God, it’s good to talk to him again. When we’re together, the conversation just flows. It’s like we’ve never been apart. It can’t be like this with him and Olive. It can’t.
“I heard it’s going to snow this weekend,” I say.
“Oh yeah?” Joel rubs at the back of his neck. “Wow. That’s crazy.”
“Yeah, snow in November!”
“Yeah…”
I wonder if we’ll be living together again by Christmas. It’s not so bad living with Nonna, but there’s nothing like sharing a bed with the man you love. And one thing I can say for sure, now that I’m here with Joel, is that I still love him.
The waitress deposits my beer on the table. I take a long swig and get a nice, warm feeling through my whole body. This will be a night I’m going to remember. I’m sure of it.
“Listen.” Joel traces a line on the table with a stray droplet of beer. “The reason I asked you here tonight is…”
I lift my eyes, my heart leaping in my chest. Here it is. The words I’ve been longing to hear. “Yes…”
“It needs to stop.”
My eyebrows bunch together at his cryptic message. “What needs to stop?”
Joel lets out a long sigh. “Quit the games. I know what you’ve been doing. I spent all of yesterday cleaning up the mess you made.” He pauses. “I know it was you.”
I get a horrible, sinking feeling in my stomach. This isn’t what I expected at all. “Joel…”
“She called the police, you know.” He lifts his blue eyes now. There’s no love in those eyes anymore. How could I have been so stupid—again? He doesn’t want me back. Not when he’s got her. “I didn’t tell them your name. But if it happens again…”
“You’ll have me locked up.”
He rubs his temple with his fingertips. “That’s not what I want. I just want you to stop. Please.”
“Do you love her?”
I didn’t mean to ask him that. That’s the last question I wanted to ask. But now it’s out there, and I can tell from his face what the answer is.
“It’s early,” he says. “But… I think… yes. I do. I love her.”
He probably hasn’t even said it to her yet. But now that he’s saying it to me, he might tell her as well. I just helped move their relationship to the next level. You’re welcome, Olive.
“It’s over between us,” he says. “We weren’t right for each other. You’ve got to move on.”
That’s easy for him to say. He didn’t have to move in with his elderly grandmother. His life just keeps getting better and better.
“I want you to be happy.” He reaches out to almost touch my hand, but pulls away at the last second. “I really do. But it can’t be with me.”
“Is that why you got your buddy to ask me out?”
Joel blinks a few times. “What are you talking about?”
Either he’s telling the truth or he’s a fantastic actor. I study his face, searching for a flicker of jealousy. There’s none.
“Never mind,” I mumble.
I reach behind my chair, yanking my purse from where it’s hanging behind the seat. “I’ll leave you alone,” I say. “I won’t bother you again.”
Joel’s eyebrows bunch together. “Don’t be angry. Look, stay for dinner.”