Page 94 of Resist Me (Forget the Past 3)

With Pig at my side, I have no plans to go in, but the shop has an amazing selection on display in their front window. I spend a good ten minutes running my eyes over the Gibsons while Pig sits patiently at my feet.

“That’s a well-behaved dog.” The observation comes from my right in a vaguely familiar voice. I meet the stare of Cassandra, the C of C & M.

“Thank you. I’d like to take credit, but she basically came this way.”

Cassandra nods, giving the two of us a speculative look. “As long as she stays mellow, you can bring her in. I’ve got some new stock. More interesting than these.”

The woman pulls the front door of the shop open and holds it for me.

“Thanks.” I eagerly follow her, leaning down to give Pig a pet because she’s a good girl. “I’ve been meaning to come by dogless, but Pig and I tend to spend the entire day together.”

The store owner snorts. “Pig?”

“She came with that too. Fits her though.”

We both glance at the dog, with her short legs, slight potbelly, and heavy nose that gives the appearance of a snout.

“I see that.”

The three of us maneuver through rows of guitars, dodging the occasional customer on our way. Some people give my dog a strange look, but my girl keeps being her well-behaved self. Constantly proving all the myths about pit bulls wrong.

“Back here.” Cassandra holds open a door leading to a well-equipped repair shop. There are a few disassembled instruments on high-top tables. The pieces give my gut an anxious twinge, and I’m glad I’m not the one in charge of putting them back together. Even with as much as I know, I’d never get them all right.

“Here. I found these at an estate sale in Georgia. Aren’t they gorgeous?” Cassandra gestures to four guitars propped side by side. I crouch down to get a better look, realizing that she has a collection of Fenders.

“Are these all pre-1960?”

“You got it. They need some work, but man, do they have good bones.”

“They’re beautiful.” I reach out to stroke my thumb across the strings. Not trying to play anything, but just experimenting with the sound.

“You should come by once I’ve gotten a chance to work on them. Or come by any other time, I don’t care. You seem like good people.” Cassandra’s blunt way of speaking has me smiling to myself.

“Thanks. I’m glad I met you.”

She wanders away from me. “Violet does that. Brings people together. She works with your wife, right? Newlyweds. How’s that going?”

I glance up at Cassandra from where I’m crouched. She’s moved over to one of her work benches and looks to be testing the strength of glue she applied to a neck.

“Things are…” I trail off, realizing I don’t want to lie to this woman. Not after she’s shown me these beautiful instruments. I get the sense that Cassandra is trying to reach out to me. Maybe make a new friend.

And friends shouldn’t lie to each other.

“Honestly, they’re a little tense. We’re not balanced.”

Someone used to repairing delicate instruments would know how important balance is.

“How so?” Cassandra asks.

While I’m on her level, I scratch Pig behind her ears, and her tail raps happily against the ground. There are so many ways Luna and I are off-center. My ever-present crush could be the most prevalent reason. I long for her to a massive degree, while I doubt Luna feels more than an average level of attraction.

But that’s digging a little too deep for a new friendship.

I choose another, more relatable answer.

“Luna is the breadwinner. And I’m fine with her making more than me. We both agreed I’d take this year off from work to figure out a new life direction. A new career. But I haven’t made much headway. Sometimes I feel like I’m not contributing anything to our relationship.”

Luna would argue that me being in the relationship is enough, but it’s not for me. Not when she only sees me as the key to some cash. If I’m jobless by the end of the year, would I have the nerve to ask her to consider continuing our marriage?

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