“It’s my final goodbye. I need to let it go.”
Val pulled out her phone, a sly smile on her face. “I’m looking.”
Meg tried to get the phone away, but Val pulled it back. “Aren’t you curious?”
“Nope.” Meg folded her arms. “Goodbye is just that. All done with him and his memories.”
Val gave her a flat look. “Really? After talking non-stop about him for the last six months? Just like that, you’re done?”
The smell of refried beans and cumin filled Meg’s nostrils as she breathed in. She slouched in the booth. “I have to let it go. I can’t go on hoping he’ll call.”
Val frowned as she fiddled with her phone. Then her eyes grew wide. “Holy cow.”
“What? How many?”
A laugh burst out of Val as she lowered her phone. “I knew you wanted to know.”
“Shut up. How many?”
“One hundred and fifty-six. But you just put it up.”
Meg stuck her tongue out at Val. She shrugged and tried to pretend that she didn’t care how many people had seen her video. She didn’t put it up for viewers. She put it up for closure. “Doesn’t matter.”
“Of course, it matters. It’s your way of coping with everything that happened.” Val fished through the basket for a perfect chip. She didn’t like the ones that were folded over. “I know you deny it, but I still say you’re holding a secret desire that Cade will call you.”
Val was right. Meg didn’t want to admit it. She felt stupid every time her heart stuttered at the sound of her cell phone. It was super pathetic to wish a successful rich guy would care about her. She had no money. No status. He was back to his high-profile life, and she just wasn’t a part of it.
Meg ignored Val and dipped another chip into the salsa. The least she could do was try to have fun with Val tonight, and bury her secret hope that Cade would hear her song and call her.
***
CADE LOOSENED HIS TIEand sat back in his chair. It felt good to be back at the office again. Finally. After all this time, he was settling into his old life. Things had changed, but he was getting used to the way his brother had been running the place. He’d even implemented a few good ideas.
Nicholas opened his office door and poked his head in. “You still here? I thought you left an hour ago.”
“I have some catching up to do. If you hadn’t noticed, I’ve been gone.” He tried to make the statement light by chuckling, but it came out a bit pathetic.
Nicholas walked into the office and shoved his fists in his pockets. “Have you called Meg yet?”
Why did his brother keep asking him that? Couldn’t he see he was struggling to piece his life back together? Cade drew in a breath and let it out slowly. “I can’t.”
“Of course, you can. You pick up the phone and dial.” His brother leaned against the desk. “You’re not being fair to her.”
“I’m sure she’s forgotten all about me by now,” he said under his breath.
“Why don’t you call and find out?”
Cade squinted at Nicholas. “What’s up? Why are you so persistent today?”
Nicholas rubbed the back of his neck. “She put a new video up yesterday. It’s getting a ton of hits. Maybe you should watch it.” He stood and left, shutting the office door behind him.
Cade had been following her on YouTube. She’d been posting covers of her favorite songs. He was glad she’d gotten her ukulele back from the police. Watching her play and sing was amazing. Cade knew she would be.
He clicked on her channel and stared as the woman he’d grown to love in just a few short days came on his screen. She’d cut her hair. It framed her face well. She looked at the camera, her amazing blue eyes almost swallowing him up. His pulse picked up just looking at her.
“Today I’m going to sing something a little different.” Meg shifted in her chair. “This is something I wrote. Something that comes from deep inside. I just need to get it out and let it go.”
Meg dropped her gaze and paused, closing her eyes to get into the song. And then she started strumming the ukulele. Her sweet voice followed.