Page 86 of The Heart Shot
He had laid his feelings out for me, and I stomped all over them. Was I taking his choice away? Would hechooseme, no matter what the future held? When things got hard, when we faced the difficulties that life would inevitably bring, would hestillchoose me?
My parents had been so in love…until they weren’t. They went from adoring looks and caresses to scathing remarks and glares of hatred. Was it possible to have a relationship thatwasn’tlike that?
I think Jameson would be worth taking a chance on and finding out,Smitten Elsie said.
As much as you don’t need anyone else, he’s a good man and maybe Maya is right. Maybe you should give him a chance to prove that he won’t hurt you. Let him have the choice to love you.I was dumbfounded by Smart Elsie’s words after she had been so vocal about staying away from Jameson.
“The truth hurts, doesn’t it?” she asked, not missing my wince.
“Maya…”
“Don’tMayame. You need to go see him. Apologize for being a fool, and ask him to give you another chance.”
It had been a week since I had seen Jameson, and I missed him something fierce.But was I ready to forget all the pain and heartache I had both witnessed and experienced? There reallywasno guarantee that Jameson would give up on me. He hadn’t given up on his family when life got hard, and they needed him. Could I trust that Jameson would do the same with me?
I had been trying to protect my heart in the process…but what if what was best for my heart was Jameson?
I blew out a breath, finally meeting Maya’s gaze. She had a smug smile on her face.
“Have you finally come to your senses?”
“What if he doesn’t want me now?” I asked.
“Trust me, he does.” Maya stood and yanked me out of the booth. “Now go get your man!”
Jameson
Mom?” I called, cracking the door to her apartment open.
“Jamie?” A soft voice answered.
“It’s me. I brought cookies.” I walked in, slipping my shoes off before I brought the remaining cookies from the last date with Elsie over to my mom. I had put them in the freezer, saving them for a rainy day, but I couldn’t stand to look at them anymore. I couldn’t stand to see the remnants of such an amazing evening that ended so horribly.To me, the box of cookies was nothing more than a box of brightly colored ash.
Part of me was still in denial, that I had dreamed her leaving me in that tent, and that any minute she’d walk through the door and into my arms, but I knew that was a fool’s wish. When Maya had explained about Elsie’s parents, it all made sense. All of her insecurities, all of her walls, every time she pushed me away when I knew that she wanted me closer…I understood.
And yet, I still couldn’t believe that Elsie had just walked away from us.
The fact that she wanted time to think somehow made it worse. Instead of being able to actively help her fight those fearful thoughts, she was facing them alone. I didn’t know where that would leave us in the end.
“Those are the ugliest cookies I’ve ever seen,” my mom chided when she peered into the box, breaking me out of my thoughts.
I winced. “Elsie and I made cookies the other night.”
She pursed her lips. “Well, I wouldn’t put much hope in a cookie decorating career,” she laughed.
Her words were so close to what Elsie had said that night that I flinched, like I had been punched in the gut. Mom’s eyes narrowed as she studied me, her laugh trailing off.
“What’s wrong, dear?”
“Nothing, Mom.”
“Don’t lie to me, Jamie. The last time I saw you, you looked like you were on top of the world. Now you look like a pop can that was emptied and crushed.”
I winced. “I suppose that’s an accurate description of how I feel.”
“What happened?”
I sighed. “Elsie sort of ended things.” The words spilled out of me like water waiting to burst from a dam.
