“I don’t come to the park at night for obvious reasons, although I’ve done it once. As for Greenwich Village, anytime is a good time: morning, afternoon, early evening…”
“But not at night.”
“Mari, nighttime in New York can be a very dangerous time, especially for a girl like you. A woman alone at night is never a good idea. Even I have to limit my exposure to some degree.”
She checked her watch.
Even if he happened to be in either place, the chance they’d miss each other by minutes or a mile was high.
But she’d be damned if she didn’t try.
Chapter 13
Jim
Jim saw the name on his phone screen and scowled.
“What is it, dad?”
“I’m giving you another chance, son. Do the right thing, or I could have that girl of yours blacklisted so fast she won’t know what hit her. But if you cut the poor girl loose, I’ll even help her get placed. We’ll sort out the apologies and go ahead as planned…”
“I only answered so I could hang up on you,” Jim said before disconnecting the call.
* * *
From the fountain, Jim stared at the arch where he’d posed with Mari, who had wanted a photo under the famous Washington Square Arch after all.
“But I won’t put it on Facebook, promise,” she’d said, but he didn’t care if she did.
He had held her in his arms from behind, full of joy and grinning as some stranger took their picture while hoping that stranger didn’t make a run for it with Mari’s phone.
Jim glanced over at the spot he and Mari stood while watching a clown ballet, then a flutist.
He kept looking around, overwhelmed by the memories of the previous day and the stark absence of Maribel that made his heart hurt.
How on earth was he supposed to get over this?
In no time at all, she had crashed into his life and made off with his heart.
Suddenly, he thought he caught a glimpse of Mari and his heart leaped.
Haha, you’re thinking about her so much you’re actually seeing her.
But joy and worry had collided strongly, leaving him reeling, and he knew it would take some time to move past his emotional entanglement with her.
Obviously, the person he’d glimpsed wasn’t her, and he tried to get his emotions to calm back down because he’d been happy to see her, but concerned about her being out this late by herself.
Why the hell did he even still care? Wasn’t her character clear?
A backstabber like that—she was tougher and far more cutthroat than she had appeared, so she could handle herself just fine; she’d fit right in here.
Had she even moved here from the south?
What had she told him that was actually true?
But even now, as hurt and angry as he felt by her betrayal, he wished he hadn’t been seeing things a few seconds ago, and that he could see her once more.
He glanced around again.
Someone who looked like her was moving closer and closer to him.
Boy, he couldn’t wait until his mind stopped playing tricks on him and making him see her in dreams and in waking life.
But the mirage of her kept getting nearer, tiny steps quickening, and he even thought he heard the figure say, “Jim.”
He blinked, and the figure remained before him.
“I’m so glad I found you!” Maribel said, looking like she wanted to hug him but was fighting her impulse.
So it was her after all, gazing at him with glistening eyes!
Too many emotions fought for his attention.
“Jesus Christ, Mari,” he said, keeping his hands in his coat pockets, “what the heck did I tell you about being alone somewhere like this at night? Don’t you watch Law & Order? What are you doing out here?”
Her smile widened. “You’re still worried about me.”
“Of course! Although I know I don’t have to be. And that it’s ironic as hell—thinking someone could take advantage of you.”
“I came looking for you, of course—you just left! Not that I blame you, but I couldn’t let you take off without knowing the whole story. So will you please hear me out? I know what you discovered looks pretty damning, and I need to explain.”
“Well, if there’s one thing I’ve learned over the past few days, it’s that things must be addressed head on; no festering, no assumptions. Not talking about something doesn’t make it go away, so spill it—although will you answer me honestly about whether or not you’re recording this conversation right now?”
“I’m not recording, and I know you have no reason to believe me, but it’s true. Look, I moved here for a reporting job, and when I didn’t get the most promising position then ran into you, I was sort of desperate to get a scoop. I felt pretty stupid for moving all the way out here without having a sure thing in place, and then having it fall through. So your conclusion is correct.”
“Thank you for honesty,” he said neutrally, then turned as if planning to leave.
“It’s been a whirlwind past few days, Jim. Things have changed big time for both of us, and for me, my priorities have definitely changed.”
He turned back to her, listening.
“My feelings are at the forefront for the first time, and if I don’t go with them, I suspect I’m going to be a very unhappy woman. Listen, I’m not going to expose you and your family—I decided I wouldn’t after that meeting with Lucy. Before then, I was sure you were just some rich playboy who ultimately wouldn’t suffer from a stupid gossip piece anyway. And why should I sacrifice my shot at a career for the likes of you? Someone born with a silver-spoon in his mouth, and even without that, born with every advantage in the current world? Outside of your father’s company, you’re destined to be given more chances, opportunities, and benefits of the doubt than I’ll ever get.”
“Is this how you always apologize?”
“But I realized you weren’t just some silver-spoon jerk. I saw the real you, vulnerable you. Human you. And there’s no way I could throw you under the bus. Jim, my attraction to you morphed into something else as I got to know you and I came to care for you quite deeply, very quickly. Alarmingly so, to be honest. What I felt for you was no longer about you possibly being the ticket to my goals, and I came to realize that what I want more than anything is you. As small as my apartment is, I can’t imagine you not being in it anymore.”
She stopped, giving him a chance to respond, but he just stood there peering at her, processing her words and his feelings.
She sounded sincere, and he wanted to believe her, and more than that, gather her in his arms, but he waited, examining her features, reading between the lines.
Mari pulled something out of her pocket and tossed it into the fountain.
“What the heck did you just do?” he asked.
“That was the voice recorder. I’m proving to you tha
t I have no plans to use anything I got.”
Then she pulled out her phone and erased the recording on there, showing him as she did it.
“I’m not sure that’ll destroy it, by the way,” he said, nodding his chin toward the fountain. “Best to burn it or smash it to pieces. You have a lot to learn, Mari.”
He bent over the fountain, visually locating the device.
“I’m sure I’ll pick up some pee and god knows what else but here goes…”
He reached in and retrieved the recording device.
“I’ll take care of this, amateur.”
He smashed the voice recorder with his boot, then picked up the pieces and pocketed them.
“I love you, Jim,” she seemed to puke out, her words coming out fast and almost jumbled. “I care what happens to you, I care how you’re feeling, and I want your happiness more than practically anything—even if it means exiting your life. Meeting you here was mostly about taking away the hurt I know you must’ve felt when you thought I’d betrayed you. I wanted to ease it—I couldn’t stand the thought of you in pain because of me. Sure, I wanted to clear my name, but I needed you to know I wasn’t going to betray you.”
His final protective layer started peeling away though he still kept his distance.
Did she really love him? Or was she just saying it because she knew what a weakness he had for her?
He took a deep breath.
“You know, as furious as I was, I was mostly hurt and sad. I had a hard time imagining not seeing you again, Mari, even after what you’d done to me. Plus, I couldn’t stop worrying about you, imagining you slowly figuring out this city and making dangerous mistakes. Worst of all, despite all the logic that says otherwise, I felt compelled to forgive you. I’ve been here in disbelief, mostly, because part of me refused to accept that it was over between us; misunderstanding or not—I still wanted to be with you.”
He could tell she’d started rejoicing and was trying hard to restrain it; her body practically vibrated with hope.