Shit. Nobody ever said swallowing your own ego was easy.
揈liza, I was a jackass,?I say, stepping forward.
揑 know. I抳e got a new brew, though. Would you like a taste, Mr. Lancaster??
I抎 like a taste, all right, but not of that stupid coffee.
I抦 also not sure what she抯 playing at with this non-response.
揝ure,?I say cautiously, stopping near her side.
I wait while she ladles it into a small cup and passes it over. 揕et me know how you like it. It抯 a Hawaiian blend with sixty percent Kona beans, forty percent Sumatra. For the next Wired Cup line, theoretically, though I抦 not sure if that抯 economical.?
I blow on it for a second and take a drink.
As usual, what starts as a flavorful cup of joe explodes across my tongue, revealing delicate layers of macadamia nut, coconut, and something fruity.
揋ood. It抯 not as delicate as the peaberry blend, but it definitely tastes like Kona.?
揑抦 glad you think so.?She kills the grill, picks up the pot, and walks across the lab to the sink.
I follow her. 揧ou抮e not going to make this easy, are you??
揗ake what easy, Cole? I don抰 even know what you抮e doing here if it isn抰 checking out the latest products.?
揑 came to apologize,?I growl. Isn抰 it obvious?
揑抦 listening.?She dumps the coffee without looking at me.
揑 hate that I freaked out on you, and I抦 sorry. Aster抯 death is a sore spot. There are still a lot of questions about what happened then, and part of the reason I haven抰 told you much about it is because I抦 not even sure what I know. I hired a PI recently棓
揥hen??She faces me for the first time since I walked in, her eyes slits.
揥hen we were in Hawaii,?I say flatly.
She frowns, her face screwing up with confusion.
揓esus. Is that supposed to make me feel better??
揇on抰 know what you mean by that. I planned to tell you everything as soon as I had the right answers. Hell, I made peace with that before our flight back.?
Her face relaxes. 揥ell, thank you. When were you planning on having this conversation??
揘ot soon enough, obviously. Eliza, it抯 no excuse for how I talked to you yesterday棓
揧ou抮e right. It抯 not, but that抯 not even what I抦 upset about.?
I cock my head, staring at her, unsure where she抯 going.
揑 told you I wasn抰 mad,?she says with a sigh. 揧ou lost your wife. Tragically. People don抰 just do a cartwheel and bounce back from that. But I棓 She turns her head away from me. 揑 fell for you hard, Cole. Like really hard. I抦 not mad at you when it抯 not your fault梑ut I can抰 just be a rebound.?
揜ebound??I spit the putrid word. 揈liza, you are not my fucking rebound.?
She meets my eyes. 揃ut you抮e not over her or the past. You still have one foot stuck there, and one in the present. Any relationship you have like that feels doomed to be a rebound…？
揝o you抮e a relationship shrink now? Didn抰 see the medical degree on your resume.?I snort, shaking my damn head. But she抯 still staring at me with those wide, glistening brown eyes as soft as melted chocolate. 揧ou remember the hammock??
揕ike I could ever forget,?she whispers.
揑 asked you to trust me. I promised not to let you fall. I was as good as my word, wasn抰 I??
She nods slowly, rinsing her pot.
揑t was lovely, but I don抰 see your point,?she says. With her back turned, she walks over to the grill and dismantles it, putting her tools away.
揥e抮e on a hammock now, Eliza. I need you to trust me again. I promise you I抣l drop off a cliff before I ever let you fall.?
She looks at me with her lips drawn tight.
揧ou抮e on a hammock, Cole. I抦 walking a tightrope with you.?
Damn.
My jaw tenses and I work my brain, trying to find the right combination of words to patch what was once such a happy road we tread together.
揑f the hammock broke, what do you think would抳e happened??I ask.
揥e would have hit the rocky ground and it would have sucked.?
揊or me, yeah. I had you positioned so you抎 land on me if anything collapsed. I wouldn抰 have let you get hurt桰 would抳e taken the blow梐nd it抯 the same now.?
揋o ahead then,?she says quietly.
I sigh. 揑 know I fucked up. I shouldn抰 have gone off and made you feel like an outsider, an intruder, whatever. You抮e nothing close to that. You抮e way too important. Anything that matters to Destiny and me matters to you, sweetheart. And I hope anything that matters to you also matters to me.?
揂nd the hiding? The Mr. Smith fake out??
揑抦 going to HR next week as promised. You抮e right. I told you I抎 handle it, and I抣l make good on my word. But if I have a talk with HR, can you handle a conversation with me??