by Noelle Adams
“I don’t have—” He stopped himself before he completed a lie.
There was no way to deny it.
A broken heart was exactly what he had.
“Maybe it was just too soon for her. Maybe she just needs some time. You can be patient, can’t you?”
“Of course I can be patient.” His voice was too rough, but he couldn’t control it. “I could wait however long—but that’s not the issue. She doesn’t want me. She doesn’t even like me.”
“I don’t believe that. I can’t believe that. You wouldn’t have fallen for a woman who doesn’t even like you. You’d know the difference.”
He thought he had, but evidently he was far stupider than he’d ever believed. “I thought we were... getting closer. But I was wrong. She said... She was so angry with me. She said I was cold and selfish. That I only thought about myself. That I could never go deep.”
He didn’t mean to say that much, but the words came out as the memory of Liz’s lovely, bitter face slammed into him.
His mother was silent for a minute. Then her voice was very careful as she asked, “Did she know you were trying to go deep?”
“I... I told her. Everything.”
“And she didn’t believe you?”
He rubbed his face with his hands and tried to clear the painful blur of his mind. The conversation had been so traumatic that the details of it were obscured behind a dark cloud.
She’d been angry about Charlie and Jane, but Vince had been convinced he was helping his friend in his advice. A relationship for financial reasons—real feelings only on one side—wasn’t going to make either of them happy. But Liz had implied Jane had really cared about Charlie, so maybe Vince had been wrong.
And Liz had said more than that.
“She said I took away what she wanted most,” he said in a hoarse whisper, staring blankly at the old wall clock on the opposite wall.
“What did she mean?”
“I don’t know.” He groaned and closed his eyes. “I have no idea. She just hates me. I haven’t been perfect, but I can’t believe I deserve that.”
His mother didn’t respond.
After a couple of minutes, the silence started to feel significant, so he focused his gaze on her. Her face revealed nothing but thoughtful sympathy.
“You think she’s right,” he said at last. “You think I do deserve it.”
“How would I know? I have no idea what happened. But we both know how difficult close relationships have been for you. I know you’ve been working on it. I know you want to do and be different. But I think it’s possible that you started the relationship in your normal way, and you perhaps didn’t give her enough indication that your feelings changed.”
Vince stared at her, clarity hitting him hard.
Of course that was what had happened. He’d been selfish and arrogant and superficial from the beginning with Liz—exactly as she’d told him. He’d changed. Everything had changed. But maybe she didn’t know that.
He hadn’t opened up to her soon enough. How the hell was she supposed to know that he’d always wanted more than sex from her?
“You see what I mean, don’t you?” his mother asked, patting his arm again in a comforting gesture. “That what was going on in your heart wasn’t clear to her in your behavior.”
He blew out a long breath and nodded. “Yes. I see what you mean. I guess I blew it.”
“Maybe, but why does it have to be forever? Maybe you can talk to her again. Make things clear.”
“No. It’s too late. I blew it for good. She left absolutely no room for anything else.” His voice broke on the last word, and it was embarrassing.
He wasn’t normally like this.
He didn’t like being this way.
But he was helpless against the way he was feeling right now.
“Okay. I wasn’t there, so you probably know better than me. I just know that relationships are rarely that simple. And what feels final in one moment sometimes ends up being the moment that reroutes you to the future.”
He started to object but stopped himself. His mother was trying to help. And the truth was the words did make him feel a little better.
“Okay. That’s enough deep talk for now.” Her voice was lighter now, almost breezy. “Let’s talk about something else. I’ve got some good news.”
“What’s that?”
“I’ve made some calls over the past few days, and I’ve sold all the Edwards pieces in private deals. Remember those pieces you picked up the other day?”
“Really? That’s great.” He tried to sound encouraging, but he hardly tracked what she was saying. At the moment, business meant very little to him.
“It is. And we’ve made more than $50K in commission, so you should be pretty happy about that.”
That got his attention. “You’re kidding. That’s amazing. I didn’t even look at the stuff we picked up from the house. What all was it?”
“They were really amazing antiques. The kind of pieces that are really hard to find outside of high-end auctions. There was a fine Victorian bureau and an Edwardian grand piano and the loveliest tabletop chest and—”
Vince jerked as a sliver of recognition stabbed through his exhausted brain. “What? What did you say?”
“What do you mean, what did I say?”
“A tabletop chest?”
“Oh, yes. It’s gorgeous and incredibly rare—with birds and butterflies painted on the top.”
Vince made a choking sound. “What did you say the man’s name was who sold them?”
“Howard Edwards. He’s in his nineties and has been holding on to those pieces for decades now, even though dealers have been pounding down his door trying to get them. I think I just caught him at the exact right time, so he sold them to me. What on earth is the matter?”
Vince felt cold, like the color had drained from his face. “Oh God. Oh God! No wonder she hates me so much.”
“What do you mean?” His mother looked almost panicked now. “You look like you’re going to pass out.”
