Chapter 18 #2
Andrea groaned and pressed the palms of her hands to her eyes.
“You know what I mean. She’s clearly trying to sabotage my business for the sake of this pop-up shop.
Why else was she trying so hard to get me out of the bakery during these past few weeks?
I can’t believe I let her push me out. I didn’t even try to fight back!
I mean really, what was she gonna do? I could have—no, I should have—just gone in the next day like the whole stupid bet never happened. ”
Though, even as she said it, she knew she couldn’t fully regret the situation, seeing as how the break—misadvised though it may have been in hindsight—was what led her to Wes. But the thought of Wes was too painful and she quickly pushed it aside.
“I’m gonna go back to LA, tell Paige exactly what kind of a trash human I think she is, and then fire her.
I’ll call all of the corporate accounts and visit them myself if that’s what it takes, and then I will work every moment until two a.m. on Christmas morning if necessary to make sure everyone is satisfied. ”
“That sounds miserable,” Phantom replied in a casual tone.
“Yeah, maybe, but there are certain non-negotiables humans have to deal with,” Andrea said with a scowl in the cat’s direction.
“Marren probably works very hard to afford you the life of creature comforts you’ve become accustomed to.
I don’t have the luxury of someone else paying for my every need or whim.
I have to work for it. And besides that, it’s my business!
Mine! And sure, it hasn’t exactly been providing the satisfaction it once did, but that doesn’t mean I should just give it up or throw it to wolves like Paige. I’m going to fight for it.”
Phantom flopped onto his side and began grooming the long hairs on his stomach. “You go girl,” he said in between licks.
Andrea threw her hands in the air and was about to march back upstairs to resume her frantic packing, when there was a soft knock on the front door.
Crumpet, predictably, launched himself off the couch in a flurry of barks that she quickly tried to muffle for the sake of the neighbors on either side.
It was nearly midnight, after all, and every other house on the street had already gone dark.
“What in the world?” she muttered to herself, grabbing Crumpet by the collar to pull him aside while she peered through the curtains.
Wes stood on the front porch, bundled in his coat and gloves and a knit cap. He spotted her and lit up with a smile that threatened to splinter Andrea’s heart right in two before holding up a bottle of champagne to the window.
Crumpet, momentarily appeased, stopped barking and went to the front door, his curled tail wagging as Andrea opened it.
“What are you doing here? It’s so late!”
Wes stomped the snow from his boots before stepping inside. He patted Crumpet on the head with one gloved hand, the champagne bottle clasped firmly in the other. He smiled up at her and straightened. “I wanted to help you celebrate! I figured you were still up since the lights were on.”
He took a quick sidestep, allowing her to close the front door, and bumping into the packed suitcases. His dark brows furrowed together as he looked from the luggage to Andrea. “What’s this?” he asked, his words halting, as though he didn’t actually want to know the answer.
Andrea took the bottle of champagne and set it on one of the side tables near the sofa, backtracking several steps to put some space between them. She couldn’t be near him right now. If he tried to hold her or kiss her, it would completely unravel her resolve.
“I’m really sorry, Wes, I was going to call you tomorrow. I have to go back home early. I’m flying out in the morning.”
Wes’s brows lifted halfway to the brim of his knitted cap, which by the slightly uneven stitches was presumably one of Emma’s creations. “What happened? Is everything all right? Is it your mom?”
Andrea exhaled slowly, the pain in her chest growing more pointed and sharp. “It’s work. Something happened, and I have to get back before it gets any worse.”
Wes rubbed the back of his neck and continued frowning down at the two suitcases. The night was clearly headed in a completely different direction than what he’d expected when he’d headed across town minutes before.
“I guess I should’ve texted before coming over,” he said, offering a smile that fell flat. “But I wanted to surprise you. I bought the champagne a few days ago, actually. After our date at the lodge. I guess that was presumptuous.”
“No, Wes. It’s sweet. You’re honestly the most thoughtful man I’ve ever met.
” Andrea tried to smile or offer some encouragement but couldn’t muster up more than a stilted bob of her head, her gaze fixed on the bottle of champagne.
It wasn’t top-shelf, but it was also not something stocked in grocery stores.
He’d put thought into celebrating the milestone with her and it was sweet and romantic and more than she could have asked for, and yet …
it didn’t change the truth about the future.
