“I’m really not.” My heart pounded as I realized Ineededto convince her, but the only way to was to admit something ... terrifying.
“Dean, come on. You’ve been more than a stand-up guy this entire time. You’ve put your entire life on hold because of this, and I know you haven’t had the time to take care of other things. Let me do this for you.”
“I-I haven’t?—”
I needed to get the words out:I haven’t thought of anyone else. I think you might be it for me.But they were so weighed down with emotion that I couldn’t. After all of these years running from any romance, protecting myself from it, I didn’t know what to do.
Grace broke the silence. “You don’t have to pretend to be anything else for me. I know the kind of guy you are, Dean. Just call her. Who knows where it’ll go.”
The words hit me like a train. For a second, I could only stare at her and replay the words over and over again. Grace put the card in my hand with a small smile. I was so dumbfounded that I let her.
“You know the kind of guy I am,” I said quietly. “Right.”
She nodded once, got out of the truck, and went into the house. The card burned a hole in my hand.
The only person I wanted washer.I’d tried to play it off as friendship and deny it until the feelings went away, but they never had.
And now she’d made her feelings on it clear.
The feeling that burned through me was so painful that I thought I’d been stabbed.
I’d done everything I could to prevent feeling like this again. I’d tried to keep my distance, to keep it platonic.
And yet here I was.
There was no way I could go inside and pretend to be okay. There was no way I could brush this off when I’d done the one thing I told myself I would never do again.
I was in love with Grace Day.
And she’d told me she wanted me to find someone else.
“Fuck,” I muttered. I crumpled up the card and tossed it on the passenger seat. Later, I’d burn the damn thing. I’d burn it and then figure out how to burn thesefeelings too.
It was time to do what I should have done from the beginning. Leave. Get my head on straight, and then come back when these feelings were locked away like they should have been all along.
33
GRACE
Strawberry Springs Neighborhood Watch
Jade Clark:Hypothetically, is it illegal to drive around the square forever?
Comments:
Marjorie Brown:Like in circles?
Tammy Jane:Technically, it would be in a square.
SherriffMike Finch:Jade, don’t.
Jade Clark:I said hypothetically! It’s not like I’m trying to set a record or anything ...
Dean left the next morning.
He said that he needed to meet with someone back in the city. I had no idea if he meant Nashville or Knoxville.
I didn’t like the idea of either one. I didn’t like him being gone atall.