“I’m so sorry.” Joe fastened his seat belt and started the car. “She’s usually not like that, at least not with people she doesn’t know.”
Fiona snorted. Unladylike, but at this point she really didn’t care. That dinner had been an unmitigated disaster. Now all she wanted to do was go home, change into something more comfortable, make sure her ass wasn’t actually approaching the size of Rhode Island, and put this godforsaken day behind her. “Your mother hated me before she even met me.”
Joe’s jaw muscles flexed. He released the emergency brake and put the car into gear. “I swear it’s not you. It’s—”
“Gina. Yeah, I know. Smart, beautiful, perfect Gina, whom I’ll never measure up to in your mother’s eyes no matter what I say or do.” That bothered her a lot more than it should, but she refused to dwell on it. “So what’s the story with the love of your life? The real story—I’m not in the mood for BS.”
Silence hung heavy in the air as Joe drove out of the lot. He stared straight ahead, his body tense, his eyes flat and unreadable. Ahead, the traffic light went from green to yellow, and he punched the gas to make it through the intersection before the yellow changed to red.
After what felt like forever, he blew out an audible breath. “She’s the daughter of an old family friend. I’ve known her for as long as I can remember.”
“Let me guess: high school sweethearts.” Just saying that out loud made her stomach twist like a pretzel.
To her surprise, Joe shook his head. “We knew each other in high school but we ran in different circles. Then she went to college, I joined the Navy, and we kind of lost track of each other. It wasn’t until one of the times I came home on leave that we reconnected. One thing led to another, I asked her out, and we just…clicked, you know? It felt like we were meant to be together.”
“This is beginning to sound like a Hallmark movie.” And why on earth did that trigger an irrational spike of jealousy in her? She had no claim over Joe. They weren’t romantically involved in any way, shape, or form. And yet the thought of him with another woman was making Fiona see red.
“It wasn’t perfect,” he said. “There were months when I was away on missions and had to go radio silent. It was hard on both of us. But then I’d come home, and it wouldn’t take long for things to go back to the way they were before.”
Fiona shifted in her seat. “So what changed?”
Joe adjusted his grip on the wheel. “I got sent to—well, where I went isn’t important. I was gone for six months with no means of communicating with anyone back home. It sucked, but it gave me a lot of time to think about what I was doing, and what I really wanted to be doing. Most important, it gave me time to decide what I wanted my future to look like.” His jaw muscles flexed again, while his eyes remained fixed on the road. “Once we were stateside, I booked the first flight home. I had it all planned out: a dozen white roses, a big-ass ring, and a one-kneed proposal at the restaurant where we went on our first date. Sappy, I know, but I wanted to do it up right so she’d say yes.”
The trace of a smile on his face faded, and his voice turned cold and bitter. “Then I walked through the door and found her curled up on the couch with a guy who was supposed to be my best friend.”
Fiona’s breath caught in her throat. “What did you do?”
“I got the hell out of there before I did something stupid that would have landed me in jail and jeopardized my military career. It was tempting, though. I almost gave in. To this day, a part of me still wishes I’d beaten the living shit out of Doug.”
She’d never been one to advocate violence, but she certainly understood the sentiment. She couldn’t even imagine how she would have reacted to that kind of shock. “Is that why you’re on a dating moratorium?”
He nodded, his expression on the verge of apologetic. “Don’t get me wrong, I don’t blame all women for what happened with Gina, but I thought it was a good idea to take an extended break from the dating scene. I didn’t want to inflict my anger and trust issues on anyone who didn’t deserve it.”
She’d felt the same way after leaving Dennis. Not so much the anger, but he’d definitely given her trust issues, plus a boatload of insecurities. She was making progress in sorting them out, but God only knew when she’d finally work through them all. “Does your mother know why you separated?”
He nodded again, his right hand wrapped around the gearshift, while the left continued to hold the steering wheel in a death grip. “Ma was pretty upset when everything blew up. For a time, she was even mad at Gina. But she and Gina’s mom have been best friends since they were little girls, so it didn’t take all that long for my mother to find it in her heart to forgive her. Once that happened, she expected me to follow suit.”
“I’m guessing that didn’t happen.”
“You would be correct.” Joe changed lanes and passed a slow-moving minivan with Arkansas plates. “I can tolerate a lot of shit, but cheating isn’t one of them. And none of that three strikes bullshit either. If they cheat, it’s over. No exceptions.”
She couldn’t agree with him more.
The passing streetlights highlighted the tension bracketing Joe’s eyes and the corners of his mouth. It was hard to get over that kind of betrayal. It cut you all the way down to the bone and laid waste to your sense of trust. One day you might find it in your heart to forgive, but forgetting was a whole other matter.
Silence filled the air between them as the last of her anger dissipated. It wasn’t fair to get mad at Joe for the way Mrs. Pinto had treated her. He couldn’t control his mother any more than she could control Dennis. Hell, they’d agreed to this fake relationship just to deal with other people’s bad behavior. And now that she knew what to expect, she could prepare for whatever came her way the next time. It wouldn’t be a day at the beach, but if she could wrangle a room full of unruly students, then she could handle one middle-aged woman for a few more days.
Joe exited the highway and hooked a right onto the street that led to their apartment complex. “Look, I understand if you don’t want to deal with my mother anymore. How she treated you was totally wrong. But you can still call me whenever that dickhead shows up at your apartment.”
She appreciated him giving her an out, but she wasn’t ready to take it, at least not yet. “Thanks, but you’re not getting rid of me that easily. We made a deal; I’ll keep my end of the bargain. Just be aware I won’t be so nice if she treats me that way again.”
“I’d pay good money to see that.” The ghost of a smile warmed his mouth before his expression turned serious. “I really am sorry about the way Ma acted. She hasn’t mentioned Gina in ages; I thought she’d given up on the idea of us getting back together. Next time, I’ll make sure she behaves herself around you.”
At the light, Joe turned in to their apartment complex, and just when Fiona thought she could put this day behind her, she stiffened at the sight of Dennis’s unmarked patrol car parked between two SUVs. That part of the lot wasn’t very well lit, but she could just make out the shadow of a man seated behind the steering wheel.
“Your ex is back,” Joe said.
“I know.”
