“Whoa, yeah.” I shake my head. “I can see where that would be a lot to deal with.”
“It was,” she shares. “So, yeah, I guess the hope is that this time away will heal my heart some.”
“Well…” I catch and hold her gaze. “Maybe I can help.”
Softly, she replies, “Yeah, maybe you can. I have to say, I already feel a little better and a bit more like my usual self.”
“Good.” I nod decisively. “That’s a great start. By the time you leave here, let’s make it a mission that you’re fully back to you.”
Smiling, she says, “That would be nice.”
We’re quiet for a beat, and then she asks, “So, why did you come down here all alone?”
“Oh, hell.” I wave my hand around. “I wanted to get away from all the craziness surrounding the playoffs. Just the stress, the grind, dealing with the press more than usual, all of it. I need to decompress.”
Nodding, she says, “That makes sense. So, just decompressing? No bad breakups?”
I snort and decide to share a little more. “Hell, every date I ever have seems to end in a bad breakup.”
She twists on her lounger to face me more fully. “How do you mean?” she asks. “It can’t be that awful.”
I scoff. “Oh, I assure you, it is. I guess you could just say I’m unlucky in love.”
Softly, she tells me, “Hey, you’ll find your someone. She’s out there, I’m sure of it.”
Looking over at her, our eyes meet, and something, though very tiny, sparks.
Still holding her gaze, in this moment, I believe her and feel compelled to quietly murmur, “I hope you’re right.”
Are we having a moment, even if it is a tiny one?
It sure feels like it.
Suddenly, my heart doesn’t hurt.
Like, at all.
And when Shane murmurs, “I hope you’re right,” it evens soars a little.
I haven’t felt this way in a while.
Alongwhile.
But then, as our eyes remain locked, a stupid flash of lightning streaks across the sky, accompanied by a thunderous clap. That breaks whatever magic that was happening between us.
Shane looks away quickly and clears his throat. “Shit,” he says, “sounds like there’s quite a storm brewing.”
See, I was reading too much into it. It’s like he’s forgotten about our “moment” already.
I need to just stop.
The problem is, Shane is just so damn good-looking that I am attracted to him. But like he said, we’re just going to be friends.
That’s it.
Yeah, get that straight, Willa.
Rolling onto my back on the lounger, I recline it slightly and stare up at the sky. Though it’s dark out, there are a lot of visible clouds rolling in.
