“Let’s go back there. Now. It’s dark out; maybe that will help. Where are you?”
“I’m outside the art shop.” My words come out breathless.
Through the store window, Emmett gestures angrily.
I see Nina flinch. She draws her arms into her body, turns her face away, and squeezes her eyes shut.
I’ve done that.
I know that pose.
It’s what you do when you’re bracing to be hit.
“Lucy?” Ben says.
Emmett doesn’t hit her. He grabs both her wrists.
“Why are you at the art shop?”
“Because Emmett…” I trail off. I can tell that Emmett is holding Nina’s wrists too tightly. Tears are streaming down her face, and she’s trying to pull free of his grasp.
“He’s hurting her,” I say quietly. I should move. I should help.
“Emmett? Who’s he hurting?”
Nina breaks free. She bolts from the shop and practically dives into her car. I watch in the rearview mirror as it disappears around the corner.
A knock on the window makes me jump.
It’s Emmett.
And now I remember.
LUCY
FIVE YEARS AGO
“What the hell?” Savvy asked, squinting in the darkness.
I leaned forward. A truck was parked in the middle of the road. A tall figure stood in front of it. Savvy’s headlights caught his face.
Emmett.
She slowed to a stop, rolling down her window. She put a hand out like, What the hell?
Emmett walked over to my side of the car. I rolled down my window.
“Can I talk to you?” The words were breathless, a plea. I was having a hard time reconciling the Emmett I’d known since I was a kid with the version Savvy told me about. This Emmett had his fists clenched at his sides, his eyes wild and desperate as he looked down at me.
“Dude, now?” Savvy said, exasperated. “Can’t it wait until tomorrow?”
Emmett ignored her. “Please?”
I sighed, reaching for the door handle. “Sure. Savvy, it’s fine, Emmett can drive me home.” I looked at him for confirmation, and his face brightened. He nodded.
“No, it’s cool,” she said. “I can wait.”
She said it like there wasn’t room for argument, and I caught Emmett’s annoyed eye roll. I climbed out of the car and shut the door behind me. It smelled like rain, and it was actually a little cool for May.
Emmett walked away from the car, a few steps into the thick trees around the road. I glanced back. I could still see Savvy sitting in the driver’s seat, peering at us.
“I’m sorry, I know this is weird, but I had to talk to you.” He squinted, putting a hand up over his eyes. “She’s really not going to turn those off?” He stepped further into the trees, away from Savvy’s headlights.
“I probably shouldn’t have run away like that,” I said, following him into the trees. The moon was full, and Savvy’s headlights were still providing some light. I could see his face clearly. His eyes were wide, a little desperate.
“No, I shouldn’t have…” He trailed off, shaking his head. “I shouldn’t have kissed you. I got carried away. You just have to understand, Lucy, I’m crazy about you.”
I swallowed. Even if Savvy hadn’t just told me what she did, I didn’t think I would have reacted to this revelation with excitement. It was too hard to imagine anything after Matt.
I was a mess, and I didn’t need Emmett’s feelings on top of everything.
“I’ve been crazy about you, for years,” Emmett continued, oblivious. “I know that Matt is an asshole to you, and he’s cheating on you. You know that, right? That he’s cheating on you?”
“I know,” I said.
He took a step closer to me. “Leave him. Be with me. I love you. I’ve loved you since we were kids.”
He grabbed me around the waist and kissed me. It was sloppy, like he was trying to devour my face. I pushed him away.
“I can’t, I’m sorry.” I took a step back.
He immediately grabbed me again. “Yes, you can. I know you think that you have the perfect life in that house, but I know how unhappy you are. I know that you don’t actually love him. That you never have. I know you feel like you have to stay and project this image of the perfect wife, but you don’t. Let me help you.”
It was strange how he seemed to have taken a sliver of truth and crafted a whole narrative for me. A narrative where he could rescue me. I certainly was unhappy, but I had loved Matt. It was why I hated him so much. Because I’d been madly in love with him at one point, and he hadn’t beaten it all out of me yet.