Page 17 of Vengeful Seduction
There were five of us, including myself and Joan. We were all nurses and all on our lunch break at a local restaurant. This was something we often did, and for me, it was some of the only social time I got.
It was hard to be a nurse. The hours were long and it could be hell on relationships. The only person who could really understand a nurse, I firmly believed, was another nurse.
“Sorry.” I blushed, sort of hating myself for it. I didn’t usually blush, but I’d gotten caught thinking about David again.
David. I had misjudged him so horribly. Luckily, he didn’t seem to hold it against me.
“Oh my God,” one of the other nurses, Angela, spoke up next. “You met someone! Finally!”
To my embarrassment and their amusement, I colored up even more. I’d been around girl talk before, of course, but I’d never been the subject of it. More of an outsider, listening in.
“No, it’s nothing like that,” I protested, but I could see they weren’t buying it. And it wasn’t the way they were thinking. The situation was far too complex, but knowing they would bother me until I told them, I started to talk.
I told them about the money, about how it had all been left to me, and about how I didn’t even know what to do about it. I told them everything, right up until the day David had stormed out of the lawyer’s office.
It was good to say it all. Get it all out of my head. I could trust these women, each and every single one of them, and I knew that. As I was slowly processing the whole situation, it definitely felt nice to say the words and to know I had their support.
They weren’t as excited as I would have thought, though. Oh, they were happy for me and I could tell it was genuine, but honestly, they seemed more worried about David than I would have thought.
“So he calls you names, storms off, and then comes back later? What stopped him from being upset over the money in the meantime?” Joan asked, her voice strangely cautious.
“No, no. It wasn’t like that. I know what you’re thinking—that he’s just after the money, but …” I forced a deep breath into my lungs. How to explain to them? I didn’t want them disliking David for any reason, not with everything he’d already been through. “He doesn’t even seem to want the money.”
I saw four sets of skeptical eyes fixed on me and four pairs of eyebrows raised, and I knew none of them believed that it was possible.
“He’s been through so much.” I could hear the passion in my own voice, and I just had to hope they would hear it too and believe me. “His mom left him, his dad died, and then his grandpa passed too. He has no one.”
The four other women exchanged glances, and Angela was the one who finally broke the silence. “He was so terrible to you. Why is he suddenly being so nice? Your heart is so big, but maybe sometimes it wouldn’t kill you to not think the best of people all of the time.”
I bit my lower lip. What they were saying made sense, but somehow, I didn’t believe it. I couldn’t believe David was lying. Not unless he was a far better liar than anyone I’d ever met before.
“He doesn’t need the money. He’s gorgeous, young, and he’s already wealthy.”
All of the girls sat up to take notice of my comment and I winced. I’d said just a little bit too much and there was no way I was going to get away without being thoroughly grilled.
“You’re talking like you have a thing for him.” Joan’s eyes were curious, but I wasn’t sure I liked the look in her eyes. She still seemed so suspicious. They all were and nothing I was saying was helping them.
“That’s not what I meant!” Or was it? I had to admit, if only to myself, I had been awfully drawn to the guy. But that didn’t change the fact that I did believe him. I’d never been the kind of girl to be drawn in by a handsome face or a strong body before, so it wasn’t that.
Letting out a sigh, I knew I had to just sit there and wish my friends could trust me. What bad judgment had I shown before? I had the sense it would just make it worse if they thought I was defending him, so I stayed quiet, frustrated and helpless to make them understand.
“We care about you,” Angela said, and I felt myself softening a bit, the frustration and helplessness fading a little. “That’s why we’re worried. This guy, he’s acting a bit weird. You have to admit that. Maybe it’s what you say, maybe it’s something different, but …”
Joan broke in. “Just try to be careful.”
Because it would make them feel better, I nodded. I honestly didn’t think there was any reason to be careful, though. Maybe they could see that in my eyes.
“What if he’s after the money? We all know how rich people can get. They want more and more money and nothing is ever enough.”
I had to grant Angela that, but Theodore hadn’t been like that. I had hope David wasn’t either. No, he wasn’t. He hadn’t even mentioned the money.
“He said I should move into his grandfather’s old house. He was worried because my apartment was so small,” I remembered. “There’s no way he’s after the money if that’s what you think.”
Why would he be trying to get me to accept my inheritance if he just wanted to take it from me? No, I didn’t buy it. David’s story made complete sense to me and he’d apologized profusely for everything he’d done to me. I’d been able to feel his remorse for the whole situation.
The man had wasted twelve years, after all. Of course he was upset about that. Anyone would be. My friends were good, sweet, caring people, but they were letting their own suspicious minds get in the way.
I knew they’d all been hurt by men before. I knew it because I’d heard them talking about it. Of the four of them, only one was married, and Joan and Angela were both divorced.
