My One and Only

by Kristan Higgins

Page 28

  Author: Kristan Higgins

  Alec smiled. “Same for me, Lou. ”

  “You got it,” Lou answered, then looked over at Nick and me. “How about you folks? Can I get you anything else?”

  “We’re fine,” I said. “The check would be great, though. We still have a long way to go. ”

  “I’ll have a piece of huckleberry pie,” Nick said. “And some coffee would be great. ”

  Fine. I’d be patient. It was possible. Taking a slow, deep breath and resisting the urge to kick Nick once more, in a softer part, perhaps, I resumed my eavesdropping. Nothing else to do.

  “Should we talk about the wedding, sweetie?” LOL Kitty Man asked.

  “Alec, not now!” Lainey snapped. “Okay? Can we just…sit? Please? For crying out loud?”

  “Sure, sweetie,” he said instantly.

  Doomed. There was no way in hell they’d make it.

  Alas, Alec apparently reigned supreme in the Land of the Obtuse. “You know, I think Caroline would be a nice name,” he said.

  “For what?” Lainey asked.

  “For a baby. A daughter. ”

  She stared at him, disgust and incredulity painted on her face with a heavy hand. “Whatever. ”

  “Hi, there” I said, waving to the happy couple.

  “Don’t,” Nick muttered, still reading.

  “My name’s Harper, and I couldn’t help overhearing. ” I stood up and approached. “Mind if I sit for a second?”

  “Not at all,” Alec replied. “I’m Alec, and this is my fiancée, Lainey. ”

  “Hello. Harper James. I’m a divorce attorney. ”

  “Harper,” Nick called, glancing up from his book. There was a note of warning in his voice.

  “I couldn’t help overhearing you two,” I said, ignoring my ex. “Alec, you seem like a nice guy. And Lainey, you seem…well, listen. I’m just wondering how you two are doing. ”

  “We’re great!” Alec said with tragic sincerity. “Um…why do you care?”

  “Call it professional curiosity. See, I hate to be rude, but I feel compelled to point out that if you two are already having trouble, it’s not a great sign. ”

  “Mind your own beeswax, lady,” Lainey said, baring her teeth at me. She had braces.

  “Let me guess, Alec,” I said quickly, ignoring her. “At first, Lainey was so nice, right? But then, once you proposed and gave her an Amex with her name on it—”

  Nick materialized at my side. “Okay, we’ll just get going here,” he said, giving me a tug. “Sorry to bother you folks. ”

  “How’d you know I gave her an Amex?” Alec asked me, frowning.

  “Car, too, I’m guessing?” I asked.

  “Mind your business, lady,” Lainey snarled.

  “Alec, I wonder if you have to work this hard now, when you’re supposedly in love—”

  “Shut it, Harper. ” Nick’s voice was low.

  “—just imagine how—” My words were cut off as Nick clamped his hand over my mouth. He hauled me out of the chair and began steering me to the door, Coco following obediently, her leash trailing.

  “Oh, that dog is so cute!” Lainey exclaimed. She looked up at Alec, her steely eyes morphing to calculated softness. “I wish I had a wittle doggy like dis one. ”

  “Want me to buy you one?” Alec asked.

  “Wiwwy? You would? Faw me?” she said. She reached out for Coco, who wisely dodged away. Nick let go of me and picked up my dog’s leash.

  “She’s just after your money, Alec,” I said quickly. “Make sure you have a prenup!”

  “Sorry,” Nick said to the happy couple. He grabbed my arm again and practically dragged me out the door, then released me. Coco sat down and stared at me as well, as if in a collusion of disappointment. “Did you have to do that?” Nick asked.

  “What? Tell the truth? Try to save that guy some misery?”

  “It’s not your job to decide, Harper,” he said, rubbing his eyes.

  “It’s like watching a car head for a telephone pole at sixty miles an hour. I couldn’t just say nothing. ”

  “Just let them be. They’re strangers, for God’s sake. You don’t know anything about them. Maybe their…thing…works. ”

  I took Coco’s leash out of his hand. “Right. And you know what else, Nick? The Brooklyn Bridge is for sale. ”

  “You sell everyone short, Harper. You’re such a cynic. ”

  Oh, those words…that condescension! “I’m a realist, Nick,” I said. “This is what I do for a living—deal with crappy relationships every single day. He’s crazy about her, and she can barely stand him. But he’s pretty well off, as we can see from this brand-new Chevy pickup, Exhibit A, Your Honor. ” I pointed to the shiny black truck in front of us. “She might have a three-carat diamond on her hand, but Mom and Dad couldn’t afford dental care, because she’s only got braces now, Exhibit B. I bet we both know who’s paying. He’s a nice guy, bending over backwards to make her smile, and she can hardly look at him. It’s not fair. They shouldn’t get married. I’d bet you a thousand dollars she’ll cheat on him. I bet she’s cheating on him right now. ”

  I stopped, a little out of breath. Nick was looking at me oddly. “The window’s open,” he said softly.

  Oh…crotch. I turned my head…yes, crotch. Indeed. Lainey looked nervous, her eyes darting between me and her fiancé as she twisted her ring. Because of course, I was right.

  Alec was staring at me, his mouth opened slightly, as if I’d just clubbed him with a shovel. Sorry, mister. Slowly, he turned to his fiancée. “Do you love me, Lainey?” he asked.

