could laugh, joke, flirt or whatever.
Now I sat there staring at the message and wondering if he was the one that shared details about me. I contemplated whether or not I could talk to him anymore. I tried to figure out if this was destroying us or if I’d even known what kind of man I was dealing with. After all, I’d have never expected him to use the media and my personal problems as ammunition to win his design.
Lexi…
I miss when you were just Nick.
Wow. So you aren’t happy with us actually being in each other’s life?
I miss being able to talk. I want to be able to confide in the person that became my friend. Now you sit there as my enemy in the business world.
I’m not your enemy Lexi. I will never be your enemy.
Funny, it sure feels like it.
I didn’t know…
Which part Evan? That the article was going to make me look incompetent? That they would quote you saying nothing else matters? Maybe that I’d sit here wondering how they knew something I’d only told you?
I didn’t tell a soul. I never shared your situation with anyone.
I wish I could believe you.
You don’t?
No. I don’t.
Lexi….do you not trust me?
I’m not sure I can anymore.
Okay??
I’ve spent all this time trying to decide what’s the most important. Our relationship or this development. It seems you already knew the answer.
Why can’t we have both?
Because you feel the need to destroy one or the other and I seem to be the final decision.
What do you want Lexi?
For you to leave me alone Nick or Evan or whoever you are.
For good?
I don’t know…I guess until the good of this outweighs the bad. If that ever happens.
I’m sorry.
It was the last thing he said to me before logging off. He was sorry. The problem was that it was too late to apologize for what had already happened. I’d spent my afternoon dodging texts from Society members. They’d scheduled a meeting for the following day. A lunch meeting because they had to scramble and get people out to the event being held by Evan’s company.
I damn well knew that they’d demand an answer from me. Them or him. And I would have to make that choice. It didn’t seem like it should be so hard considering the decisions that he had been making. But, it was harder than I’d hoped. I didn’t want to lose him.
Until he’d messaged me as Nick I had forgotten how much I really enjoyed him being in my life. Of course he hadn’t even tried to fight me. I’d told him to leave me alone and he’d just left. That didn’t say much for our relationship.
I sent a quick message agreeing to the meeting and also to going to the event. I had to prove myself again and that was going to take some serious work.
After feeling sorry for myself for a while I decided to get dressed and head back to the shop. I needed my best friend and I also had to get it set up to close for the day the following day.
It would be about time for Mrs. Whipple to make her weekly stop for treats and I thought maybe the friendly visit would do me some good. Seeing the look of respect on a member of the community’s face would help me to see why I did what I did.
I didn’t expect what I saw when I walked up to the shop. Mrs. Whipple was there. So were about forty other people. They were all standing outside with signs and yelling things about me and my shop.
“You should be ashamed of yourself!” The older woman yelled as she saw me.
“Decided you prefer the damned Yankees to us?” A man shouted.
“Stop buying from traitors!” Another man yelled at passersby.
I couldn’t believe my eyes. They were picketing my business. Because of a newspaper article. Because of Evan. I was being ousted from the community because of a condo that none of them were actively fighting against. Yet I was.
Slipping by them I walked inside and locked the front doors. Business was closed for the day. Possibly for a while.
Now I sat there staring at the message and wondering if he was the one that shared details about me. I contemplated whether or not I could talk to him anymore. I tried to figure out if this was destroying us or if I’d even known what kind of man I was dealing with. After all, I’d have never expected him to use the media and my personal problems as ammunition to win his design.
Lexi…
I miss when you were just Nick.
Wow. So you aren’t happy with us actually being in each other’s life?
I miss being able to talk. I want to be able to confide in the person that became my friend. Now you sit there as my enemy in the business world.
I’m not your enemy Lexi. I will never be your enemy.
Funny, it sure feels like it.
I didn’t know…
Which part Evan? That the article was going to make me look incompetent? That they would quote you saying nothing else matters? Maybe that I’d sit here wondering how they knew something I’d only told you?
I didn’t tell a soul. I never shared your situation with anyone.
I wish I could believe you.
You don’t?
No. I don’t.
Lexi….do you not trust me?
I’m not sure I can anymore.
Okay??
I’ve spent all this time trying to decide what’s the most important. Our relationship or this development. It seems you already knew the answer.
Why can’t we have both?
Because you feel the need to destroy one or the other and I seem to be the final decision.
What do you want Lexi?
For you to leave me alone Nick or Evan or whoever you are.
For good?
I don’t know…I guess until the good of this outweighs the bad. If that ever happens.
I’m sorry.
It was the last thing he said to me before logging off. He was sorry. The problem was that it was too late to apologize for what had already happened. I’d spent my afternoon dodging texts from Society members. They’d scheduled a meeting for the following day. A lunch meeting because they had to scramble and get people out to the event being held by Evan’s company.
I damn well knew that they’d demand an answer from me. Them or him. And I would have to make that choice. It didn’t seem like it should be so hard considering the decisions that he had been making. But, it was harder than I’d hoped. I didn’t want to lose him.
Until he’d messaged me as Nick I had forgotten how much I really enjoyed him being in my life. Of course he hadn’t even tried to fight me. I’d told him to leave me alone and he’d just left. That didn’t say much for our relationship.
I sent a quick message agreeing to the meeting and also to going to the event. I had to prove myself again and that was going to take some serious work.
After feeling sorry for myself for a while I decided to get dressed and head back to the shop. I needed my best friend and I also had to get it set up to close for the day the following day.
It would be about time for Mrs. Whipple to make her weekly stop for treats and I thought maybe the friendly visit would do me some good. Seeing the look of respect on a member of the community’s face would help me to see why I did what I did.
I didn’t expect what I saw when I walked up to the shop. Mrs. Whipple was there. So were about forty other people. They were all standing outside with signs and yelling things about me and my shop.
“You should be ashamed of yourself!” The older woman yelled as she saw me.
“Decided you prefer the damned Yankees to us?” A man shouted.
“Stop buying from traitors!” Another man yelled at passersby.
I couldn’t believe my eyes. They were picketing my business. Because of a newspaper article. Because of Evan. I was being ousted from the community because of a condo that none of them were actively fighting against. Yet I was.
Slipping by them I walked inside and locked the front doors. Business was closed for the day. Possibly for a while.
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