Page 71 of Little Gray Dress

“Not since Friday. Come on into my office, Emi. I want to chat with you for a moment.”

“Actually, Andy, I can’t—”

“I won’t take no for an answer.” He stands in front of me at his doorway.

I sigh with a nod. There is no way out. “OK. But I really only have a few minutes.”

“Perfect.” He walks to the chairs in front of his desk, sitting in one and motioning me to the other. “Jack made some mistakes with you.”

I feel myself nodding. Yes he did.

“I told him to do whatever he had to do to work it out, and he tried. He missed hours of work, came up with all kind of plans and ideas, and yet he always came back alone. It was heartbreaking to watch.”

“Andy, I—”

“Emi, Jack hasn’t been the same since the day you left. That May girl means not even half of what you did to him. She’s just a distraction, a replacement to take his mind off things. When he was with her it was like he was going through the motions, but his head was always somewhere else. I’m going to be honest with you, he’s not even the same lawyer he was since you broke up, but I’ve never had the heart to talk to him about it. I’ve been assigning him cases that don’t require a lot of deep thought, and sadly he hasn’t even noticed. That’s not the Jack we know and love.” He sighs and smiles at me sadly. “I love Jack like a son, you know that. He’s a broken kid.”

“I’m sorry,” I say. He’s not describing a Jack I know. The Jack I knew did everything he could to be successful at his job.

“I just want you to hear him with your whole heart, Emi. Don’t be so stubborn that you won’t at least allow him to prove he’s never moved on from you, despite the way it may seem. You two are a perfect match.”

“Thanks. I’m actually starting to hope you’re right.”

I watch as he stands from his chair. He nods towards the doorway with a grin. “You can go now.”

I nod at Andy and stand to leave. As I reach the doorway Andy says my name again, causing me to turn around. “Jack loves you more now than he ever has.”

“How do you know this?”

“He tells me every day he’s here. Every day since you left he comes in here for coffee, and we discuss ways he could get through to you and possibly bring you back home with him. Every. Single. Day. May was just a mistake to try and get over you. He never did though.”

“What?”

“He never really wanted her. He’s just gone through the motions, hoping that one day he’d be able to move on. But when you never showed interest I think he gave up.”

“Do you by chance know where he could be?” I ask him, hoping that since they’re so close maybe Jack called him.

“Unfortunately, I don’t. He was a man of very few words when he called this morning. Just said he needed a break.”

When he says this, I almost start to ugly cry right here in Andy’s office. It just hit me. The war is over. I love Jack.

“I gotta go.” I can’t stand here and talk about it anymore. I need to fix it. Even though I’m not sure how, or what exactly I’m fixing.

First things first, though. I have to deal with Liam.

When I walk into the bar, Liam is standing behind the counter wiping out cups. A smile spreads across his face, which makes my heart sink. The minute I left Andy’s office I knew what I needed to do.

“Hey there. How’s my favorite unlucky bridesmaid?”

“Liam… I wanted to talk to you.”

“Uh-oh. Sounds like we’re breaking up.” He winks at me before walking around the counter and taking a seat on one of the barstools. “I think you should do it.”

“What?”

“I saw the way he looked at you at the wedding. And when a man looks at a woman that way, especially after everything you two have been through, you should be with him.”

“You’re talking about Jack?”

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