Been There Done That (Leffersbee #1) - Hope Ellis Page 0,41

whispered, feeling ashamed. “Still. It’s hard to love someone that much and then just . . . feel nothing.” I shook my head at myself and the absurdity of what I’d said. “And there’s a lot you don’t know about him. And our past.”

“Okay. Tell me something I don’t know.”

“Alright. When we were kids, his mother got in a car accident. A really bad one. I think she almost died. Nick was terrified. Traumatized. His mom was all he had at the time. His dad had split, and his mother had to stay in the hospital for a while. Nick stayed with us, in Walker’s room, until she was discharged and could get around. I still remember my mother sitting him down and explaining he’d need to be patient and treat her very gently when he went home.”

“That’s his trauma? That excuses him for cheating on you?”

“Just listen. I thought everything was fine, that his mom got better and it was over. But apparently, that wasn’t the case. She got hooked on the opiates she was taking for pain. It happened over time. We were teenagers when it really became clear to Nick. Then she started getting the pain meds other places when her doctors wouldn’t prescribe them anymore. Illegally. By the time I realized what was going on, it was out of control. You know how people in town gossip.”

“Lord, yes,” Leigh said. She’d created quite a stir when she’d arrived in Green Valley with her colorful language and endless animal prints.

“Well, one day Nick and I went to the grocery store after school to get snacks. And we heard Karen Smith holding court, telling everyone within sight that Nick’s mother was an addict, that they were both trash, and that my parents were probably horrified by our connection—that we were involved. She claimed to have caught Nick’s mom in some compromising position.” My throat tightened as I was transported back to the market. Watching all the emotions flit across Nick’s face. Horror, anger, fear, humiliation. “She was crowing about it, going into awful details, saying how I deserved better than someone like him.”

On the screen, Leigh closed her eyes. “That’s just . . . awful. The two of you heard all that?”

“Yes.”

We were both silent for several beats, the only sound coming from the cacophony of traffic below.

“I still want to shank him for your sake,” Leigh said, scrubbing a hand across her eyes. “But that had to be shitty. No kid should have to hear that about their parent or live through it.”

I spoke around the knot in my throat. “It was terrible.”

“So what happened then?”

Thinking of what came next made me smile. “He got revenge.”

Her face filled the screen. “How?”

“He spent over a month perfecting candied apples to leave on her doorstep for Halloween. Only he did it with whole onions, then used packaging from the Donner Bakery after swapping out the real thing.”

Leigh gaped at me. “Are you serious?”

“Yes. He went through a whole bushel of onions and a million of those sticks when he was perfecting his technique.”

“A mouthful of onion for a notorious gossip,” she murmured. “It’s fitting. Hell, that story even makes me like him a little. Not enough to make up for watching you break down and cry after the coffee shop incident, but a little.”

I let out a sigh and rubbed my eyes, suddenly feeling fatigue from the flight catching up with me. “Yeah, it’s not simple. There’s no easy answer. This all would be a lot easier if he’d just go away.”

“All you can do is your best as a professional. Share your expertise and fulfill your promise to Dr. Gould so you can be free of Nick as soon as possible.” Her eyes widened to emphasize her words.

“Right. I’m going to go to dinner with his team, be pleasant, get through the training tomorrow and then move on from this. There’ll be other people, other buffers, from now on. If I’m not alone with him, it’ll be easy.”

“Fine. Yes. Exactly. Play your part. Without burning down the restaurant. Easy. Smile. But just remember—he’ll always be four steps ahead.”

Chapter Ten

Zora

John’s on 12th Street was located in the heart of the East Village, situated on an unassuming corner. The cozy interior immediately reminded me of the charming, authentic Italian restaurants I’d seen in old movies and my repeated viewings of Lady and the Tramp as a child.

“We’ve been around for over one hundred and ten years,” the waiter informed me