“What are you talking about?”
“You know exactly what I’m talking about, Chris. You can be honest now that we’re both going our separate ways. You’re pissed off that I wouldn’t sleep with you.”
“Seriously? That’s what you think?” Her response was simply to fold her arms and arch her brows. “Wow, good to know.”
“I’m sure the timing is just a coincidence, then. Fine. Let’s go with that.” She turned again and walked towards the door, yanking it open with more force than required. “Thanks for letting me know.”
I stalked towards the front door at those last sarcastic words. “Just remember Tara, while you’re on your high horse, that if I’d pushed, even a little bit, you would have given in and we would have slept together.”
She was petite, but Tara was feisty, and she didn’t even blink as I invaded her space. “Yeah well you can revel in that one flash of being a good guy if you want, but that doesn’t change the facts.”
“You really think that?”
Tara sighed and took a step back. “It doesn’t matter what I think, Chris. You’re right, this is done.” Her words, her tone, all sounded so final, and instantly I regretted coming here and saying what I said to her. “Have a good night.”
I hesitated in the door way, not quite inside her hall, but not quite on the porch either. “It doesn’t have to be like this.”
“It was always going to be like this. Goodbye, Chris.”
I sighed, wishing that my ex wasn’t right, that I didn’t know when to leave things alone. “This isn’t about us, it’s about Lila. It’s my job, my responsibility to look out for her. To keep her safe.”
Tara reared back as if I’d hit her. “And you think she’s not safe with me? Wow. Okay. Good to know.” Her grip tightened on the handle and she gave my chest a small shove. “Thanks for clearing that up.”
“That’s not what I meant, Tara. Not exactly.” Frustration rolled over my body like a suffocating cloak and I raked one hand through my hair and shoved the other deep in my pocket. “You’re great. Funny and attractive, feisty and sexy as hell. But your job is dangerous and I can’t risk another woman in my life who’d let Lila down.”
Her jaw clenched, but that was Tara’s only physical reaction to my words. Still, I could feel her seething. “Okay.”
“So, we’re good?”
Tara barked out a laugh and shook her head. “Sure Chris, we’re good. We didn’t talk to each other before that stupid algorithm and there’s no reason to talk after this. See you around.” Without another word, she pushed me all the way out and shut the door in my face. Softly. Quietly. As if I wasn’t even worth the energy it required to slam the door.
It wasn’t how I meant things to go, but there it was.
Me and Tara were over.
Before we even got started.
Tara
“What’s the hurry, ma’am?”
I hated traffic stops, hated them more than I hated dealing with neighbor disputes like Mrs. MacArthur’s daisies growing too close to Mr. Bentley’s rose bushes. But this unknown car had blown through the last stop sign in town and hadn’t slowed down, never mind stopped at the spectacle of lights and sirens.
“What? Oh, the hurry. Right. There is no hurry unless you count me trying to put as much distance between me and my ex as possible.” The bitterness in her voice told me this wasn’t one of the works of fiction I often came across during traffic stops.
“I’m sorry to hear that, but you forced me to chase you for two miles and that’s not okay.” I’d been sure was a drug runner or other such criminal. “I could take you in for that.”
Her big golden brown eyes went wild with shock. “That would be just the perfect end to this shitty day.”
“It’s only one o’clock. The day’s barely gotten started.”
“Maybe for you,” she shot back. “I’ve already left a cheater and rendered myself homeless, and it’s already the afternoon.” I recognized the rapid blinking for what it was, an attempt to keep tears at bay.
“License and registration.”
She gasped and looked up, ready to argue before thinking better of it and handing it over.
I didn’t expect to find any surprises but due diligence didn’t take a break all because you felt sorry for someone, so I typed her info into the system and found nothing. I groaned in frustration because had she stopped, none of this would have been necessary. I gave Ms. Pierson another moment to herself and then made my way back. “Alexandra Pierson, no man is worth jail, tickets or an accident.”
“No kidding,” she sighed and swiped a wayward tear.
“Slow down and pay attention.”
She flashed a smile that didn’t even make it to her eyes, such a stark contrast to the bright smiles of relief I normally got when I opted not to ticket a driver. “Thank you, Officer Beechum.”