"Oh, no, I haven't slept with them!" Carter said, waving his hands.
"Don't lie," Jack said with a glare.
Carter sagged. His family would never take him seriously, and he was afraid Allie never would, either.
29
Allie
I’m officially having an affair,she thought to herself after one late night in the printer room with Carter. She couldn't believe this was still going on. She had a sinking feeling that he didn't really care for her at all.
What if he's just using you like Bryce did?She tried to put the thoughts of Bryce out of her head. For a few wild months, he had been her boyfriend. She hesitated to use that word. Maybe friends with benefits was more accurate. No, because they weren't really friends. He was her steady hookup.
Her time with Bryce had been thrilling. He was energetic and confident, and people loved being around him. She realized, after he started stalking her and threatening violence, that he was an insecure narcissist.
In that relationship, too, she thought that their lovemaking would turn into, well, actual love. Bryce wasn't like the other marines. He had entrepreneurial aspirations. He didn't spend all of his money on booze and trucks.
But he had become possessive, especially after returning from his last deployment. Convinced she was cheating on him, he had stalked her and shown up at her apartment and place of work at odd hours.
She finally shoved a pistol in his face and told him to leave her alone. It had only been a few months since she had stopped looking over her shoulder. She hadn't heard from him, and she hoped he was far, far away. That was the one good thing about New York City—there was no way for Bryce to find her.
As she sat on the train, she wished she could have more with Carter. Allie was waiting for him to ask her out for a real date, but maybe she needed to be more forward.
No,she scolded herself.A nice girl, a girl like Kate—that is what men like Carter really want. And that is who you will never be.
What was she to him? She had no one to talk to about it, and the secret ate away at her. She needed an expiration date on this affair with Carter, but she didn't have the heart to set a firm deadline yet. She still had hope it could turn into a real relationship.
That will never happen,the logical side of her mind hissed.
He had introduced her to his parents, yes, but it clearly wasn't real. Maybe what she had with Carter could never be real. Part of her wished she had never taken the Holbrook internship. Another part of her was glad that she actually could spend time with Carter, even though she felt a bit like Cinderella minus the nice dress, where everything was going to implode in a few short hours.
When she returned to the depressing studio she shared with Arnold, she distracted herself from the mess and Arnold's leer by reading everything she could about Carter and his family.Architectural Digestwas doing a feature series on Nancy's home renovation, and there was a companion piece about her role in the New Cardiff clubhouse repairs.
Allie was obsessed with reading about the renovations. One single chair cost five thousand dollars! She longed to be a part of that world, where you made decisions not on something's economic value, but simply on if you liked it or not.
The tabloids also didn't seem to lose interest in writing about Carter Holbrook. There was always some new feature with pictures or links to an Instagram post. Even though she knew he had cut back on his partying—he hadn't come to work hungover in the last few weeks—Carter had created enough of a reputation for himself as a party boy that there was still a lot of buzz surrounding his actions.
Allie sighed and tried to force herself to read the news or an industry journal article. She felt like Stacy. Her phone beeped with an incoming text.Speak of the devil.
How is New York City?
She grimaced. She did not want to deal with Stacy right now.
It's fine
What are you up to?
Allie reached out to pet Margot. The dog didn't seem that happy to be living with Arnold.
Bryce came by looking for you. I told him you left.
Allie's heart skipped a beat.He's not going to come up here to find you,she reassured herself. Before she could reply, the phone buzzed with another message from Stacy.
I’m thinking about moving up there!
Do you need a roommate?
Allie looked around. Yes she did, but…
