Page 12 of Just for Her
Chapter Five: Allison
Ihad known Ceciltonwas a relatively small town, but I hadn’t thought it wasthatsmall. If I was the type of person who believed in kismet—which I was not—I might take Paul Cerasino’s appearance in the bookstore as some kind of sign.
I didn’t. It was a random coincidence, a case of nothing more than being in the same place at the same time. It did, however, present an unexpected opportunity, and I wasn’t about to squander it.
He hadn’t seen me when he first arrived. I’d been slunk down in one of the high-backed cushy chairs, catching up on my email and making a prioritized to-do list, while my sister had tapped away on her refurbished laptop.
That didn’t mean I wasn’t paying attention to what was going on around us. I felt compelled to scan everyone who came through the doors. Miriam might believe Caleb had given up and moved on, but I wasn’t as trusting as she was when it came to her ex. Even with everything that had happened, I think part of her still loved him.
Paul—Mr. Cerasino—waved to the owner, the sweet older man Miriam had introduced me to earlier, and then moved toward the back, where he joined the studious-looking guy who’d been there all day. He was wearing the same suit and annoyingly still looked just as devastatingly handsome as he had in the elevator.
Does he still smell as good too?I wondered and then chastised myself for even considering it.
Miriam stopped typing, stretched, and reached for the bottle of water beside her. “Scenic view, right?”
Definitely. “Do you know them?”
“The guy with the glasses is here every day, like me. I think he might be the owner’s grandson—you know, the author one I was telling you about?”
I nodded.
“The other guy, I don’t know. Why?”
I lifted my shoulders in a casual shrug and reached for my cappuccino. “He’s the lawyer I saw this morning.”
After I’d left Paul Cerasino’s office, I’d been honest with my sister, telling her what I’d done after the fact. It was a classic case of seek forgiveness instead of permission. Thankfully, she hadn’t beentooupset, even going so far as to tell me she’d expected me to do something like that. I supposed I was rather predictable.
“He’s pretty hot,” she said, her lips curving up into a smile as she continued to look over at the two men. “Maybe Ishouldtake your advice and make an appointment.”
Something unpleasant knotted inside my chest. My sister was the free-spirited, gentle flower who unknowingly stoked men’s inner caveman tendencies. In her ex’s case, those tendencies had manifested in possessive, jealous, and abusive ways, but Caleb Johnson was an asshole. In decent men, those ways presented as gallant and chivalrous behavior.
I sensed that Paul Cerasino was more of a white knight than he was a knuckle-dragging mouth-breather. My sister could use someone like him in her corner. So, why did the idea of her getting chummy with the hot lawyer bother me so much?
“Yikes, Ally. I’m just kidding,” Miriam said, breaking into my thoughts.
“What?”
“You should see your face right now. Like someone just peed in your Cheerios. Relax, okay? I’m not interested in anything besides getting my life back.”
That knot in my chest loosened, and I breathed easier again. “I can’t help it. I worry.”
“I know you do.” Her lips turned downward. “But things are different now. I’ve got this. I’ll never be a victim again.”
