Page 102 of The Recovery Coach
She’d spent the last week texting Valentine about every weird thing Connor did.Valentine was convinced their plan had worked perfectly, but Olivia failed to see how Connor dating somebody else helped them.
“I haven’t been home in a week, and he didn’t even want to talk to me.”The sadness in Valentine’s voice hurt Olivia’s heart.
“This is how he’s been.”
She stretched her legs out over the chaise and patted her lap.Valentine rested his head in it and stared at the ceiling.She played with his hair as they talked.
“He texted me this morning about how excited he was to see me.He said he’d be home.”
“He told me he’d be home too.I don’t think he planned to go out tonight,” Olivia said.
Valentine paused to consider.“I didn’t expect to hurt my own feelings so much in this process.I wish he would crack so we can go back to normal.”
His words gave Olivia a deep sense of solidarity.“I’ve been struggling all month.”
“Is he always acting weird, or only sometimes?”
She tried to remember the last time he’d acted normal.She couldn’t think of anything after his first date with Tiffany.“Always weird.”
“Does he always see the same girl?That’s what seems odd to me.He doesn’t usually do multiple hook-ups with one person.At least not close together.”
“Same girl.He’s gone out with her like four times this week.”
Valentine frowned.“What did you guys do the day before he got weird?”
“He cut and dyed my hair.”
He grabbed a strand of pink, twirling it in his fingers.“It looks beautiful, by the way.”
“Thanks!He did a great job, huh?”
“Fantastic job.He’s the only one I trust to cut my hair.”
“Isn’t it funny he learned on YouTube?”she asked.
“I thought his mom taught him.”
Olivia snorted.“Why on earth would you think that?”
“Wasn’t she a hairdresser?”
“Uh, no.”She laughed, imagining Christina Hale cutting someone’s hair.Mark was more likely to attempt something like that.“He experimented on me during our teen years.It’s something we did for fun.”
“That’s adorable.”
“Yeah.We were cute as hell.”She remembered all the crazy phases she’d gone through.And all the beautiful ones.The memories brought a wave of nostalgia, and she rubbed at the twinge in her chest.“This whole thing sucks.It was the first time in years I truly felt like myself.Like one of the puzzle pieces of my life had slotted into place.I miss him.”
“I miss him too.But we knew we’d have to get a little uncomfortable.In the grand scheme of life, this is going to be worth it.What else did you guys do?Or did your hair take a long time?It looks like it took a long time.”
“It did, but it’s mostly waiting around.He was sweet.I came home and dumped this idea on him, and he ran with it.I got the whole salon treatment.Then we got tipsy and watched a movie we liked as kids.”
“Sounds like a great evening.”
Olivia bit her lip, debating how much to tell Valentine.She feared she was delusional.“It was.I think he flirted with me.”
“He always flirts with you.”
“Yeah.But this felt different.It could have been the alcohol, but there were a few moments when I thought he might say ‘fuck it’ and kiss me.”
