“If you’re talking about the body paint I should have washed off hours ago, then yes, I’ve seen Gil today.”
“Commission?” He kept moving through the office and into Gil’s apartment. I had no choice but to follow him, even though it was awkward being in Gil’s space alone with Justin.
I was old fashioned when it came to loyalties.
Gil hadn’t exactly made me feel welcome, and we hadn’t discussed our relationship, but there was a relationship, and this was an overstep of boundaries.
“Yes. For Kohl’s department store.” The residual jealousy that would forever be linked with that shop and the knowledge that Gil had gone there with other women fired hotly.
Justin stopped, turning to face me with a frown. “He hates those. Normally turns all commercial stores down.”
He needed the money.
I saw him beg.
I heard him on the phone with tears in his eyes.
I shrugged. “He changed his mind.”
He laughed quietly. “He seems to do that a lot around you.”
Hiding my wince, I wrapped my robe tighter. “His prerogative.”
“It is.” A stagnant pause fell. He squeezed the back of his neck, his immaculate suit whispering with fine fabric and money.
He looked so different to Gil with his paint-splattered clothing. They were from different paths, different pasts, different futures. Yet...somehow, they’d become friends.
I relaxed a little.
I might have been in Justin’s life when we were at school, just as I’d been in Gil’s, but...I’d shared a small fraction of time compared to what they had in the past year.
The knowledge that I was the third wheel these days actually gave me peace of mind.
Arching my chin at the bathroom door, I said quietly, “I can’t thank you enough for coming to my aid again. But now that I’m safe, I might take a shower...if that’s okay?”
“You don’t need to ask me. Not my place.”
“True.” I smiled. “Well, in that case.” I snapped my fingers. “Oh, no. I left my bag in Gil’s car. Along with all his painting gear and the engine running.” Turning reluctantly, I went to return outside. “I’ll be right back.”
Justin moved to cut me off, holding up his hand. “Take a shower. I’ll get everything.”
My eyes widened. “You sure? Will you be safe on your own?”
He chuckled. “I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
“Okay...” I blushed. “My overnight bag is in the back. Would you mind leaving it outside the bathroom door?”
He nodded. “Of course.” Striding back through the office and into the warehouse, he didn’t ask why I had an overnight bag. He didn’t ask why I was driving Gil’s car. He acted as if whatever was going on with me and Gil was perfectly acceptable. As if he’d known all along this would happen if we ever found each other again.
And perhaps, he knew better than anyone.
After all, he’d nursed my tattered heart and then patched up Gil’s.
He’d been the glue to our shattered pieces.
Maybe he could fix what was broken between us.
Maybe.
Chapter Thirty-Three
______________________________
Olin
-The Present-
I CAUGHT JUSTIN’S stare as our eyes once again trailed from the TV to the clock in the kitchen.
1:13 a.m.
And still no Gil.
I gave Justin a weak smile, burrowing deeper into the blanket surrounding me on the couch. I did my best to focus on whatever show we’d pretended to watch, but I couldn’t stop worrying.
My phone rested beside me. Silent and empty of messages. Whenever I tried to call Gil—and I’d called a fair few times—none of them connected.
“I’m sure he’s fine,” Justin murmured, his voice loud to my overstrained hearing.
“Uh-huh.” I nodded, running a hand through my washed and dried hair. My pyjama bottoms and hoodie kept me warm and modest after the green body paint had siphoned down the drain.
Having a shower in Gil’s space without him had been wrong.
Having a shower in the same place where he’d kissed me and couldn’t stop made my heart squeeze and concern magnify the longer Gil didn’t come home.
I missed him.
I needed him.
I’m worried.
I hadn’t told Justin that the police took him. Hadn’t told him any of it.
We’d kept our conversation to small talk and busied ourselves by making toast with the bare essentials of Gil’s kitchen for dinner—neither of us keen on leaving, just in case Gil returned.
“You don’t have to stay.” I stifled a yawn, once again looking at the clock.
Justin stretched his arms above his head, his spine cricking from sitting down for so long. “If you’re in danger, I’m not leaving you until Gil gets back.”
“But don’t you have someone missing you at home?”
He sighed softly. “Nope. Not for a while now unfortunately.”
“What happened?” I blushed. “I don’t mean to pry—”
“It’s fine. Her name was Colleen. We dated, but then she decided she didn’t like me enough to stick around and moved out.”
I slouched with empathy. “I’m sorry.”
He wiped his face with both hands before chuckling. “Don’t be. We weren’t right for each other.”
“I’m sure you’ll find someone who is.”
He nodded. “I know. Just like you found Gil again.”
I huddled into my blankets. “I don’t know if we’re right for each other. And besides, reconnecting was entirely by fluke.”
“Fluke...fate.” He shrugged. “Coincidence has many names. Doesn’t change the fact there’s something special about you two when you’re together.”
I didn’t speak for a while. My thoughts back in the past when Gil had vanished without an explanation. How he’d hurt me worse than anyone. How I’d forgiven him for all of it so blindly.
Last week, I’d been fumbling through interviews all alone. Now, I burned through concern while waiting like an unwanted wife for a man who said he’d never be mine.
I huffed under my breath. “Special or not, it didn’t work the first time. Nothing to say a second chance won’t have the same conclusion.”
Silence fell for a moment while Justin stared at the TV. “Did he ever tell you why he left?”
Every muscle froze with utmost attention. “No. Do you know why?”
Would I finally get that answer? Would years of wondering be solved right here, right now?
Justin gave me a sad smile. “No.”
“But you know something about it?”
“Not really.”
“He didn’t say anything when you guys started hanging out?”
He snorted. “We don’t exactly hang out.”
“What do you do?”
“I’m there. That’s all.”
“There for what?”
“For whatever he needs.” He stood. Grabbing his empty glass from the coffee table, he went to fill it with water in the kitchen.