Page 46 of Jenny
CHAPTER TWELVE
In the hospital lobby, Jenny called Susan to tell her Dare was upset and she was going to her hotel. When Susan asked why, Jenny told her to talk with her son.
The drive to the hotel seemed to take twice as long as usual. Jenny focused on the road. It was the only way to keep from falling apart. A burning charcoal briquette was lodged in her throat. A weight pressed against her chest.
She parked the car and hurried inside. The first two times she inserted her key card into the lock, the door to her room wouldn’t open. She tried again. The green diode illuminated.
Thank goodness.
Her shoulders sagged. She was struggling to hold herself together, but she only needed a few seconds more…
A push on the door handle, and she nearly fell into her room. Her bag slid off her shoulder. If not for her laptop inside, she would have let it fall to the carpet. Instead, she set her tote gently on the floor.
The door closed and…
Hot tears streamed down her face. All the hurt and confusion she was feeling poured out.
She wasn’t sure what had happened, but things had gone downhill fast. The finality in Dare’s eyes and the harshness in his voice when he told her to leave had broken her heart. She’d never seen him like that. Not even after a bad therapy session.
He hadn’t been asking her to leave his room.
Dare wanted her out of his life.
Go.
With trembling hands, Jenny pulled out her phone and called Missy.
No answer.
That brought more tears.
Between sobs, Jenny left a voice message. Most likely incoherent, but she’d tried.
With her cell still in hand, she collapsed on the bed. Her heart felt as if it were splitting into pieces. Sharp, fragmented ones that were cutting her from the inside.
Jenny’s phone rang. The ringtone belonged to Missy. “Hey.”
That was what Jenny had intended to say, but she had a feeling it was more of a grunt.
“What is going on?” Missy’s words tumbled out one on top of the other. “I couldn’t understand your message.”
“I was crying.”
“Because…”
“Dare and I…” Tears stung Jenny’s eyes again. She stared up at the ceiling, but that didn’t help. “It’s over.”
“What happened?”
Jenny explained how Dare’s question about her schedule and job evolved into accusations of her keeping secrets and him telling her to leave.
“Are you sure it’s over?” Missy asked. “I know what happened with Grant has kept you from getting serious about anybody, but I’ve never heard you talk about a man like you talk about Dare.”
“I was ready to pursue something more with Dare. I…I love him.”
“Oh, Jenny…”
“Love is the only thing that explains why I’m falling apart right now, but I was falling for him before this happened. And everything since then confirms it.”
