Page 75 of Tattoo My Heart
“Evie, I’m sorry,” James tries to apologize. “I thought I was helping…”
“Helping what?” I snap at him. “My whole life is in shambles now, James!”
For some reason, my overly dramatic statement seems to amuse him.
“In shambles?” he laughs. “This coming from the person who was trying to get a stranger online to take her out while also hooking up with my friend.”
“You know our relationship was non-existent.” I feel my face getting flushed and sweat forming at the temples. “What did you want me to do? He was telling my mother that he’d bring someone to the party, and I…”
“Yeah,” James raises his voice at me. “You! He was bringingyouto the fucking party!”
“Well, how was I supposed to know that, James?” I yell back. “Was I supposed to read his mind?”
“No,” James agrees with me, at least on this point. “But you could’ve been more honest with him about your feelings, instead of playing all these games with all these men.”
I chuckle incredulously. “What men?”
“The internet dude, the hockey player…”
“Oh my god!” I could strangle this man with my bare hands. “The internet dude was Cal himself, and the hockey player is Nancy’s nephew.”
“Oh, okay, that explains everything,” James laughs, the attitude obvious in his tone.
I hate how he’s turned the tables on me. It went from me being mad at Cal to now doubting everything. Not only that, there’s a bit of guilt involved as well. Worst feeling ever.
“Enough,” Carrie intervenes.
“She started it,” James defends himself.
“Drop it, James,” she warns in a firm voice. “Evie,” she addresses me. “What’s next?”
I shake my head in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“If you love Cal, you’re going to have to fight for him,” she explains patiently. “Do you?”
“Do I what?” I am scared to my core.
“Do you love Cal Prentice?”
TWENTY-FOUR
“Well,now I’m in the doghouse, too,” James informs me in his always laconic tone. He doesn’t seem too worried about it though.
I lift my eyes from the papers I started working on as soon as I got to the shop last night.
“Why’s that?”
“Because I told them that it’d been my idea for you to sign up for theHolidatesapp.” The way he shrugs when he’s done talking signals that he doesn’t think he’ll be in the doghouse for long.
I throw my pen on top of the pile of paperwork and lean back in my chair. As I run my fingers through my hair, I remember Evie’s words yesterday, when she said she hated my hair.
“Did they ever say anything about my hair?” I now ask James. He looks at me in confusion but then a lightbulb seems to be coming on.
“That picture you posted for your profile, it’s got something to do with how the hair was coming out of your cap.” He makes a weird motion with his hands above his own head. “That it should’ve been a dead giveaway. Or something. Maybe.” He sits there and ponders. “I don’t really know, man. I’m sorry.”
I shake my head at him, not even knowing how to respond to any of this.
“So are you done then?” James asks me, his eyes always assessing.
