Page 88 of The Nice Guy
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Brynlee
For the first time since coming back to Chicago, I venture out of my hotel and walk along the shops on Magnificent Mile in the freezing cold. I miss the warm weather of Georgia. I miss many things in Georgia, but I need to clear my head and figure out what my next steps are.
If I listen to my desires, I’d already be back. I just don’t know if I can go back to a town where the man I’m madly in love withdoesn’t want me. He’ll be impossible to avoid, and I don’t want to do that. I want Rhett.
Walking into Saks, I wander around and look at the various sections, stopping in front of the baby clothes. A wave of sadness washes over me, and again, I ignore the urge to listen to Rhett’s voicemail from a week ago.
As much as I want to hear his voice, I promised myself I wouldn’t. Not until I felt strong enough to hear whatever he may have to say. At the end of the day, I refuse to let my self-worth be defined by a man like Mama did. No matter how much I love him.
I have no idea what I plan to do yet, so my Jeep stays parked in the long-term lot at the Atlanta airport, but I really need to figure it out soon. Living in a hotel is fun for a short while, but I’m starting to feel pathetic. The maids and front desk employees know me.
I’ll have to check out and go back to Copperwood to pack up the rest of my stuff. Deciding whether or not to list the house has added to my sleepless nights. I’ll break my heart to do it. It’s a beautiful home, and I love the history I don’t know but can feel within the walls. But what else am I going to do? Let it stay empty?
Moving to the purses, I hope something will draw me to it and make me feel a bit like Mama’s here with me. Some type of comfort because I know she’d rather me stand here in Saks in Chicago than be back in Georgia, but I feel nothing. And nothing jumps out at me, screaming to be purchased.
Because this isn’t who you are anymore, Brynlee.
Not only that, it’s not who I want to be. No matter how much I faked it with Mama. This world never felt right, but it feels even less than before. Especially after the news I got yesterday.
The thought of spending Christmas in a hotel a few blocks away rather than in my grandparents’ home makes meeven more depressed. Or, worse, not celebrating with Rhett’s family with screaming kids running around waiting to open gifts. Hopefully without spending the day covered in baking ingredients.
It felt like home being with Lydia and the rest of the family. No matter what happened, I know I’ll always miss the forever that could have been. I fell in love with his family that day, too. That hurt almost as bad as losing Rhett.
The one bright side to Chicago is the population. There are so many travelers that no one knows me. I could live here. I could be visiting for the holidays. Maybe here on business. No one knows, but more importantly, no one cares. I’m invisible, and after being on display for the past few months, it’s a welcome change. The anonymity feels comforting.
“Brynlee?”
Until now, it appears. My name isn’t common, and the voice sounds familiar. My stomach drops as I turn and realize who it is. “Mary?”
“Kevin didn’t say you’d finally come to your senses and came home!”
She rushes to give me air kisses on either side of my face, and I plaster on my fake smile. The air becomes instantly cooler whenever I’m near my would-be mother-in-law, and I shiver.
While Lydia’s warm and inviting—if not a bit intimidating—Mary is stiff and indifferent. Nose in the air wearing the latest designer fashion for someone twenty years younger while Lydia wears the handmade apron her grandkids gave her. They couldn’t be more different.
“Kevin doesn’t know I’m here. I’m just, uh, visiting,” I say, trying to figure out how to say enough without telling her anything.
“I was so upset to learn about what happened last month. My son is good-looking and smart, but he needs to learn a little more discretion.”
So many things in one sentiment to dissect. First, did she say last month? That man really did not tell a soul I left him until last month. I figured he’d have at least told Mary. Second, I wish I was surprised by Mary’s reaction. Kevin doesn’t need to learn to hide his affairs better; he needs to learn to keep it in his damn pants. More than that, it makes me really sad for her.
Mary’s life has to be so lonely. The happy pills make so much sense now that I’ve gotten some perspective, and even though Rhett and I are no longer together, I don’t think it’s possible to be happier that I will never be like Mary. The woman who looks the other way while her husband screws some new young woman because her lifestyle means more to her than her self-respect. Leaving him would be worse than staying with an unfaithful man.
“Well, I hope he learned a lesson.”
“Kevin was so distraught when he found you gone that he momentarily went crazy. He even brought that girl to the country club two weeks ago. The club!”
Every ounce of strength is used to hold back my laughter. “That sounds… terrible.”
“That girl has never seen the inside of a club before. Not a country club, anyway. I’m sure she’s seen her share of nightclubs. She has no understanding of the proper decorum necessary, and it’s not her fault. She wasn’t bred for this kind of life like you were, but we almost had to cancel our membership out of sheer embarrassment. I canceled my next two lunches with the ladies in hopes they’d forget about his lapse in judgment.”
Yes, because the time Kevin and I picked her up from the drunk tank when she mixed her happy pills with eight martinis,resulting in a horrifying rendition ofCoyote Ugly,was nowhere near as embarrassing as Kevin bringing Pippa.
“That’s terrible,” I say, faking all empathy.
“Did I hear Kevin correctly? You moved toGeorgia?”
