shouted to her, “At least tell me you’re coming back next week to testify against Dennis.”
She didn’t answer.
“Jessica!” he yelled. When she didn’t move and didn’t say anything, he dropped his hands to his sides, his fists clenched.
She knew that this was the moment, that she had to make it convincing. “I’m sorry, Slade. I’m leaving. I’m sorry if I hurt you. I don’t feel the same way.” It was physically hurting her to lie to him. “I just…I d-don’t love you, Slade.” One-two punch, right in the gut. It was the only thing she could say to make him believe her, and it was so difficult because she knew this would crush him.
He winced, as if he’d just taken a physical blow to the chest. “Wow. Well, I guess I’m blind, then.” He spat. “I may have slept with a lot of women before you, but I never lied to them and I never manipulated them. You…” He took a step forward. “You used me.” His voice faltered a little before he continued. “You needed a warm body. You are cold and heartless and I can’t believe I fell in love with you. Just leave—let Dennis get away with it. Hope to God he doesn’t do the same thing to another woman. I hope you can sleep at night with that thought, Jessica.” He turned around and opened the door to the Academy, but he threw one last dagger over his shoulder before he disappeared inside. “And I hope you can live with knowing you broke my fucking heart.” His voice was thick with emotion.
She’d broken his heart. And her heart was shattering because of it. There was nothing more she could say. And if there was someone following her, eavesdropping, they’d better have believed it, because she sure as hell believed it herself.
Chapter 15
Once she was alone in her car, she let out all her sorrow: at the wasted years with Dennis, at the loss of the wonderful months with Slade, and at the hurtful words he’d just spat at her, words that she couldn’t fault him for but which would forever be cemented into her psyche.
She sat there for a long time. Finally, when the sobs had subsided, she looked to see what time it was, knowing she had to leave town at midnight exactly. It was still too early—she had about an hour to kill. She drove to EE’s, and as soon as she walked in, Esther threw her a scathing look. Jesus, gossip traveled fast in Tarpon Springs.
Esther pointed her to a booth and tossed a menu on the table. Not five minutes later, Melinda and the three other women in her knitting group walked in, despite the late hour. They whispered, looked over at Jessica, then whispered some more. She braced herself. There was no fight left in her.
“And to think I was going to remind Miles to call her,” Melinda said loudly. “He is quite the catch, you know. I’m glad he wasn’t interested in her.”
The eldest of the bunch, Shelly, added, “Oh, me too, Mels. I was going to have my Danny call her. Could you imagine? She would have torn his heart right out of his body and stepped all over it, just like she did with that poor Martin boy.”
The poor Martin boy? The tattooed, cussing cage fighter that the town loves to hate? She hadn’t realized how much the town protected their own.
“I’m right here, you know,” Jessica called wearily.
The women turned their heads, looked at her, and scowled. All four began talking at once: “Shameful…duty to testify…better off gone…”
She laid her head on the table. This was harder than she’d thought it would be, and she had known it was going to be hard.
“Get outta the way, you evil, evil women. Y’all could start an argument in an empty house.” A melodic voice with a Texas drawl filled her ears. She looked up to see Jamie Lynn shooing the women out of the way. She slid into the booth across from Jessica.
“Darlin’, you’ve created quite the scandal,” Jamie Lynn said. She then turned to Esther, who was still standing with the knitting posse, and demanded two coffees. Thank God for Jamie Lynn—coffee was exactly what Jessica wanted but hadn’t been able to ask for.
“The entire town hates me.”
Jamie Lynn, never being one to beat around the bush, agreed. “Yes. The entire town’s fit to be tied.”
“Did you come here to try to change my mind or to tell