A Heart's End - A Billionaire Romance Novel (Romance, Billionaire Romance, Life After Love Book 6) by Adams Nancy

Author:Adams, Nancy [Adams, Nancy]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Published: 2017-04-27T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Glancing around the restaurant, Paul observed that the place hadn’t changed much since his parents had last taken him there when he’d celebrated his graduation from college some four years ago. Across the table from him sat Shelly. That week Paul had summoned the courage to ask her out on a date. She’d immediately agreed and they set a day that meant Shelly could easily find a babysitter for Lacey.

Now the date was on and both of them sat fidgeting a little as they got their drinks—both ordering Coke—and looked down at their menus, occasionally glancing up at one another and blushing, before resettling their eyes on the menus. Once they’d finished ordering, they sat in silence, now and then picking up a breadstick from a basket in the middle of the table and munching on it.

“So,” Shelly said, clearing her throat a little as she did, “how you finding life back in Casselton?”

“Relaxing…or boring! Whichever way you look at it. In fact, I got a little work at my father’s surgery. It’s only filing and helping out, but it keeps me busy for part of the day. Plus I think the old man likes to keep an eye on me.”

“Why would he want to keep an eye on you?” Shelly asked innocently enough.

Paul looked a little embarrassed and searched for an answer that wouldn’t put her off of him.

“I guess because I gave up my residency in New York and split up with Claire, they think I might be a little vulnerable.” He put great emphasis on this last word.

“Oh!” Shelley exclaimed lightly. “But you’re not, though, right? Vulnerable?”

“No not at all. I mean, I was real down for sure. I was drinking every day and I had a panic attack while at the hospital. But I wasn’t suicidal. And I’m not now. Just because I was down, didn’t automatically mean I’d hurt myself. But I guess my folks aren’t convinced.”

“You’d just lost your girlfriend,” Shelly said with compassion. “You were entitled to fall off the rails a little. When Ben left, I took Lacey to stay with her grandparents and spent a whole week at home on my own drinking and crying. I felt that I needed something, needed to embrace that pain. I had a problem with drink for a while.” This last part had been whispered, and she’d glanced about them as she’d said it.

“You did?” Paul asked in surprise.

“Yeah, I had to go to some AA meetings. Even had a sponsor for a year. And haven’t drunk a drop since.”

“I wouldn’t have believed that Shelly Temple—prom queen, class president, cheerleading captain—would need to go to AA.”

“It was real bad. I kept waking up and not knowing what I’d done the day before. I would have these blackouts.”

Paul felt a warm glow emerge inside of him as she spoke. He felt a kindredness beginning between the two of them.

“I also blacked out,” he began. “You see this?” And here he lifted his hairline slightly to reveal the not-yet-fully healed gash on his head.

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