“She told me... That chest, she told me it was her favorite thing in the whole world. I had no idea it was one of the pieces. I hadn’t put the names together. Oh shit, is there any way to get it back?”
“It’s too late now. I’m so sorry, Vince. The deal is finalized. But this is good news, isn’t it? It’s all just a misunderstanding. Just explain you didn’t know. If it was just a misunderstanding, then maybe you can—”
“She doesn’t want to talk to me. And there was a lot more to it than a misunderstanding.”
“Maybe so. But you can at least explain about the chest. I’m so sorry if something I did messed things up for you. But surely she’ll forgive you if you explain you didn’t know about it.”
“I doubt she’d even talk to me.”
“Then you have to make her hear you. Why don’t you write her a letter?”
“A letter?”
“Yes. A letter. That way, it won’t matter if she doesn’t want to sit still and have a conversation with you. You can explain anyway, and she’ll have to hear what you tell her.”
Vince couldn’t believe he was considering writing a letter to a woman he loved, but he had to do something. He had to make sure Liz didn’t think he was such a heartless asshole as to go behind her back to acquire the piece she loved the most.
To take it away from her.
It might not change anything else, but he couldn’t live with her thinking that about him.
So he gave a mute nod and dug in a drawer for a piece of paper.
His mother quietly left the office.
THAT EVENING, LIZ FOUND a letter on the floor of her entryway. It had obviously been slipped under the front door.
She frowned as she leaned down to pick it up, her expression deepening when she saw the word “Liz” scrawled on the otherwise blank, sealed envelope.
She’d never seen Vince’s handwriting, but she knew without doubt it was from him.
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She’d been going through the past few days in an exhausted daze, crying herself to sleep at night but trying to act normal during daylight hours.
One thing was clear to her now.
She’d evidently fallen in love with an asshole.
It was horrible. Humiliating. Didn’t make any sense.
But even smart people were occasionally stupid.
She’d eventually get over it.
She hadn’t seen Vince since their encounter in the hall on Saturday morning, and she’d been hoping to avoid him for as long as possible. It wouldn’t be forever. She just wanted to recover emotionally before she confronted him again so she could present a cool, controlled demeanor and prove that he didn’t mean as much to her as he thought.
God, what a fool she was.
He’d said he was falling in love with her.
Surely he couldn’t have meant it. Not after he’d done what he’d done.
Even a man couldn’t be so clueless as to think she’d forgive and forget the way he’d treated her, Charlie, and Jane, just because he’d abruptly declared his love.
She stared down at the closed envelope for a long time, standing in front of the front door.
She didn’t want to hear what he said. She didn’t want to hear anything from him ever again.
But things didn’t feel settled. They didn’t really make sense. There were a lot of loose ends that were driving her crazy, making her think she didn’t have the full story and giving her loopholes of hope.
She couldn’t keep going on that way. If this letter provided any clarity, then she needed to read it.
She needed to know.
She went to sit down on the sofa and ripped open the envelope.
She was breathing raggedly as she unfolded the piece of paper and read.
Liz,
I’m not writing to ask you to change your mind. I know what we had is over for good. But I wanted to explain two things so you have the whole story. Even if we can never be together again, I can’t stand for you to think so badly of me. First Charlie and Jane. I realize you think I was interfering when it wasn’t my business, but Charlie is my friend, and I want him to be happy. I overheard part of a conversation that sounded like Jane was mostly interested in his money. Then I watched carefully, and as far as I could tell, Charlie was the only one with real feelings. He’d already been through a painful relationship, and I didn’t want him to get hurt that way again. I thought Jane wouldn’t be happy with a man she didn’t love even if he happened to have money. If I was wrong in this, I am sorry. It sounded like, from what you said, that she did have real feelings. I didn’t know that, and I just wanted the best for my friend. I hope you can understand that even if you don’t agree with what I did.
The other thing is the tabletop chest from Howard Edwards. Please believe that I had absolutely no idea my mother was acquiring it and the other antiques. She told me she’d gotten some pieces from a Mr. Edwards but didn’t tell me what they were, and I was distracted with other things and didn’t pay attention when I brought the paperwork over for him to sign. I didn’t connect the name with what you’d told me. I never would have gone ahead with the deal had I realized what it included. I’m so sorry about the whole thing. My mother has already finalized the deal to sell the chest to a private collector, so I can’t even give you the chance to buy the chest from us. I realize how much this must hurt you, but I hope you’ll believe I never would have done it knowingly. I didn’t understand why you were so angry when we talked, but I understand now.
I’m sorrier than you can know.
That’s all I wanted to say. I won’t bother you again. But I hope you won’t hate me quite so much as you did before, now that you know the whole story.
Vince
Liz was sobbing when she got to the end of the letter.
The missing pieces of the story were now in place, and everything made much more sense.
Vince hadn’t been trying to hurt her. He hadn’t been selfish and heartless. He’d bumbled around a bit, but so had she. He’d evidently developed some real feelings for her.
And she’d still lost him for good.
