Page 31 of Quake
“But you guys are tight now,” I said. “Solid.”
“Now were are,” she declared, leaning back in the chair. “It could’ve easily gone the other way. Point is, his reaction was to push me away, and I should’ve pushed right back, but all I saw was ‘too hard,’ and I turned tail and ran.”
“You think I should do the same thing with Juliette?”
She shrugged. “Dunno. Only you can make that call. I don’t know the woman.”
“But you know me.”
“Pfft,” she spat. “That’s debatable.”
“Why’s that?”
Ren laughed and nudged me with the tip of her shoe. “Looks like the cocky asshole I met all those months ago has a motherfucking heart. I was beginning to think it was closed for business.”
“So you thought I was only interested in you for one thing?”
She laughed and nudged me again. “You were.”
I grunted and rolled my eyes. Maybe she was right to a certain degree.
“Look, it’s obvious you’re searching for something orsomeone,” she said. “If you’re so torn up over her, then something’s going on under that hard-ass exterior.”
“It’s just… I can’t stop thinking there’s something there.”
“The only way you’re going to find out, is to jump in headfirst and try. There’s risk involved in everything. You could get burned, or you could burn her. Or it could be nice for a while, or it could be forever. No one ever found their soul mate sitting around fantasizing about it.”
“It’s complicated,” I began, wondering how much I should tell her. “She’s frightened of almost everything, but her determination…” I thought about everything Juliette had shared with me since that first day and realized she had opened up to me. More than I realized apparently.
“She mention why?” Ren asked with a frown.
“No, but she seems hell-bent on getting over it.”
“That’s good, then. What you’ve been doing together has obviously helped, right?”
I nodded.
“When’s she coming back?”
“Tomorrow,” I replied. “I think.”
“Youthink?”
“I walked her home last night,” I explained. “She almost had a panic attack at the thought of walking home in the dark, so I went with her. Left things a little…awkwardly. It’ll be a miracle if she comes back.”
“Then make sure she does,” Ren said with ahumph.
I was not impressing her today. Honestly, I wasn’t impressing myself.
I’d leaned in toward Juliette with the intention of kissing her, but at the last second, I’d pulled back. The look in her eyes…Fuck it.
“Call her, or text her. Do whatever you need to make sure she comes in tomorrow as usual.” Ren kicked me again to get my attention. “Then make sure you kiss her stupid before you send her home.” She began to laugh, a wicked gleam in her eyes. “If you send her home at all.”
13
Juliette
By the timeI rolled up for work the next day, I was bleary-eyed and heartsick.
