Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 99921 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99921 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
So it was good that Opal had called. She would give me the distraction I needed. “I’d love to join you. Thank you for thinking of me.”
“Great. Seven at the Laurel Lake Inn. Gotta run before the boss gets back and finds me on the phone again. He was particularly grumpy after hearing me talk to my mother about menopause this morning.”
I laughed. “I’ll see you then.”
After I hung up, I finished painting and washed the brushes. Then I shot off a quick response to Fox.
Josie: Sorry, I have plans tonight.
A response chimed before I could set my phone back down.
Fox: Are you upset with me?
Josie: Why would I be upset?
Fox: Because I fucked up Sunday.
I sighed.
Josie: You were only being honest. It is what it is.
Fox: Can I stop over later when you get home?
I needed to protect myself, even if I didn’t want to.
Josie: I think I’ll be too tired. Maybe another time.
Feeling glum, I tossed my cell on the table and decided to go out back and get some fresh air. The lake always brought me a sense of peace, and I really wanted to look for Daisy again. I’d checked every day since Sunday, and there had been no sign of her. This morning a cluster of ducks swam by, and I thought it might’ve been the group she’d joined, but I couldn’t be sure. I only knew Daisy’s markings.
After a while, with no sign of her again today, I gave up and went inside to get ready for dinner.
As I was about to leave, my cell phone rang. My pulse quickened, thinking it might be Fox. But it wasn’t. Noah’s name flashed on the screen. I ignored it, but after a minute it started ringing again. So I swiped to answer on speakerphone while starting the car.
“Hello?”
“Oh hey. I was expecting to go to voicemail again. I called a few minutes ago but you didn’t pick up.”
“Is something wrong?”
“No. I didn’t leave a message the first time because I figured it would give me an excuse to call back. But then I realized that was stupid and you would probably never answer when you saw my name, so I called back to leave a voicemail.” He paused. “It’s good to hear your voice, Josie.”
“What do you want, Noah?”
“Can I ask how you’re doing first? I’m guessing once I’ve said what I called to say you’re going to rush me off the phone.”
He was right. I regretted picking up the phone and having to talk to him this much already. “I’m fine. What’s up?”
Noah sighed. “I got an email reminder about the vacation we have booked next month—to Aruba.”
I’d forgotten all about that trip. “What about it?”
“It’s non-refundable.”
Other than being glad he’d been the one to put down the deposit, I wasn’t sure what he expected of me. “Okay…”
“I was hoping maybe we could still go. As friends. It would give us a chance to talk things through. We have a suite with a living room, so I could sleep on the couch, if you wanted.”
Is he serious? “There’s nothing to talk about, Noah.”
“We’ve never even had a civilized conversation about what happened.”
“You cheated on me. I caught you with your dick in a woman’s mouth. There’s nothing more to discuss.”
“I made a mistake. A big one. I miss you, Jos. Can’t we talk about it? I’ll do whatever you want to get you to forgive me.”
“It’s not about forgiveness, Noah. It’s about trust.”
“We can rebuild it.”
“No. We can’t. Trust is fragile, like a mirror. Once it’s broken, it’s shattered. Even if you put all the pieces back together, you always see the cracks. It’s never the same. Besides, I’ve learned a lot about myself over the last few months. And I don’t think we were as good of a fit as I made myself believe.”
“That’s not true. We were perfect together.”
It made sense that Noah thought that. I’d never given him any indication that I wasn’t happy before that night in the hospital parking lot. And truthfully, I’d thought I was happy too. But being in therapy and spending time with a man who asked me what I wanted had made me realize I was selling myself short. In a weird way, I was grateful Noah had cheated. Otherwise, I might have settled.
“I have to run. You should use the trip. Go by yourself and do some reflecting.”
“I’m not going without you. I’d be miserable. You can go alone, if you want. I still have your passport. You left it here when I was booking everything.”
I shook my head. “I’m not going to go either, Noah. But I do need my passport.”
“I’ll mail it to you, with the itinerary for the trip, in case you change your mind.”
“I’m not home.”
“I know. You still share your location with me on your iPhone. You don’t know how many times I’ve been tempted to get in the car and drive down to Forty-Six Rosewood Lane to talk to you.”