didn’t flinch at meeting you, even after she’s done her part to destroy your marriage. Possibly she has no conscience. Best to stay away from her.”
“Scott wants her to meet the girls.”
He stopped walking. He looked down at her. “If you have any influence, I’d give it a year before you do something like that. Can you convince your girls to put that off?”
“They don’t want to meet her.”
“Better still.”
“Whew, I’m very glad you were there to drag me away. I was going to throw her down.”
He laughed softly. “I felt that energy coming off you.” He arrived at her car. He turned her around, pressed her up against the car. “Don’t look for him,” he said. “Just remember, he’s gone and you’re a single woman. Just don’t look. Look here,” he said, giving his head a nod, focusing on her eyes. “Tell me if you had a good time.”
“All but two minutes,” she said. “Yes, I had a very good time. Good conversation, nice walk through town, delightful and relaxing view with wine...”
“I had a good time, too,” he said. “If fact, I think there are going to be more good times.” He leaned toward her and put a brief and soft kiss on her lips. “No, don’t look around to see if he’s there. We’re fine. We’re not cheating on anyone.”
“That’s a strange feeling, right there,” she said.
“It might take some getting used to,” he said. “You’re not one of a pair anymore.”
“I’m not,” she said, leaning toward him for another kiss. Just a short but meaningful kiss. “Is it all right if I call you later?”
“You call anytime you feel like it,” he said. “If you don’t call me, I’ll probably call you. I love talking to you.”
“It was kind of an awkward day, after all,” she said. “I’m sorry about that.”
“Nah, it had to happen. I’m glad I was with you. Now that’s one more thing you don’t have to worry about. You’re going to run into them. You’re up to the challenge. You can do it without violence.”
“It was close, though.”
* * *
Justine’s friend was out for the evening and had left her a note on the kitchen counter. Justine phoned the girls, made sure they were settled in for the night. Amber said that Scott had called and said he’d be there by ten; Justine didn’t mention having seen him in Carmel. She simply said, “I’ll call you in the morning. Then I’m going to go job hunting again.”
If there was anything good about running into Scott and Cat, it was learning that she would not perish from seeing them together. And while it had been tempting to punch her in the throat, she hadn’t. She had perfected seeing Scott in passing and never lost her cool because they were co-parenting. She didn’t scream at him that he was nothing more than betraying scum, a liar, a cheat, a waste of air. Tears no longer rose in her eyes. She didn’t long for him. In fact, she began to see his flaws more clearly. His hair was not just touched with gray, it must be graying rapidly and thinning fast because he was using some kind of cheap coloring that stained his scalp. He had a weak chin, his nose was crooked and his teeth should be whitened.
He was very fit, she’d give him that. How else should he be since all he did was play? But being fit couldn’t keep your face and neck from sagging. In fact, all that time in the sun was not helping the aging process. But all that was just the rigors of aging, and she would have looked on his flaws with affection, willing to grow old with him. She would have gone to the end, of that she was sure. She never questioned whether or not she was deeply in love. She never asked herself if she was in love enough. She only asked herself how much longer they had if they stayed relatively healthy.
That was no longer possible. There was no more for them now.