“Yes, but…” To her dismay, Katie’s eyes started stinging, last night’s tears threatening to return. She hissed as she sliced her ankle with the razor, adding insult to injury.
“What’s wrong, Katie?” Nicole, always sensitive to Katie’s emotions, must’ve heard the distress in her voice.
“I think I’m broken, and Gary can tell.” As she dabbed a tissue at her eyes, she tried to stay calm. “I realized it last night, but I think it’s just now sinking in.”
“What on earth are you talking about?”
“I told Gary about Kindra and my parents.”
She could almost hear Nicole gulp over the phone. “That’s… that’s a good thing, Katie. I’m glad you opened up.” Her tone said she thought Katie was crazy, and Katie was inclined to agree. Why had she blurted out her depressing family history?
“The thing is, before I told him that, I was starting to think he liked me. And I was kind of liking him back.” Katie rinsed the blood off her ankle and dried her leg.
“What happened? Don’t tell me you spilled your guts and he was a jerk about it.”
“No, he was nice. He was too nice.”
“You’re not making any sense.”
With a quick check of the time, Katie padded to her room to get dressed. “I thought things were kind of charged between us. You know what I mean? Like sparks.”
“Sounds good so far.”
“But after I told him about Kindra, he hugged me… like a brother hugs a sister. It’s like he was completely turned off.” Katie took a shuddery breath. “That’s exactly how Joseph acted. One day, he just stopped kissing me.”
“Don’t do this, Katie. Don’t let Joseph spoil your chance at another relationship. Just because he wasn’t faithful doesn’t mean—”
“You don’t get it! Joseph stopped kissing me before he started dating Candace. He told me…” She couldn’t bring herself to say it.
“What?” Nicole sounded ready to explode. “What did he tell you?”
“He said he didn’t feel anything at all for me. Not love… not hate. Nothing.”
“But Katie—”
“We dated for five years, Nicole. Five years with me, and he was so bored he felt nothing.”
“That means there’s something wrong with Joseph, not you. He’s probably one of those guys who’s always going to want someone new.”
Katie wanted to believe her, but Gary’s reaction last night told another story. She’d practically thrown herself at him, and he’d responded with a peck on the top of her head.
“I thought maybe if I tried new things,” Katie said, in a small voice. “I wouldn’t be so boring.”
Nicole made a noise like she was screaming with her mouth closed. “You. Are. Not. Boring.” Her breath made a huffing sound. “But… I’m glad you’re stepping out of your comfort zone. As long as you have fun.”
“I’ve already swallowed an entire bottle of Tums to calm my stomach, so I’m not sure it qualifies as fun.”
Nicole laughed. “And I bet you researched how to paddle a kayak on the internet.”
Guilty.
“Only the basics, so I wouldn’t look stupid in front of the guys.”
Katie felt compelled to prove she wasn’t weak and timid, though she wasn’t sure why. It wasn’t like there was any chance a relationship with Gary could ever go anywhere. Even if his interest were revived, the two of them didn’t have anything in common.
Maybe it was a purely physical attraction. She’d never felt such a magnetic draw to anyone before. Even at his most attentive, Joseph’s kisses had never inspired her dreams. Yet last night, Gary had invaded her sleep, his lips consuming hers in a kiss so powerful she awoke in a cold sweat, hungry for the real thing.
A knock sounded at her front door.