Chapter Thirteen
“You saidwhat?” Maggie gasped through the other end of the phone. “I was sure I’d hyped you up enough to give you the boost you needed.”
“I know. I don’t know what happened,” I admitted. “I had every intention of shooting my shot with that man, and for a few minutes I was truly riding such a high from all the possibilities I’d created in my head. Then, per usual, when things felt good, it crashed and burned. After that, I couldn’t quite shake the intrusive thoughts, and then, you know me… everything spiraled from there.” The disappointment still blanketed me. “But Maggie, you should’ve seen his face.”
Even now, days later, the mental image of a shell-shocked Stetson was enough to cause a ruckus inside of me.
“Ha. I can only imagine. I bet that man could count on one hand how many times he’s been turned down. Honestly, it kind of makes me proud. A little shocked because I really thought something was gonna happen, but very proud nonetheless,” she said, her voice giving away the smile she was wearing.
“I was also shocked, especially because I was planning on just embracing the whole casual thing. At least for one night.”
“Wait, really?” She carried a heavy load of optimism in her tone.
“Really,” I confessed. I’d started the trek up Main Street to work, parking farther away than normal. I made sure to lower my voice now that I was outside. “I think I knew that was my only shot with him, and I wanted to prove I could.”
“Prove you could what?” she asked, before answering her own question. “My god, Scarlett, what did I say about not having to prove anything to anyone.”
“Not to anyone else. To myself.” The other end of the phone was silent for the first time. “I wanted to feel good, and he’d made that happen in ways that Zane never did. If he could do that through a few simple conversations, I have to imagine the sex would feel even better. And to just say that I did it wouldn’t hurt either.”
“Haha, well, I can’t blame you there. But if that was the plan the whole time then why didn’t you just go through with it? Some good sex might’ve been good for you.” She laughed.
“Hilarious,” I said. “It was my plan until I saw him and Delilah, and then all my carefree energy slipped right through the cracks and my thirty-year-old conscience was reinstated. I quickly realized I couldn’t play the bullshit games and pretend like I loved random hookups.” I tucked my free arm inside my coat, trying to preserve my body temperature. “I mean, shit, I haven’t had a random hookup in years, and I’m not sure he would’ve been the best place to start. And come on, you know that’s not me, it never has been.”
“Oh, I know. Remember in college when you had your first one-night stand?” Her laugh echoed through the speaker. “And then you proceeded to basically go celibate after that because you hated the way it made you feel in the morning?”
“Okay, rude. It’s not that funny. And you know I have my reasons for why I am the way I am,” I said, defending myself. “I’m sorry I wasn’t born to be slutty. Sometimes, like on Saturday night, I desperately wished I were. Honestly, I envy you, Magnolia Nelson.”
“Hey now. Go easy on me.” She chuckled.
“You know I love you, but I’m walking into work. I’ll call you later.”
“Love you, bye.”
I did sometimes wish I could be more “go with the flow” when it came to men, but with my track record, I’d always looked for the steady ones. The ones who weren’t afraid to commit. The ones who were completely opposite of Stetson Walker.
“I know. It was so obvious how into me he was. I should’ve just gone home with him, but I told him I don’t kiss on the first date…” Delilah’s voice was the first one I heard as I walked into theTribune. “I can’t wait to see him again.”
I only caught part of her conversation, but it was all I needed.
Her two clones were standing across from her, arms crossed, mouths wide open, and eyes glued to her.
I cleared my throat. “Good morning, ladies. Has anyone seen Donna yet?”
“Scarlett, hi. I didn’t see much of you at the party on Saturday.” Her voice was filled to the brim with counterfeit kindness. “I was pretty preoccupied all night though, so I didn’t really have time to mingle.” She grinned.
“Seems like Delilah has caught the eye of our resident country star.” Alexis, one of the girls, beamed from beside her.
“Lucky her,” I said, doing my best to hide the sarcasm that seeped through my words. “Donna. Has anyone seen her?”
I wanted so badly to tell them the things Stetson said to me that night, but then I remembered I don’t have anything to prove to anyone. Not to mention, I had no idea what he did after I left.Stetson may have denied wanting to hook up with someone like Delilah at first, but that was before I turned him down.
“Right here,” she said, her genuine kindness a breath of much needed fresh air. “Actually, you’re just the person I was looking for.” She pretended to gather everyone with her hands—Delilah and her two friends, Alexis and Abby, and then Moriah, who had been sitting so quietly at her desk I hadn’t even noticed her. “First off, let’s congratulate Scarlett on her incredible article. I’m pretty sure it’s one this town will be talking about for a while. In fact, I think it might even be a wall-hanger!”
“A wall-hanger?” I asked.
“You know. The articles that are so good, they deserve to be put in a frame and hung up on the wall so they can be admired for years. Like this,” she said, reaching her hand behind my desk and pulling out a large, chunky wooden frame with my article plastered right in the center. The smile on her face was so big I thought it might jump right off.
“Donna! You did not have to do that. This is incredible. I can’t wait to hang it up in my apartment.” A rush of gratitude overpowered my emotions, compelling me to wrap her into a hug and whisper, “Thank you. I don’t think you know how much this means to me.”
