After We Fall (Take the Fall, #3)(16)
“Yes.” I head for the door, waving as I go. “Bye.” As soon as I get in my car, I text Piper.
Me: Can you meet in thirty minutes? I got off work earlier than I thought I would.
Piper: Absolutely. Same place?
Me: Yes.
—
Piper is waiting for me at a table for two by the time I arrive at the Tea Shop. The smell of cakes and cookies in the small café reminds me of home. My momma would love this place.
“It’s so good to see you,” Piper says, rising to her feet to hug me. I try not to flinch, but my body tenses anyway. She lets go immediately and I feel like a loser for reacting that way. “Sit down and tell me about your new job.”
Trust Piper to not mention my behavior. I think it’s why she’s so good with people. She doesn’t push and she can tell when something makes them uncomfortable.
“It’s at Forrestville Animal Shelter—I started today.”
“Wow. That’s great!” She expertly pours two cups of tea and hands one to me. “I’m not sure how you take it, so you’ll have to add whatever you’d like.”
“Thanks.” Adding three cubes of sugar and then stirring, I stall for time, unsure if I should talk more about my job or get right to the point of why I asked her to meet with me.
After a couple of minutes of silence, getting right to the point wins out. “I need someone to talk to.”
Piper nods. “A professional, or would you like to talk with me?”
I shrug. “I’m not sure.”
“If you need more time to decide, that’s fine, but maybe, in the meantime, you can talk about what made you reach out to me?”
My face heats and I feel like a loser again for not texting her sooner. Although she never made me feel like I had to talk to her, she did make it clear that she wanted to be my friend. “I…uh…There’s this guy and he’s interested in me, but I’m not. Except my”—I draw circles with my hands, trying to find the right words—“parts of me are interested.”
“I see.”
Glancing around the room, I make sure no one is near us before I continue. “I’m not normal. I’m not acting like someone who’s been…hurt. I…One minute I want to run away from him and the next…I’m drawn to him, but I can’t trust myself.”
“Evangeline, there isn’t a right way to act. How you react to situations is the true or right way for you. Anyone who tells you any different not only is a liar but has no heart,” she says fiercely. “Just because they wouldn’t do what you do doesn’t mean it’s wrong.”
“I know, but…I’m out of sorts. Lately, and I mean like in the past two or three days, I’ve been laughing again. Smiling, making friends, I think. I’ve been hugged and touched, and, for the most part, I didn’t want to run away screaming.”
“That’s wonderful.” Piper’s eyes light up. “It means you’re getting healthy and not letting the past control your life.”
“The guy?” Piper nods. “He asked me to dinner, but I said no and that I wasn’t looking to get involved with anyone.”
“Nothing wrong with establishing your boundaries.”
Grabbing the napkin in front of me, I begin to knead it. “Except I wanted to say yes.”
“Nothing wrong with that, either.”
Frustrated, I blow out a breath. “You’re not helping.”
“You asked me to listen, not tell you what to do,” she points out, calm as ever.
“What would you do?”
She smiles. “If you want to be around this guy, then do it in a place that’s very public and casual. So casual that it’s almost a non-date, you know? No pressure, no expectations.”
“But what if I’m wrong about him?” My lower lip trembles and it feels as though the room is closing in on me. “What if the next guy I pick is worse than Penn?”
Piper’s forehead wrinkles, then smooths out as she tentatively touches my hand. Her skin is so hot…or maybe it’s that mine is so cold. “What if he’s not?” she asks gently. “What if he’s a man who is deserving of your time and attention?”
“That’s a lot of what-ifs.” I take a sip of my tea while trying not to cry.
“I wish I could say for sure what kind of man this guy is and ease your mind.”
“You already know him,” I whisper, tears on the verge of falling.
“Who?”
“Hunter Sloan.”
Her eyes close as she gives my hand a small squeeze. “Oh, honey, he’s a good man. Hunter helps people; it’s his job.”
I laugh, but it’s bitter. “That was Penn’s job, too.”
“I’m sorry, Evangeline.”
“For what? You didn’t pick a loser like I did.” I sit back in my chair. “That was all me. After I fell for him, there was nothing wrong he could do in my eyes.”
“That’s normal. That’s called falling in love.”
“I’m not in love with Hunter.”
“Who said you had to be?”
I shrug. “I don’t know.”
Piper brushes a strand of hair behind her ear. “I know you don’t trust yourself right now, but the only way you’ll learn to trust yourself again is by attempting to do the things that terrify you.”