Page 3 of Wounded Fox
Maisie merely rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips. "It's not cool to stalk a woman either."
"I have no idea what you're talking about." I tried to keep the guilt out of my tone, but based on the look Maisie gave me, I missed the mark by a mile.
"Bullshit. Everyone in town knows about your fascination with Valerie."
"I don't have afascinationwith her," I lied out my ass. "We're old friends." Maisie didn't look like she believed the words any more than I did. "Okay, fine." I crossed my arms over my chest. "I like to check up on her, so what? It’s not a crime to make sure someone I cared about was safe, is it?”
"I wouldn't care but I know for a fact that Valerie doesn't want you checking in on her." The pity on Maisie's face when she said that gutted me. I didn't want to be pitied when it came to Valerie, or anything else for that matter.
"She said that to you?" She’d told me plenty of times but was she now telling other people the same thing? How the hell did we get to this point? There had been a time in our lives when we did everything together and were inseparable, a time when I thought we had a future together that involved more than just friendship.
"No, Hendrix told me and I'm guessing it's because you told him. Valerie and I aren't that close. Yet," she clarified. "But us business owners need to stick together and that means if you're bothering her, then you have a problem with me."
I blew out a frustrated breath. The last person I wanted to have a problem with was Maisie. The woman was deadly with a knife. Literally. She stabbed a man not too long ago protecting Annalee and that wasn't even the first time she’d murdered someone. Maisie was next-level crazy and absolutely perfect for Hendrix. I didn't want to get on her bad side, but it was clear when it came to Valerie, I didn't always make the best choices.
"I'm not bothering her. I walk by her shop just like I do yours and everyone else's on Main Street. I care about this town and the people in it. That's all." I was practically begging for Maisie to understand my side of things.
"You could've fooled me."
Those words and that voice had me dropping my chin to my chest in defeat.
CHAPTER TWO
Valerie
I watched Aaron drop his head and shoulders in the universal sign that I had bested him and thanked God that I had chosen the outfit I did for today. It was my power suit, as I liked to call it, and it gave me the courage to confront Aaron. In my black slacks and crimson-red jacket, I actually felt like I could handle him, even if for the briefest of seconds I wanted to take my words back, but I quickly pushed those feelings down. If there was anyone who deserved what I had to say, it was Aaron.
The anguish in his eyes when he turned around and faced me though almost made my cold heart melt.
Almost.
"I never stopped caring," he pleaded with me to believe him but I couldn't. Not after all this time had passed and everything we had been through.
"I need to get back inside." I jutted my chin toward my shop. "I only stepped out to ask you to please stop following me. It's getting a little old at this point."
Ever since Aaron came back to Willow Creek, I would see him multiple times a day. Most of those were him walking by the shop, or stopping to look in, and I knew for a fact what I sold wasn't something that interested him. If it didn't hurt so much to see him, I would appreciate the fact that he cared enough to protect me and my shop.
"I'll never stop keeping an eye out for you." His reply was exactly what I expected him to say.
"I don't want nor do I need you to watch out for me. I've done a mighty fine job all on my own the last thirty years."
I turned on my heel and walked right back into the shop that had been my saving grace all these years. I knew if I hadn't left just then, there was a good chance the pain in Aaron's eyes would've been enough to make me cave. Even just a little. Because whether I wanted to admit it or not, I looked for him just as much as he looked for me, despite how much it hurt. I clearly enjoyed torturing myself.
"Valerie, wait up!" I stopped and took a deep breath but didn't turn back around at Maisie’s declaration. "Sorry, I don't mean to ambush you, but I just want to make sure you're okay?"
This time I did spin around and plastered a big fake smile on my face. "I'm fine." I lied through my teeth.
"No offense. I know we don't know each other, so this might sound rude, but I call bullshit," Maisie, the bakery owner, told me honestly.
And yes, that was rude but dang if I didn't admire her willingness to say the truth even if it was the last thing I wanted to hear.
I let my smile slip and showed her just how not fine I really was. "You're right. I'm not fine. I haven't been since Aaron came back. Actually, since I'm being honest, I haven't been fine since he left at eighteen but I'm trying to be okay with him being backin town and that's the best I got." I threw my hands in the air and then crossed my arms over my chest.
I let my feelings pour out, and if I thought Maisie would be put off by my brutal honesty, I was dead wrong. This spunky younger woman, who didn't know a thing about me or my life, and certainly not someone before today that I considered my friend, gave me the most welcoming and endearing smile.
"It's okay to not be fine. I used to be the queen of it until I met Hendrix, and still some days are hard, but the fact that you’re trying is all that matters."
I wanted to hug Maisie so damn hard but she didn't look like the kind of person who would be receptive to that, so I kept myself back.
