With a small back kick of his legs, he lifts his nose and clops away.
I’m going to take that as a morning greeting and not as another person screaming at me.
Making quick work of the lock, I let myself into the shop, flip on the lights, and take in the clean, white-walled space. We hung up the inside shutters and the pictures, giving the room a much more homey feeling. I’m still waiting on installing shelves, because we haven’t settled on merchandise. Before we go all in, we want to make sure the baked goods and new coffee choices attract more business.
At least, that was the general consensus. Now I have no idea.
I make my way from table to table, setting the chairs on the floor and putting out the little vases Rowan brought in the other day. I pause, realization dawning on me as I look down at the vase in my hand. He made these. He said he had them lying around. But what he meant was they were lying around his shed.
I look at the bottom of the vase. No signature, no indication that he was the one who made them, and yet they’re pristine. Beautifully shaped, with a red glaze that adds the perfect pop of color the space needs.
I should have asked him where they were from. I should have complimented them more. Then again, he probably wouldn’t have admitted he made them. Is that what he’s been hiding this whole time? The life he wanted to live but never got to?
Just as I set the vase down, the door to the shop opens and Dakota steps inside.
“Jesus, where have you been?” I ask, facing her. “Why didn’t you answer my calls and texts?”
She doesn’t respond. Instead, she crosses her arms over her chest, her stance defensive. I tense up, my gut telling me I’m about to be yelled at—again.
“Do you have something to tell me?”
I sigh. “Listen, Dakota, I really need a friend right now. Can we put whatever I did to make you mad on hold? I think Rowan just broke up with me and—”
“What did you say to Isla?”
So much for putting a pin in whatever I did. Nope, she’s addressing it right now.
“Uh, I’ve said a lot of things to Isla.”
“She told me she really appreciated the walk you guys took yesterday because you told her all about Isabella, and now she knows why I’m acting the way I’m acting.”
Oh, the walk.
“I didn’t say anything bad; I just told her about Isabella and how she was manipulative and vindictive. How you weren’t sure if you knew how to be in a same-sex relationship. How you’ve been confused.”
“Why would you tell her that?” Dakota asks, distress in her voice.
“She asked what Isabella did to you. What was I supposed to say?”
“Nothing. You were supposed to say nothing and then tell her that’s a conversation she should have with me.”
“What does it matter?” I ask, my brow furrowed. “It’s the same information, and clearly you weren’t telling her. It’s something she needed to know. She was worried about you. She said you weren’t clueing her in on anything.”
“Because I wasn’t ready to talk about it!” Dakota yells. “This isn’t easy for me, Bonnie. I’m still self-conscious from my relationship with Isabella, and finding my authentic self has taken a long time, but I’ve made strides. I was just starting to feel like this soul I’ve buried for years is starting to flourish, and then you had to go and do that.”
“Tell her to be patient with you?” I ask. “How is that hurting the situation?”
“You took my story away from me!” she shouts. “That is my story to tell, not yours. Now, instead of her coming to an understanding with me, listening to how I might talk about my past, she heard it from you, and it changes the narrative in her head. Instead of understanding . . . she pities me.”
“What? No.” I shake my head. “She doesn’t pity you.”
“And you don’t fucking know everything,” Dakota says, with such venom that I actually take a step back. I’ve never seen her this angry. “You weren’t there. You didn’t see the way Isla looked at me. You had no right to say anything to her.”
“I was just being a friend.”
“You have no idea how to be a friend.” Her words slap me across the face.
“Excuse me?” Anger sears through me. “I don’t know how to be a friend? You’re the one who’s never around when I need you.”
“Exactly, Bonnie. When you need me. What about when I need you? Have you even asked me how things are with Isla? Asked about the weekend? Have you even remotely thought about how this is my second female relationship ever and wondered if I’m doing okay? Have you listened when I say that some of the things you say to Isla embarrass me? No, because you’re too busy playing coffee shop and throwing yourself at Rowan.”