Chapter 59
CHAPTER 59
SIMON
A fter team-building day, I walked Abi to her car. Most of the spots in the garage were empty at that hour. Our footsteps echoed as we made our way to where she had parked. She smiled up at me when she stopped next to her driver’s door.
“I’ll see you on Saturday morning,” I said, looking into her eyes knowing full well how damn lucky I was that she’d believed me when I’d told her what had happened with Ashley.
“Show up, Simon,” she said quietly before winking and adding, “and try not to miss me too much until then.”
“I will.” Bending over, I brushed a kiss to her cheek and let my nose linger against hers for a moment. “Thank you for hearing me out, Abi.”
“Yeah, yeah.” She tried to play it off as she took a step back and opened her door, eyes still on mine as she lowered herself into her seat. I knew it hadn’t been that easy for her this time. I also knew that I had to stop getting myself into situations that needed to be explained, or I’d lose her for good real soon. “Good night, Simon.”
“Good night.” I shut the door for her, moving out of her way and then watching as she backed out of the parking spot and drove off.
I stared until her car had disappeared completely around the corner, then shook my head at myself. Man, I am in so deep with her. Whipped all over again, some might say.
On the upside, since the woman in question was Abi, I didn’t feel that itch to run or to walk away from the relationship before it could even become one. Abigail Walker was the one woman in the world I truly trusted with my heart and the only one I’d ever wanted to give it to.
Hell, for the last ten years, I’d been convinced I’d left it with her, feeling like there had been a deep, dark void in the space where it was supposed to have been. Yet she’d never hurt me. I was the bad guy in our situation. Unwillingly, but that doesn’t change the facts.
And that was the only scary part of being so attached to her—how my father was going to react when he found out. Apprehension coiled around my insides, a blaring alarm warning of danger going off at the back of my mind.
I need to keep this private for now. Under the rug when it comes to George.
If I managed to keep him clueless, I’d get to just enjoy Abigail for now—and that was what I wanted. What I needed, even. I just needed some time with her to reconnect and show her who I really was now rather than just being reactive to my father’s threats or wishes.
Friday seemed to drag on forever at my office, myself and the team hard at work with the beginning phases of planning out our Fit Guy presentation. I knew the direction I wanted to go with the pitch and we were well on our way to making it happen, which was great, but it felt like the day would never end.
When it finally did, I declined the guys’ invitation to join them for a night out on the town. I shook my head as Benny and I left Astor’s building at the same time, striding out together through the large, slowly revolving doors. “I’m seeing Abi tomorrow, picking her up at eight. I don’t want to show up tired and hungover, or still drunk, for that matter.”
He chuckled but arched an eyebrow at me. “She finally agreed to hear you out? Wow. That’s a big step forward for you.”
“Exactly, which is why I plan on arriving early, well rested, and completely sober.” I slid my hands into my pockets and we slowed to a stop on the crowded sidewalk, the sounds of the city coming alive for Friday night in the background. I turned to him and nodded once. “You guys have fun, though. Wish me luck for tomorrow. I’m going to need it.”
“For sure, man. Don’t fuck it up again.”
I laughed. “I’m not planning on it, but it does seem to happen when Abi is involved.”
“Just be honest with her and stop letting other people get in the way,” he said, extending his hand toward me. “Let us know how it went. We’ve all got money on whether you get back together.”
“What the hell? Really?”
Benny shrugged. “It keeps things interesting.”
“Let me guess. Your money is on us working out? That’s why you’re giving me a pep talk?”
He scoffed. “No, I want this to work out because we’re friends and you two idiots are meant to be together. But yes, I bet you guys would find your way back to each other. It seemed like the smart wager.”
“I don’t know how I feel about you guys betting on my love life,” I said, brow furrowing.
“Hey, I believe in you two so much, I put my money where my mouth is,” Benny said. “If you think about it, that makes me an awesome friend.”
“Hmm, I’m not sure how sound that logic is.”
