The Man I Thought I Loved (Two-Faced #2) - E. L. Todd Page 0,55

mean you’re going to make love instead of fuck?”

“I guess. And I haven’t done that since I was married…”

Her eyes softened once she understood. “That’s pretty romantic, actually.”

“I really like him, and while I’m fucking terrified, I want to do this. I want to have a relationship. You know…a deep one. I’m not even angry with him anymore for the lie he fed me. I’m just…totally hung up on him. I hate it, but I am.”

She gave me a slight smile. “I think this is great. You know, it means you’ve really moved on, emotionally.”

“Not quite…because I have to sleep with him still.”

“Come on, it’s going to be amazing.”

“Yeah, I’m sure it will.”

She drank from her glass again then moved to the nachos. “I’m happy for you. I know Dax was a little shady in the beginning, but you can tell he’s a good man. Come on, a man doesn’t kiss like that unless he’s totally sprung.”

It was a damn good kiss.

She kept picking at the nachos.

We did the small-talk thing, caught up, discussed work, and our relationships…and now there was nothing else to talk about.

That meant I had to do the thing I absolutely didn’t want to do. “Kat…there’s something I want to talk about.”

“Alright…” She grabbed another chip and popped it into her mouth, but her eyes were narrowed on my face, anticipating the fall. “Lay it on me, girl.”

“Well, it’s kinda a rough thing to talk about. I wasn’t going to say anything, but I felt like I should. So, here it goes…”

“Now I’m officially freaked out.”

“Denise told me she kinda has a thing for Charlie.” I started with my sister since the truth about Charlie would hurt a lot more. “They’ve been spending time together, and she said she’s attracted to him…thinks he’s great.”

Her eyes dropped, and the blood drained from her face, like this really stung her. She had been about to grab another chip but dropped her hand instead. “Um…” She released a heavy sigh. “I’m trying to be diplomatic about this whole thing since she’s your sister…but that’s a knife right in my back. There are rules for these things. What kind of friend is she?”

“Before you get mad, she said she would never do anything because of your friendship.”

Relief flashed across her eyes, her temper dimmed. “Good. Charlie and I were together for years, and we’ve only been broken up for nine months… That would be just callous.”

I found it ironic that she hadn’t gotten over their relationship, but people expected me just to bounce back after my divorce when I’d had almost the same amount of time to digest it. “Yeah.”

“Thanks for telling me…I guess.”

“Well, I wouldn’t have said anything at all because there’s no point. If she’s not going to do anything, then it doesn’t matter. But…Charlie told me he has feelings for her.”

Now, she truly looked distraught, the light leaving her eyes as the hope drained from her face. Her gaze dropped, she took a deep breath, and she looked devastated, her fingers fidgeting with her hair.

I hated this, so much. “I’m sorry, Kat. I’m so sorry…”

She wouldn’t look at me, like if she did, she would start to cry. “What did he say…exactly?”

“I guess he’s felt this way for a while…but he would never do anything because of the situation.”

Her eyes stayed down. “I…I thought we might get back together. He broke up with me so suddenly, and I thought he would realize it was a mistake and come back… But he doesn’t feel that way at all, does he?”

I didn’t want to lie and give her false hope, but I didn’t want to tell the truth and crush her spirit either.

She lifted her gaze and looked at me, like a frightened animal.

“No…”

She inhaled a deep breath, her eyes slowly starting to well up. “Oh fuck…” She dropped her gaze again and looked at the table so she could control her emotions.

My hand moved to hers on the table, and I squeezed her fingers.

She sniffled then grabbed the cocktail napkin to dab the corners of her eyes.

I knew she still cared about him, but I hadn’t understood how deeply until now. “I thought things were going well with Nathan?”

“I mean…they’re fine. We’re having fun. But…that’s it.” She pulled her hand away from mine.

“Just because Nathan isn’t the right one doesn’t mean the next guy won’t be. Kat, you’re amazing. You’re going to find an amazing guy who will love you so much he can’t imagine his life without