Page 13 of Catching Her Heart
"But this is just temporary, right? A little bump in the road? You'll work it out!"
I shake my head, feeling tears threaten. "I don't think so. Ted doesn't trust me anymore, and maybe he's right not to."
"That's ridiculous. Teddy adores you. I've never seen him so happy as he was these past few weeks."
"Well, he's not happy now," I say quietly.
Bridget looks stricken. "There has to be something you can do. Some way to fix this."
I think about the Chicago job offer, about the deadline that's looming. About how maybe it would be easier for everyone if I just disappeared.
"Actually," I hear myself saying, "I might be moving to Chicago. There's a job opportunity there."
Bridget's shopping bags hit the ground. "Chicago? But you can't leave! Ted would be devastated!"
"Ted won't even talk to me, Bridget. He made it pretty clear he doesn't want me in his life."
"He doesn't mean that. He's just stubborn. All the Brennan men are stubborn. But if you leave..." She looks genuinely panicked. "You can't go to Chicago. What about your job here? What about us? What about Ted?"
"Please don't tell him," I say quickly. "About Chicago, I mean. He won't even take my calls, and I don't want him to think I'm trying to manipulate him or make him feel guilty."
"But Piper?—"
"Promise me," I insist. "It's better this way. If he doesn't want me here, then maybe Chicago is where I belong."
Bridget looks like she wants to argue, but something in my expression must convince her. "I... okay. I won't tell him. But I think you're making a mistake."
"Maybe. But it's my mistake to make."
I hug her goodbye and walk away, leaving her standing there with her scattered shopping bags and her shocked expression. As I head back toward my car, I pull out my phone and scroll to the Chicago Tribune's number.
Maybe it's time to call them back and accept their offer. Maybe it's time to stop fighting for something that was never meant to be.
Behind me, I don't see Bridget pulling out her own phone, her promise to me already warring with her loyalty to her brother.
But I do know that if I'm going to leave Austin, I need to do it soon. Before I lose what's left of my heart completely.
CHAPTER SEVEN
I'm sittingin the coffee shop, staring at my laptop screen without seeing it. The cursor blinks mockingly at me from a completely blank document. I came here to write my resignation letter, but I keep getting distracted by memories. This is where Ted and I had our first real conversation. Where I became "butterfingers." Where everything started.
Mrs. Adams has been hovering, refilling my coffee cup every ten minutes and shooting me worried glances. I probably look as pathetic as I feel.
The bell above the door chimes, and I don't look up. I can't handle any more well-meaning customers trying to make small talk. But footsteps approach my table, and when I finally glance up, my heart stops.
Ted stands beside my table, still in his team polo, hair slightly messed like he's been running his hands through it. His eyes are intense, searching my face.
"I saw your car," he says quietly. "Can I sit?"
I nod, not trusting my voice. He slides into the seat across from me, the same seat where we shared hot chocolate and coffee just days ago. It feels like a lifetime.
"Bridget told me about Chicago," he says without preamble.
Heat floods my cheeks. "She promised she wouldn't?—"
"Don't be mad at her. She was crying when she called me. Said she couldn't stand by and watch me lose the best thing that ever happened to me." Ted's mouth quirks in a small smile. "Her words, not mine."
"Ted—"