The most painful truth being, there wasn’t one.
“I promise this isn’t about you, or us.”
Before she could stop herself, the whole story burst forth. She told him the truth about William and the affair and Paige’s betrayal, fresh emotion rising in her voice as she went.
Somewhere along the way she wound up in Wes’s arms, despite her resolve to keep space between them.
“That’s awful,” he said when she finished. “And this just happened?”
“I knew he’d had an affair,” Andrea clarified.
“But I didn’t know it was with my business manager.
And I didn’t know about the link between Paige and the pop-up bakery, although in hindsight it all makes a lot more sense.
” She breathed a dry, humorless laugh and laid her head against Wes’s chest. “In short, this is just about the worst time for me to have taken a vacation, and yet here I am, desperately not wanting to get on the plane tomorrow morning.”
Wes held her for a long moment, as though gathering his thoughts.
“I wish I knew what to say,” Andrea said, looking up at him.
He met her eyes, the color even darker in the low lighting.
“You have to do what’s best for you. I understand that.
But this doesn’t have to be the end. We can figure something out.
You were always going to eventually have to go home—this just moves things up by a few days,” he continued.
“And I guess with everything going on, we haven’t fully had a chance to decide what we wanted to do next—”
He trailed off, leaving space for her to pick up the conversation and offer her thoughts, but at that moment, Andrea’s thoughts felt too jumbled to fully parse. Her head and her heart were in two different places, and she couldn’t see a path forward that would satisfy them both.
“I just don’t want anyone to get hurt. You or me, and least of all, Emma.”
His jaw hardened as he nodded, emotion brewing in his eyes. “I know.”
“I’m sorry,” Andrea said, her nose burning. “I don’t know when this got so complicated.”
Wes chuckled softly and stroked her arm. “Well, I can’t speak for you, but the minute I saw you marching into the snow in your boots and those little pink shorts I was kind of done for.”
Andrea laughed. “Oh goddess. I’d almost forgotten about the shorts. What was I thinking?”
Crumpet wagged his tail, his doggy eyes going between the two of them. Wes held out a hand and the terrier trotted over, eager for attention. From across the room, Phantom made a scoffing sound, but Wes didn’t hear it.
Wes continued scratching Crumpet’s ears for a moment, then turned back to look at Andrea. “Listen, you’ve got a lot on your plate right now. What if we don’t make a decision at this moment?”
Andrea’s lips twisted to one side, bracing against another swell of emotion.
“I don’t know, Wes. As much as I want this—and you—” Her words broke off and she shook her head, fighting the tears.
“It just seems like we’d be putting off the inevitable.
Maybe we should just leave things here, and make it simpler. ”
Wes’s face fell and he tucked his chin. “I understand.”
Andrea wanted to take it back, to say it was all a mistake. To call the airline and cancel her ticket. The words almost made it to her tongue before Wes shifted and removed his arm from around her shoulders. He leaned forward, his elbows braced on his knees. Crumpet let out a low whine.
Wes patted the dog on the head, then shoved up to his full height. Andrea stood with him and took the front of his jacket in her hands, holding him still, her eyes searching his. “I’m sorry, Wes. I wish it could be different. But I—”
He smiled, the edges soft and sad. “You don’t have to apologize, Andrea. I’m just grateful for the time we had.”
“Wes.” The word was a whisper between them. Her eyes welled up as she tried to think of something to say, something—anything—to fix the pain in her chest.
Wes leaned down and kissed her softly, then brushed his thumb across her cheek as he pulled away. “Can I text you tomorrow and wish you a safe flight?”
A weak smile fluttered across her lips and she nodded. “Please do.”
He smiled. “Okay. And you hold onto that—” he said, gesturing toward the champagne bottle with his chin. “You earned it.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely. You’ll have to let me know when the book is available. Emma was already looking up your first two and asking if we could buy them.”
Andrea laughed softly. “I’ll send her a signed copy of each when I get home.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I know. I want to.”
Wes held her a moment longer, dozens of unspoken words passing between them. Finally, Wes stepped back and started to turn toward the door. “Goodbye, Andi.”
A tear slipped free as she nodded, her throat tight with emotion as she followed him out to the porch and watched him leave.
Crumpet let out a soft whine when she slipped back inside and the rest of the tears followed. “I know, Crumpy. Me, too.”