He waved my comment away. “Forget about the pool we have going. I shouldn’t have mentioned it. You have a woman to focus on. Don’t waste your time thinking about who’s getting the ten grand.”
“Ten grand?” I asked, eyes widening. “How many people are in this pool?”
“Just a few of the guys. Some people from the gym.” He raised his hands and shook his head. “Just forget I said anything. No more distractions. Tomorrow is important. I mean, it’ll determine the rest of your life, you know? So stay loose. No pressure.”
“I’ll do my best,” I said with a laugh. “Now I better go before you give me any more encouragement.”
“I’m here for you any time, bro.”
I shook with him and we parted ways, with him heading out to join up with David and Josh while I went straight home. I couldn’t help but wonder which way David and Josh bet in my romance pool. Someone must have bet against us getting back together. Dicks.
After ordering in some Thai food, I went to grab a shower and used the time to mentally fine-tune all my plans for tomorrow. A long time ago, hanging out with Abi on the weekend had been second nature to me. As easy, natural, and stress-free as breathing.
That was not the case anymore. For perhaps the first time ever, there were stakes involved. If I fucked up tomorrow, she was gone. Potentially forever. To make things worse, I still wasn’t sure that she shouldn’t be gone.
The part of me that had been convinced letting her go would be the best thing for her was still alive and kicking. In fact, it delivered a swift one to my gut even as I stood under the cool spray of my shower, an unnecessary reminder that after all the hurt I’d caused her, the least I could do was to stand down.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t built that way. I couldn’t give up until the final whistle blew. Maybe it was my competitive streak or maybe it was my determination to keep going after my twin had checked out cruelly early, but wherever it came from, I just didn’t think it was over until it was over .
After an early night, I was up at the crack of dawn on Saturday morning. The sun was barely starting to break free when I rolled out of bed as excited and energetic as a kid at Christmas. I felt a little like that, too.
I couldn’t wait to spend the day with her. I had some fun things planned and, frankly, I just wanted to be around her. I would have sat with her to watch paint dry if that was what she wanted, but I planned on pulling out all the stops today.
As nervous as a spider about to face off with a shoe, I left my house and wondered what the hell was going on with me. I never felt like this. Or at least, I wasn’t overly familiar with nerves. When the worst thing that could happen to a person had already happened, nervousness and anxiety tended to take a backseat. Those emotions generally just weren’t worth it.
However, it seemed taking my high school sweetheart on a redemption date caused even me to feel those things intensely. I gripped my steering wheel and drove through the near empty streets to Abigail’s house, hoping like I hadn’t hoped in a long time that things went well today.
I arrived at her house even earlier than promised, but I waited until seven fifty-nine precisely to stride up to her door. Grinning from ear to ear, I knocked and took a small step back as I waited for her to answer.
Less than five seconds later, she opened up and nearly knocked the breath right out of me. Standing there in a low-cut, white cotton sundress with her hair loose and damp and her makeup natural, she smiled and my heart rioted.
“God, you’re beautiful,” I breathed, knowing she might think it was just a line, but shit. I opened my arms, offering her a hug, and I was surprised when she stepped into me. My breath caught in my lungs as the clean, feminine scent of her enveloped me and her soft curves pressed up against my own, much harder frame. “Are you ready for the best date of your life?”
She chuckled, letting go of me to turn and lock her door. “Oooooh, so it is a date?”
“I don’t plan a whole day for a girl that’s just my coworker and competitor in an office we share twice a week. It’s for sure a date.” I held my hand out for hers once her house was all locked up, and again, she surprised me when she took it.
She giggled, glancing up at me as we walked to my car. “So, if it’s a date, what are we doing today?”
“First up is breakfast,” I said. “Unless you’ve already eaten, in which case, I’ll have to come back to pick you up in an hour because I didn’t plan an alternate activity for this time slot.”
She laughed. “We have time slots?”
