The question stops me in my tracks.
I look up at the ceiling, desperate for explanations.
A groan crawls up my throat as the worst thought takes shape.
Money.
In a convoluted way, I understand that. Getting rich in Cobbledale and the surrounding towns wasn’t and never has been easy.
There are no major corporate branches nearby, nor any big law or accounting firms. Nothing like the ones they have in Manhattan, where most people in town commute to work.
By leaving, Duncan managed to gain…this. The estate. The wealth. The power.
I bow my head, dragging a hand through my hair, refusing to believe he just got up and left because he had a better opportunity elsewhere.
It doesn’t add up.
He was only in high school. Besides, he said he’d never stopped thinking about me, and I believe him. If money had been his only goal, he would’ve taken me with him. He would’ve texted. Called.
Looking for new opportunities doesn’t come at the expense of your friends.
That realization doesn’t clarify anything. It only leaves me with more questions.
Why would Barclay lie?
And why is Duncan back now, when my world is falling apart?
Why is he so furious?
He has to have a good reason. I just need to figure out what it is.
My chest tightens. I rub at it absently, fingers brushing over the silk robe that appeared in my bathroom after I showered.
Unless I have answers, I’ll never fall asleep. I just know it.
Without giving it a second thought, I cross the room, fling the door open, and storm into the hallway.
But I don’t go looking for Duncan.
Of course I miss him. The distance I put between us after the first time we had sex wounds me.
The throbbing in my temples intensifies as I know my questions will go unanswered. All because the truth hurts him too much to put into words.
I still deserve to hear it, no matter how heavy it is. I’m part of his life now, and that means sharing everything.
As I tiptoe through the hallways, searching for something I can’t name, my stomach turns. My heart is heavy, dreading what I might find.
Then sadness eclipses my dread and curiosity because…all the rooms are empty. Lonely.
This wasn’t how I pictured my life or Duncan’s.
As a naïve teenager, I had other plans for us. I’d imagine him taking me on our first date to a picnic on a hill overlooking the Hudson River. He’d brush a crumb off the corner of my mouth. I would be bold and turn my head to kiss his fingers.
Duncan would talk to Barclay for me too. He’d help convince him that being a woman didn’t mean I was less than a man. I’d have their support, would go to college, have a career. Be with Duncan.
My dreams went on and on. Marriage. Kids. A small house where we’d share laughter, tears, and love.
I never would’ve thought he was an asshole, let alone called him that.
