Chapter 64
64
Opal
William tugs on the back of one of the wooden chairs next to the table that is home to the vase of beautiful violet roses. I studied each one after I got back from meeting with Percy.
Every single rose is perfect, from its shape to its fragrance.
For a time, I thought the man facing me was perfect, but I know better now. He’s human. He has flaws and makes mistakes. For some reason, those imperfections make me love him more.
I do love him, and I believe with all of my soul that he loves me too.
“I was wrong to take Percy on as a client without a thorough understanding of his motives.”
I nod. “I agree.”
William takes a deep breath. “Often, when a man contacts me, he’s not looking for me to act as a link between him and a woman. A lot of what I do is counsel men. I help them uncover what they believe their full potential is, and we work together so they can reach that.”
“I understand,” I say, although the details are still a little murky. I want to talk specifics, not generalities, so I bring up the name of the elephant in the room. “It was different with Percy.”
He scratches his jaw. “I sought you out to see if I could determine if you were a good fit for him. I intended to befriend you and gather information on what you liked and didn’t like.”
“So you could tell if I had anything in common with him?” I ask.
“That was a big part of it,” he admits. “The other part is that sometimes men are clueless about how to approach a woman. If I hand them a few facts about what she might be interested in, that can help break the ice.”
I take in those words as I replay our early interactions in my mind.
“The day we met, I was walking by to get a sense of where you set up shop.” His hand circles the air above his head. “I didn’t know it was a game bar at the time. I had no idea how it connected to Turquoise Crown.”
“Then I spilled that smelly dip on you,” I say. “Did you ask me to meet you for coffee the next day to learn more about me so you could see if I was a good fit for Percy?”
“Yes and no.” He taps a hand on his knee. “I told myself it was because I had a job to do, but honestly, I just wanted to see you again. I liked you from the start.”
I look toward the door to regain my composure. I liked him a lot the first time I saw him too.
“I didn’t give the job my all from the start.” He chuckles. “How could I? I was falling for you, and around every turn, Percy was proving to be a bigger asshole than I anticipated.”
“Did you ever consider telling me what was going on?” I question, glancing at his watch.
His gaze follows mine. “My time is fading away, so I’ll choose my words carefully.”
I want to tell him to ignore the clock, but more than that, I want to hear what he has to say.
“At first, I viewed the risk to my business as the most important thing, but that changed quickly.” He sets both of his hands on the table, inches from mine. “I was falling for you and knew he could never be the type of man you deserved.”
“Are you the type of man I deserve, William?” My voice breaks as I ask the question.
“I am,” he says confidently. “I fucked up. I know that. I’ve never fallen for a woman I’ve met through my work, but then you appeared and flipped my entire life upside down. It took a minute for me to find my balance again, but when I did, I knew that Percy was not the guy for you. You’ll never find a man who loves you as much as I do.”
“We just met,” I point out, knowing that what I feel for him isn’t dependent on how many days ago we crossed paths.
“Which means we have a lifetime to make up for, Opal.” He slides his hands closer to mine but doesn’t touch them. “Give me a chance to prove I’m a good man. I won’t let you down.”
I slide my hands until our fingers are barely brushing. “How many men have you helped?”
“Hundreds,” he answers quickly. “I’ve told a hell of a lot of men that I can’t do much for them until they’re willing to work on themselves first. I’ll never play a part in connecting a woman with a man who doesn’t value her or himself.”
His fingers move closer, covering the tips of mine as he goes on, “I love what I do. I’m damn good at it, but this experience has taught me something.”
“What?”
The smile that slides over his lips makes my heart sing. “It may be time to tweak things a bit.”
I smile, too.” Tweak how?”
“Focus solely on helping men to be decent human beings.” He chuckles. “Percy needed so much goddamn help, and it’s not just him. Every day, I run into men who don’t have a clue how to carry themselves or how to be good people. I think I should shelve the love part of the equation and spend my time working with the men in this city. I’ll still consult with them one on one if that’s what they need. Maybe offer some workshops. One of the women I work with has been pushing this podcast idea at me. It might be time to reconsider that.”
“How many women do you work with?” I ask.
“You already know about Aleena.” He chuckles. “There’s Lola and Sheila too. They’re all friends from college.”
I take a small leap toward a future I know I want. “Maybe I can meet them one day.”
He swallows hard, and with emotion swimming in his eyes, he finally reaches for both of my hands to hold them in his. “I’d like that, Opal.I’d like that a hell of a lot.”