Angels at the Table (Angels Everywhere #7)(41)

Lucie bided her time until her mother left. Then, gathering her resolve, she reached for her phone. Of primary importance was to find an excuse to keep Aren away. She needed to think, to absorb what she’d learned, figure out what to do.

Aren answered on the first ring and when he found out it was her, he said, “Hello. I was just on my way out the door.”

“I’m glad I caught you, then.” Lucie did her best to sound as though nothing was wrong.

“What’s up?”

In a flash, it came to her what to do. “I’ve been doing some thinking.”

Something in her voice must have betrayed her feelings because Aren suddenly went quiet. Lucie could hear the background noise. The sound of an elevator opening. The rushing sound of the doors closing and then nothing.

“Thinking about what?” he asked, sounding strained and uncertain, as though testing her.

“Us. When we met all those months ago, I told you that my life was crazy busy with the restaurant and all. The timing to get involved with someone couldn’t be worse for me. I realize now that nothing has really changed.”

“In other words you want to cool it.”

“Yes.”

He didn’t say anything for a long time and then in a soft voice, he asked, “You saw the article, didn’t you?”

“Yes.” She wasn’t going to lie to him.

“And now you hate me?”

“No.” Lucie could never hate Aren. “I … need to take a step back and reevaluate our relationship. You aren’t the person I thought you were.”

“You’re wrong, Lucie.”

“You were cruel and mean in the review you wrote about Heavenly Delights. Eaton Well isn’t a kind person … he thinks he’s being clever and he isn’t. He uses words to cut people down … what you wrote about Heavenly Delights was unjustifiable and—”

“I was honest,” he said, cutting into her short tirade.

“My cooking is that bad? You’re telling me that the effort and investment my mother and I put into this restaurant was a waste of time and that we deserve to fail?”

“I didn’t write anything even close to that.”

“You might as well have.”

He didn’t respond, which was just as well. Arguing the point would do no good.

“You didn’t answer my question,” she continued. “Tell me now and be truthful. Did the sole actually taste that bad?”

Again Aren hesitated as if looking for a way around the truth, his truth. “Everyone has an off day now and again.”

“That bad?” she repeated, louder this time, more insistent.

A heartbeat passed before he answered. “Yes, that bad.”

“I see,” she choked out. “That tells me everything.”

“Lucie, you’re being unreasonable and unfair.”

“I’m being unfair? Well, if that isn’t calling the kettle black I don’t know what is.”

“Okay, fine, if you don’t want to see me again—”

“You should have told me who you really are long before now,” she argued.

“I couldn’t. My contract doesn’t allow me to tell you outright, so I did the best I could. I was as honest as possible. I told you the only way I could by quoting you in my column. I knew the minute you read the review you would know. You can’t fault me for misleading you.”

He was right, and while she wanted to argue with him, she couldn’t. That didn’t change the fact that he was the man who’d been willing to ruin her and her mother’s investment. Lucie couldn’t overlook that.

“I understand that you did your best not to deceive me …” she began. That was key to him, she realized, because he’d been deceived by his wife. Nevertheless it didn’t alter the fact that he was who he was.

“But …” He said it before she had the chance.

“But it isn’t working, Aren. It just isn’t working.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“Excuse me?” she flared. Lucie hadn’t expected this to be easy. What she found difficult was the way he challenged her. She anticipated Aren would respond with angry pride and defend his actions. Instead he sounded reasonable and unruffled, making it all the harder to do what needed to be done.

“You heard me loud and clear. Our relationship is working and that frightens you. You’ve come to trust me and when I found fault with your cooking you couldn’t take the criticism.”

“You’re so off base it isn’t even funny.” This wasn’t about pride. The problem was she was falling for Aren and falling hard. The man she didn’t feel she could trust was Eaton Well and to discover they were one and the same made it necessary to reassess their relationship.

“I doubt I’m that far off base,” he returned, sounding completely unruffled. “You’re afraid.”

“Okay, I’m afraid. I’ll admit it.”

He paused as if he hadn’t expected her to own up to her own fears.

“What are you really saying, Lucie? Do you want to take a breather or do you want to cut off our relationship entirely?”

“I … think it would be best if we didn’t see each other.”