watches my cat. I am surrounded by women who have my back.”
Her face contorted as her anger melted into sadness.
“Where do you find them?” she asked, seeming honestly perplexed.
“Trista, to have friends like that, I guess you have to be one. You have to be vulnerable enough to trust even when the world says you shouldn’t.”
She took in a ragged breath. “I do apologize. If I’d known then what I know now, I would’ve never agreed to spy on you.”
“Apology accepted.” The words left my mouth of their own accord, but they felt right even as they surprised me.
Her eyes met mine, her mouth an O of shock. “Really?”
“Really.”
She studied the worn boards of the porch. “Before you go, I need to write you that last check.”
Chapter 36
I thought about my words to Trista all the way back to my apartment. Was I the kind of friend who was loyal and trusting? I liked to think so, but it was rather humbling to realize I’d somehow inspired such loyalty from Havisham and Salcedo.
But could I trust myself to know if they were true friends? Could I trust that part of me that said Malone was different, that he might be the unicorn of a man I’d been searching for?
It would figure that I’d find a good man, only to have him not want the same kind of relationship I did. What was I even doing with my life? Messing around with Malone as though we were going to ride off into the sunset together someday? He’d never promised anything serious. I’d thought I was the kind of person who could hit it and quit it, but apparently, I had feelings after all.
I was being ridiculous to think that heterochromia and having read a popular book meant anything. Who knew if his favorite shape was a star, and I was pretty sure he’d never kissed me under a blue moon, but none of that was important. It was silly, the ramblings of a grown woman referring to something a fictionalchildhad said in a movie. Heck, Havisham had met her cowboy, but he was neither a billionaire nor a philanthropist.
So far as you know.
The whole day had left me thirsty, cranky, and completely disillusioned with humanity.
As I pulled into the parking lot, I saw a moving van backed up to our breezeway, and my heart lodged firmly in my throat.
I rubbed my breastbone.
If it hurt this much to see the moving van, how much more would it hurt when he actually left?
A clean break. Yeah. I needed to make a clean break of it.
After a couple of deep breaths, I walked up to his door and knocked.
“There you are!” he said as he pulled me close for a kiss. “What took you so long?”
“I had to make another stop after the tag office.”
He grimaced. “As if the tag office isn’t bad enough. But don’t you worry. We are celebrating tonight. You got the title, and thanks to you, I had a major breakthrough. Let me open this bottle, and I’ll let you pick the pizza.”
“Malone—”
He opened the fridge and took out a champagne bottle, talking as he unwrapped it and took off the cage. “Finally, finally. I found that last puzzle piece, and you know, it was your puzzle piece that helped me figure it out—”
“Malone—”
“At first, I was thinking Wyoming or the Caymans, but ...” Here he paused to pop the cork. “Liechtenstein! Mountains. For some reason the mountain on the puzzle piece reminded me of Liechtenstein. And there is no way he would’ve figured that out on his own. But do you know who does know about Liechtenstein? Selena! All thanks to you! You weren’t kidding when you said you’d do something worse than punch her. I’d say going to jail for helping Blake embezzle money is going to be a whole lot worse.”
I put a hand on his shoulder. “Malone.”
