“You don’t know him,” I said smoothly, refusing to take the bait. “And neither does your wife.”
“Neither do you.” He sat back and drank his coffee, appearing as unruffled as I tried to be. “No one does. He’s a master manipulator and liar. Don’t underestimate him. He’s a twisted, dangerous man capable of just about anything.”
“The fact that you won’t explain his grudge against you makes me think you’re at fault.”
“You shouldn’t make assumptions. There are some things I’m not at liberty to discuss.”
“That’s convenient.”
He sighed. “I’m not your adversary, Eva, and Cross doesn’t need anyone to fight his battles. You don’t have to believe me. Frankly, I’m so bitter I wouldn’t believe me if I were in your place. But you’re a beautiful, smart young lady.”
I hadn’t been lately, but it was my responsibility to fix that. Or walk.
“If you take a step back,” he continued, “and look at what he’s doing to you, how you’re feeling about yourself since you’ve been with him, and whether you’re truly fulfilled by your relationship, you’ll come to your own conclusions.”
Something beeped and he pulled his smartphone out of his coat pocket. “Ah, my latest patient has just entered the world.”
He pushed to his feet and looked down at me, setting his hand on my shoulder. “You’ll be the one who gets away. I’m glad.”
I watched him walk briskly out of the cafeteria and collapsed into the seat back the moment he disappeared from view, deflating from exhaustion and confusion. My gaze moved to the sleeping screen of my tablet. I didn’t have the energy to finish my letter.
I packed up and went to get ready for Angus’s arrival.
*
“You up for Chinese?”
I looked up from the layout of the blueberry coffee ad on my desk into the warm brown eyes of my boss. I realized it was Wednesday, our usual day to go eat with Steven.
For a second, I considered bowing out and eating at my desk because I wanted to make Gideon happy. But just as quickly, I knew I’d resent him if I did. I was still trying to build a new life in New York, which included making friends and having plans that existed outside the life I shared with him.
“Always up for Chinese,” I said. My very first meal with Mark and Steven had been Chinese takeout here in the office, on a night when we’d worked well past closing and Steven had stopped by to feed us.
Mark and I headed out at noon, and I refused to feel guilty about something I enjoyed so much. Steven was waiting for us at the restaurant, seated at a round table with a lacquered lazy Susan in the middle.
“Hey, you.” He greeted me with a big bear hug, then pulled a chair out for me. He studied me as we both sat down. “You look tired.”
I guessed I must really look like shit, since everyone kept telling me that. “It’s been a rough week so far.”
The waitress came by and Steven ordered a dim sum appetizer and the same dishes we’d shared for that first late-evening meal—kung pao chicken and broccoli beef. When we were alone again, Steven said, “I didn’t know your roommate was gay. Did you tell us that?”
“He’s bi, actually.” I realized Steven, or someone he knew, must have seen the same newspaper Cary had showed me. “I don’t think it came up.”
“How’s he feeling?” Mark asked, looking genuinely concerned.
“Better. He might be coming home today.” Which was something that had been weighing on me all morning, since Gideon hadn’t called to tell me definitively one way or the other.
“Let us know if you need any help,” Steven said, all traces of levity gone. “We’re here for you.”