The next morning at six, his car cruised past her. ra had been on her feet all night, and though exhaustion weighed heavily on her, her eyes sparkled when she saw him.
"Mr. Dn..." she called out, but the car didn''t even slow down.
With a sigh, she resumed her vigil. She waited until afternoon, standing in the biting cold of a New York winter. Her feet felt like blocks of ice as the temperature continued to drop. Snow began to fall again, and she sniffled, knowing she couldn''t leave until Dn''s anger had melted away.
Somehow, Simon caught wind of her standing outside Dn''s ce in Palm Bay and showed up in no time, his voiceced with irritation when he saw her.
"ra! What on earth are you doing here? Why are you camped outside Dn''s house?"
Ever since hisst run-in with Jacob, Simon was convinced ra had feelings for him. But her silence left him unsure, leading to countless rants to his rowdy group of friends.
In the past, they all sneered at ra, seeing Simon''s devotion as a joke. They''d often egg him on. Lately, though, Simon''s attitude shifted. Whenever he got drunk, ra''s name was the only thing on his lips, muttering about love and loss.
"How could she just stop loving me? Did she ever really love me at all?"
"Is Jacob just a ceholder? Am I? Are we both?"
"No way, I''m Simon! I''m decent-looking and loaded. ra must be blind to treat me like a substitute."
He''d go on and on, sprawled over a club table, while his friends, always quick to back him up, joined in on the ra-bashing.
"Why waste your time on her? There are plenty of better women in New York. If you''re unhappy, let''s move on."
At this, Simon would snap upright, "I won''t have anyone badmouth ra. It''s my fault. I was foolish to fall for someone as toxic as Quinn, and sleeping with her tainted me in ra''s eyes."
He''d keepmenting until everyone ran out of words. He could criticize ra, but no one else was allowed to.
Now, standing by ra, Simon saw her cheeks flushed red from the cold and angrily started to shrug off his coat.
"What happened with you and Dn?"
He was puzzled, trying to drape his coat over her shoulders, but she stepped aside.
Simon felt frustration boiling up, almost ready tosh out, but he bit his tongue, remembering he was trying to win her over.
"Come on, ra. Just be honest with me. Did you use Jacob as my stand-in? If you still care for me, let''s quit this back-and-forth and get married. I''ll do whatever you want."
The idea of marriage made his eyes light up, imagining a future with ra. She had always been good to him, and her cooking was amazing. A life with her would be blissful. His lips curved into a hopeful smile until she responded coldly.
"I''ve said it a hundred times-I don''t like you."
Simon''s smile vanished, and he tried once more to wrap his coat around her.
ra frowned, a memory shing in her mind.
Long ago, she had made him soup. It was freezing, and she waited for him toe down and get it, but he was upstairs with Quinn, who was pretending to be sick, ignoring her calls. ra had waited until the soup went cold, then took it back home to reheat.
She rubbed her temples, feeling a pang of sympathy for her past self. To put an end to Simon''s persistence, she spoke inly.
"Simon, I have boundaries. You slept with Quinn. We can never be."
Simon felt as if he''d been stabbed, angrily throwing his coat to the ground. "ra, you!!"
Hadn''t she been with someone else too? Who was her mystery man? Was it Dn? The curiosity was eating him alive.
He wouldn''t care if she''d been with someone else, so why did his past matter so much to her?
The more he thought about it, the more wronged he felt, even suspecting his night with Quinn was a setup, knowing her maniptive ways.
His eyes reddened, his finger nearly jabbing at ra''s face.
"I must''ve been set up with Quinn!"
ra looked at him calmly and dropped a question that cut to the core.
"Even if the first time was a setup, what about after that?"