Page 177 (1/2)

“I came to tell you iven you that more than once”

She walked toward the kitchen table with two s of coffee She placed one in front of me

“I don’t know I’ht now You lied to me”

“I thought you would be mad”

“I am mad”

She closed her eyes and slid into the seat She wasn’t going anywhere She was as stubborn as I was I sat across from her

“You can be lared at me

I felt ambushed She had jumped ony of what I had been through the past two days was enough to never atteht I found a way to drown out the noise with bourbon and vodka Enough to nuh to erase her

But fuck She was close enough I could smell her hair I could reach out and touch her if I wanted And then the jab of the knife twisted underdishonesty that was sitting at this table too

“I can’t” I shook my head “I won’t”

“Just sit there That’s all you have to do” Before I knew it she started telling me the truth The full truth “When IAbsolutely nothing”

“Yeah, I reulp cleared the last bit of haze in my head

“So I took a job for a dating agency” She eyed o on dates Two hours max with men who needed so It was never more than that Never”

She pressed the last word into the air between us “I was not a hooker I was not an escort I never slept with any of theI used a fake na because if I did make it one day I didn’t want anyone to know I had a job in a business that doesn’t necessarily have the best reputation”

She lowered her eyes “I swear that is what happened That is the coirl It wasn’t the best decision I’ve made, but it wasn’t the worst either”