It was almost worst now. It was easier when she could be genuinely angry with him. Now she was left with an overflowing mess of feelings that had absolutely no channel but tears.
She’d yelled at him for nothing.
She’d been wrong.
She’d been stupid.
She could have had him—had she listened, had she not immediately blown her top, had she not been so set on not letting him win even a single round—since his declaration of feelings was evidently sincere.
But the letter had offered no hope for a reconciliation.
She’d lost her chance with him.
She hadn’t stopped crying a half hour later when Jane came in through the front door, running over as soon as she saw her sister. “Liz, what on earth is the matter?”
Liz sniffed and gasped and couldn’t get any words out. She finally offered Jane the letter.
Jane read it and then slowly lifted her head. “You never told me anything was going on between you and Vince.”
“I know. It wasn’t supposed to mean anything.”
“But it does?”
“It does. I think I... I think I...” Liz almost choked as the realization hit her.
“You love him?”
Liz nodded. “I don’t know how it happened. It’s too late now. It sounds like it’s too late. But you see what he says about Charlie. So maybe there’s a way to at least salvage that if you talk to Charlie.”
Jane let out a long breath. “I don’t know.”
“Yes, you do. You’ve got real feelings for him. He might be the one. You need to tell him that. Vince’s letter makes it clear that Charlie had real feelings for you too. Promise me you’ll talk to him. Promise me.” Liz mopped at her face. Even if she couldn’t be happy in love, she’d make sure her sister would.
Jane held her eyes for a long moment before saying, “I’ll do it. I’ll talk to Charlie if you’ll talk to Vince.”
“But—”
“But what? There’s nothing in this letter that says his feelings have changed. Both of you messed up. Why on earth can’t it be fixed? So I’ll talk to Charlie if you’ll talk to Vince. That’s the only way I’ll do it.”
Liz made a face at her sister, but her heart had sped up to a gallop. “Okay. Fine.”
“Good. But both of those conversations will have to wait until tomorrow. Mom and Dad need us at home.”
“What do you mean? What’s going on?”
“I don’t know. But Riot has been crying for two days now, and she won’t come out of her room. Mom called and says she needs us to come over to help figure out what’s wrong with her.”
“Oh my God!” Liz groaned. “The last thing we need to be doing right now is messing around with Riot and her hysterics.”
“I know. But what other choice do we have? Mom sounds desperate. Riot must have made a mess of something, and we’ll have to try to fix it. What else is new?”
VINCE DIDN’T SLEEP at all that night.
He kept imagining scenarios of how Liz might have read his letter. What she might have thought. What she might do now.
He tried not to hope for impossibilities, but it was hard not to feel a flicker of it. Maybe once Liz knew the truth, she wouldn’t hate him so much. Maybe she’d want to give him another chance, no matter how much he’d messed up.
Surely it wasn’t completely out of the bounds of possibility.
He’d been so sure they’d had the beginnings of something good. Special.
Could he have been so pathetically wrong about the whole thing?
So he tossed and turned all night, his ears tuned for a knock on the door, any sign that Liz might be coming over to talk to him.
She didn’t.
He got up early the following morning and got dressed to go to work since he couldn’t sit around doing nothing and wa
iting any longer. When he headed down to the parking lot at six thirty in the morning, he realized his hopes for Liz to come over to talk to him last night had been futile.
Her car wasn’t even here. She hadn’t spent the night at home.
Maybe she was with another guy.
It wasn’t likely, but even the faint possibility nauseated him.
She was free. She was allowed. But he couldn’t stand the thought of her with anyone but him.
His eyes ached, and his stomach ached, and his head ached, and overall he was in a very bad mood when he got into the store.
His mother was always there early so she could sort through new inventory and redo displays. She greeted him cheerfully but didn’t push when he answered with only a grunt.
He tried to distract himself with the monthly budget for an hour, but it didn’t really work.
He was staring blindly at his computer in what was becoming a habit for him when his mother opened the office door. “Vince?”
“Yeah.”
“There’s someone here to talk to us.” His mother looked and sounded worried, and he didn’t understand why.
He leaned back to look beyond her and jumped to his feet when he saw Liz.
Liz.
She looked pretty and pale and red-eyed, her hair pulled into a messy ponytail.
His heart leaped in his chest. She was here. Maybe she didn’t want things to be over either.
Maybe there was hope after all.
“Oh. Okay.” He stood like an idiot.
Liz’s face twisted. “I... I need to talk to both of you.”
Vince blinked. That didn’t sound right. It couldn’t be what he was hoping. What did she need to talk to his mother about?
“Of course,” his mom said, gesturing Liz into the office. She still looked worried, as if she’d sensed that something bad was about to happen.
She had better intuition than Vince did. He was nothing but a blank. He sat down with a thud in the desk chair while Liz and his mother took the side chairs.
Liz’s posture was very straight, and she took a minute to visibly compose herself. She was really upset. So upset she could barely hold it together.
If anything was true about Liz, it was that she was always in control.