  She hesitated, then fixed a smile on her face and took his hand, her acrylic nails gleaming like claws. “Of caws me wuvs oo! Oo’s mah favewit cowboy!”

  He bought it. Of course he did. Well, any man who spoke LOL Kitty clearly had no self-respect, and soon, another of my divorce-attorney brethren would have a new client.

  “Take a walk,” Nick said in a low voice. “I’ll meet you at the car in twenty minutes. ”

  I walked. An unfamiliar sensation sloshed in my stomach, and it took me a minute to name it. Shame. I was right, I knew. Everything I said would come true, I’d bet my liver with a side of kidney. Was it wrong to try to save LOL Kitty Man some heartbreak? Granted, maybe the truth shouldn’t have come from a stranger, but at least he heard it. Maybe late at night, he’d have a revelation. Dump her, find some kindhearted woman who really appreciated him and end up happy.

  But probably not. Probably, he’d marry that manipulative little money-grubber and live miserably ever after.

  The disappointment on Nick’s face…that hurt. Crap.

  Being right wasn’t everything.

  Coco trotted neatly along, her strong little legs a blur. She stopped to sniff a streetlight, one of four in the downtown area. Townspeople were out and about on their errands, the men clad in jeans and flannel shirts, green John Deere caps or, in the case of a few, cowboy hats. The women were similarly attired, sturdy and capable. In my linen pants and pink silk shirt, silver bracelets and expensive shoes, I definitely stuck out.

  I missed Kim, who liked me, and Dennis, who had never once been disappointed in me, or made me feel as if I was wrong, or misguided. I missed Willa, who always loved me, even when I was telling her what not to do. Then again, she saw potential in everyone.

  What would it be to think like that? Trusting the universe, believing in the goodness of people the way Willa did, going with the flow…she made it look so easy. Not that it always paid off, of course. And now she was married. Would we stay as close? Since we hadn’t spent our whole lives together, since we’d missed out on those early formative years, maybe our bond wasn’t as strong as blood sisters.

  I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and hit her number. Much to my surprise, she answered.

  “Hey!” I said. “How are you?”

  “Hi,
Harper,” she answered. “I’m okay. How are you? Chris said that you and Nick went to South Dakota or something? Flight problems?”

  “Yeah. We’re almost there. North Dakota, actually. But don’t worry about that. How are you? Where are you?”

  “Oh…I’m okay. We’re somewhere in Glacier. Somewhere cold. It’s…fine. ”

  My ears pricked up. “You sure?”

  “Well, yeah. This isn’t quite…you know. It’s a little tough. We’re camping. Actually, we’re just sort of huddling in a tent. Christopher can’t seem to make a fire. Not a warm one, anyway. ”

  “Well, you’ll be home soon, right? Back in New York?”

  She didn’t answer for a minute. “I don’t know. Chris wants to stay. ”

  Her tone was not promising. “You okay with that?”

  “I don’t know. I’m just…adjusting. ” She hesitated, then spoke again, her voice decidedly more chipper. “So how’d you end up with Nick?

  “I was kind of stuck. Flight problems. I might have had to camp, too. ”

  “Well, camping sucks, so I’m glad you didn’t have to,” she said, a smile in her voice. “I should go. My battery’s dying. ”

  “Okay. ” I paused. “You have my credit card number, right? If you need anything?”

  “Yeah. You’re great. I’ll call you soon, okay?”

  Feeling a little melancholy, I went into the small gift shop down the street. “Is it okay if I bring in my dog?” I asked. Coco, sensing she was being judged, wagged her tail and tilted her head adorably, then lifted her front paw.

  “Sure thing,” the woman behind the counter said. “Oh, aren’t you a cute puppy!”

  I browsed the shop…dream catchers and fossils, Native American souvenirs and silver earrings. Belt buckles that could slice a person in half, they were so big. An array of T-shirts.

  “Can I have one of those?” I asked, pointing to a display.

  “Sure can,” the clerk answered. I paid, she handed me the bag and off we went, Coco and I, down the street.

  Nick was waiting for me, leaning against the car. “I’m sorry I made a scene,” I said, handing him the bag. He took out the gift. It was a T-shirt, emblazoned with the words Montana. There’s nothing here.

  A reluctant smile came to his face. “Thanks,” he said.

  “You’re welcome. ” I looked at the ground.

  “They’re fine,” he said, reading my mind. “I told them you’d just gotten out of a relationship and were a bitter, jealous hag, and I was taking you to an ashram in North Dakota. ”

  “Does North Dakota have ashrams?” I asked.

  “You’re welcome,” he said pointedly.

  “Thanks. I guess they can implode on their own. ”

  “That’s my girl. ”

  Strange, that those words made me feel as good as they did.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  NICK CONTINUED TO LET me drive, mercifully, and the fields flew past. The sky turned gun-metal gray, and the temperature seemed to be dropping. Gusts of wind occasionally walloped the car, but the classic Mustang hummed along with a satisfying growl. Sweet, in Nick’s words. Wasted on one who rode the subways and hadn’t learned to drive until college, but sweet nonetheless.

  We passed into North Dakota, which didn’t look too different from Montana. It was flatter, maybe. Distant clumps of trees shivered in the wind like a mirage under the gray sky. Once in a while, I’d catch a glimpse of an antelope or deer, but otherwise, we seemed to be alone out here.

  Two more hours till Bismarck, according to the map. Almost there. Almost safe.