CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
LAURA
Afaint smell of solder and metal fills the small, poorly ventilated back room of Aunt Mei’s shop as I pore over my workbench. I’m working on a band cut from rich espresso-brown leather. It’s a men’s piece. I designed it during the sleepless night before last after getting home from the bizarre dinner with Mike, Antoine, and Celeste.
I was such a mess!
My fingers trace the large clasp I’d crafted from polished silver yesterday evening. Etched onto it is the rose-and-ribbon design from the music box. It still needs a bit of work, but the intricate petals and entwining ribbons are already fully shaped.
I adjust the magnifying glass and pick up my butane torch, when the doorbell chime reaches me through the dividing wall. Aunt Mei will have closed the shop by now to balance the books for the day. Sometimes, though, if business is good, she stays open until eight.
Either way, I keep working. If she decides to let the late customer in, she’ll open the door. Yep, she’s opening, from the sound of it. I hear a familiar voice that makes me freeze in my tracks.
A moment later, Antoine steps into the tiny back room.
My heart lurches. He looks just as good as he did two days ago at that disastrous dinner. But today there’s a determination in his demeanor, an intensity in his dark eyes. His crisp white shirt is a little wrinkled, like when you don’t have time to change all day.
I stare at him with the torch still in my hand. “What are you doing here?”
“I need to talk to you.”
“Right now?”
“Yes.”
In two strides, he’s in front of me. He takes my hands. The torch tips precariously, and I yank it away before I accidentally set us both on fire.
“Careful!” I put the torch down.
My voice comes out sharper than I intended, but I’ve had a rough two days. A rough month, if I’m being honest. Four weeks of pretending I’m fine, of convincing myself that I can be happy with Mike, that I still have feelings for him, that I’m over Antoine. Seeing him now feels like someone’s pulled a rug out from under me.
His hands wrap around mine once more. “Laura, please, will you hear me out?”
“You have five minutes.”
“OK.” He swallows. “OK. Here goes. I came to tell you that I’m done mistaking obligation for purpose. I’m also done pretending I’m fine without you.”
It’s just words. Don’t let him fool you again!
I smirk. “So, you were pretending when you dumped me?”
“I was an idiot.”
“What about Celeste?”
“We’d started dating two months ago before I met you.”
“Even better!” I lift my eyes skyward.
He exhales sharply. “Celeste and I broke up.”
“Oh, did you?” I pull my hands free and cross my arms. “Well, that’s tough. Because I’m still with Mike.”
Well, in a manner of speaking.
I haven’t slept with him since I took him back. My sex drive has been MIA. Shockingly, I don’t find Mike attractive anymore. Letting him kiss me is an effort, and I’m relieved every time he travels to another city to perform with his band. The farther he goes and the longer he stays there, the happier I am…
Antoine’s gaze flickers to the workbench and settles on the men’s bracelet I was working on.