I grinned and opened the passenger door for her once we were at the curb. “I wouldn’t call them slots. They’re more like suggestions. Also, I was kidding about not having an alternate activity planned. I have many.”
Abi’s blue eyes twinkled with laughter in the early morning sunlight, but a slight furrow appeared on her brow. “Since when do you actually plan activities for dates?”
“Since this is a fresh start and it’s really important to me to get it right.”
Her head tilted. “It wasn’t important before?”
“Of course, it was. But back then, our whole relationship wasn’t riding on a single date. It was way more relaxed. All I wanted was to hang out with you and you wanted the same thing.”
“To hang out with me?” She smiled coyly as she ducked into the car and reached for her seat belt. “You’re right. I did only want to hang out with me . You were just always tagging along.”
Chuckling, I rolled my eyes, then shut her door, jogged around to the driver’s side, and climbed in. I glanced at her as I buckled up. “I really was a stupid kid when we were dating before, huh?”
“What makes you say that now?” she asked.
I shrugged as I turned the car on. “Because I just admitted that I never had to put in as much effort, but I always should have.”
“And whether or not you realized it, you did put in effort back then, Si. You always had interesting stuff planned for how we would spend our time together. Like do you remember the breakfast concerts at Teddy’s? Those were the best.”
“Speaking of Teddy’s.” I smiled as I eased my car into gear. “Do you know you can still see live music there while you’re having your bagel and your coffee? They still do the breakfast concerts.”
Her eyes widened. “For real? That’s awesome.”
“Yep, and that’s exactly where we’re headed right now,” I admitted playfully. “I figured our favorite coffee shop was a good way to start the day.”
She let out a soft but excited squeal and then laughed as her head shook. “Teddy’s. Jeez. I haven’t even thought of that place for the longest time.”
Yet when we arrived, she ordered without even having to consult the menu and we ate while watching a young woman strum her guitar, the folksy music she played and her soulful voice flowing gently through the air. When we were done eating, Abi looked at me with round, pleading eyes.
“I’m so curious about what we’re doing next. You set a pretty high bar for yourself by starting with this.”
“I’ll give you a hint about what we’re doing next,” I said, getting up from the table we’d occupied and extending my hand to her, my takeout coffee in the other. “Do you remember our ninth grade field trip?”
“To the Metropolitan Museum of Art?” She lit up like a firework as she placed her soft, delicate hand in mine. “Are you serious?”
“Yep. You wouldn’t shut up about it for weeks. I know it was your favorite field trip we ever did, so I figured we should do it again.”
Disbelief flickered in her eyes for a moment as she looked up at me. “I didn’t think you’d have remembered all this.”
“I remember everything about you, Abi. Always have, always will.” God, now I’m sounding like a sap. First the nerves and now this? What the hell is happening to me? “Ready to go?”
“So ready.”
Her fingers wound around mine and my heart went nuts, but I played it cool, keeping up the small talk as we drove to the museum and went inside. As we were walking around, however, Abi must’ve decided that she’d had enough of talking about things that didn’t really matter.
“What is this exactly, Simon?” she asked, pulling us up short right underneath one of the skylights. Standing smack bang in a pool of sunlight that made her look like an actual angel that had been sent to save me from myself, she looked right into my eyes. “I need to know before we go any farther.”
“It’s a museum,” I said slowly. “An art mu?—”
“No, that’s not what I mean.” She finally let go of my hand, her expression growing wary as she stared up at me. “I mean this game we keep playing where we almost give this a shot and then something happens and we start all over.”
“It’s not a game to me,” I promised. “After multiple days of having either no contact with you or getting the cold shoulder, I know for a fact that my feelings for you never actually went away.”
“Maybe they didn’t, but you did,” she said softly, hurt tightening her features. “I think I keep pulling back because I know who will always have you and it’s not me.”
I frowned, not really sure where she was going with this. “I can’t be any clearer that Ashley means absolutely nothing to me.”
She sighed. “No, not Ashley. Your father.”