Page 52 of Clued in to Love
“Do most people have magnifying glasses on hand?”
“Right.” Marissa frowned. “Wait, what if you take a photo of the photo, and then we can zoom in.”
“Now that is meta.” William pointed to an empty table nearby. “Let’s try it.”
Their heads were inches apart as they stared at William’s phone. Marissa was glad she’d popped a couple of breath mints into her mouth on the drive over. William smelled so good. Too good. She had trouble concentrating as they went through each mural section, zooming in to get a clear look.
“Look, there.” Marissa pointed to the bottom corner of the mural. “The Starlight Parade. Do you see how under the depiction of the parade, it says, ‘Come light up the night? Be ready to get tangled in the holiday adventure.’”
William looked closer. “Good eyes.”
“That matches what Santa told us. It must have something to do with the parade.”
William set his phone on the table. “Parker is one of the sponsors for the Starlight Parade. Let’s go to her winery and see if she’ll give us the inside scoop.”
Great. Another meetup with Parker. The last person in Bend Marissa wanted to spend time with.
THIRTY
DARBY
Darby was shaking so hard she wasn’t sure she could steer the car home. She sat in the driver’s seat and tried to steady her breathing, staring at happy couples walking hand in hand in the freshly fallen snow. Downtown was a blur of bustling holiday activity. Tingling melodies floated through the air thanks to a group of carolers gathered farther down the sidewalk, serenading anyone passing by. Shops glowed with a cheery warmth, welcoming shoppers inside.
Samesh had lied to her. She felt betrayed, dizzy, and dazed.
She had opened herself up, albeit slightly, and he had broken her trust—again.
Why? Why had he lied?
She massaged the base of her neck, feeling it pinch as if someone were squeezing it tightly.
He moved to Bend for her?
He followed her life for years?
She could only guess that if her life were a novel they were dissecting, her students would find Samesh’s character arc undeniably romantic. Darby found it creepy. He had given up on them without much of a fight. And now he was trying to win her heart by leaving out significant details from his story, likethe fact that he knew about Jim’s death and he had intentionally sought out a position in Bend to find her.
Was everything a lie?
Anger bubbled up, rising through her chest and making her cheeks flame with heat. She gripped the steering wheel, wanting to kick herself for being so silly, so naïve. She wasn’t an eighteen-year-old English student. She was a fully grown woman who had foolishly allowed herself a fragile glimmer of hope since meeting Samesh again. For the first time since Jim died, she had let herself believe that maybe there was a possibility of life after loss.
What was she thinking?
She clutched her wedding ring.
She’d even convinced herself that Jim was part of a master plan to bring them together.
Nope.
Every bit of their “spontaneous” meeting had been orchestrated by Samesh.
Why couldn’t he have been honest from the start?
Would it have changed her response? Maybe.
But given their history, she might have given him a chance. Now that was over. The worst part was that Darby had confided in him about the long ache of her grief. It was unfathomable that Samesh would risk her heart again.
How dare he?
