“Nope. I didn’t mention a word about a monkey.” Fallon quirked a brow, placed her elbows on the bar, and tucked her palms under her chin. “It’s been blue for three days, and you’ve seen it already.”
“Oh.” Emily went back to tracing the numbers.
“What do you got there?” Before Emily could answer, Fallon swiped the order pad. “What are all of these numbers?”
“It’s nothing.” Emily yanked it back from Fallon’s grasp.
Frowning, Fallon studied Emily’s face, her expression thick with concern. “Country, I’m not trying to be dark or dismal, but that’s not some kind of countdown to you killing yourself, right?”
Eyes wide in shock, Emily leaned back. “Jesus, Fallon, do you honestly think I would do that?”
“Just answer the question, Country. Is that some kind of countdown?”
Emily sighed and tapped the pad on the granite surface of the bar. “It’s been nine days since he left, Fallon. Nine days since I completely destroyed him. I’ve called, and he hasn’t answered.”
“Right, but he hasn’t answered anyone’s calls.” Fallon snaked her arm around Emily’s shoulder. “Colton told Trevor the other day he hasn’t even answered for him.”
“I understand that, but Colton’s not the reason he left. I am.” Emily shook her head, trying hard to fight back tears. “He handed me his heart, and I threw it away. I made him leave his family, his friends… his entire life.”
“Emily, first of all, you need to stop beating yourself up. Considering what you saw that morning, he’s lucky you even believe him. I’m not saying you shouldn’t, but let’s be real. That was some pretty heavy shit. Second, he left because he thought you were marrying Dillon. Once he finds out you didn’t, you know he’ll come right back.”
“He already knows I didn’t marry Dillon,” Emily whispered, her heart breaking all over again. “Olivia told me Colton left a message with his housekeeper. He let him know I didn’t go through with it.”
“Oh. I didn’t know that,” Fallon mumbled and looked away. She twirled a piece of her hair and brought her attention back to Emily. “Maybe he just needs more time?”
“I don’t know what to think anymore.” Emily rubbed her temples. “All I know is I’m lost without him.”
Fallon frowned and twisted her body toward Emily. Before she could say anything, Trevor snuck up behind her and tickled her ribcage.
Eyes wide, Fallon jerked around. “Trevor!” she squeaked, garnering Antonio’s unwanted attention. He glared at her from across the restaurant. Fallon bit her lip and mouthed, “Sorry.” Antonio shook his head and resumed eating his lunch. “You asshole,” Fallon whispered, pushing Trevor away.
Trevor chuckled and popped a kiss on top of Fallon’s head. “Sorry. I forgot you were ticklish, Blue.”
“Sure you did, jackass.” Fallon grimaced and stood up. “What are you doing here so early? You know I’m not off for another two hours.”
“I actually came to talk to Emily.” Trevor looked at Emily, his smile guarded. “Are you off yet?”
“No, not yet.” Emily rose, plucking her order pad from the bar. Drawing in a deep breath, she glanced at it and shoved it into her apron. “I have another half hour until my shift is over.”
“Country, I can keep an eye on your tables while you talk to my forgetful boyfriend.” After shooting Trevor a look, Fallon slung her arm over Emily’s shoulder. “I’ll take care of your side work, and I’ll even make sure the monkey at table twelve gets dessert.”
Trevor scratched his chin, his brows drawn together. “Monkey?”
“Yeah. A monkey.” Fallon slapped Trevor’s back and aimed a wink in Emily’s direction. Trevor shrugged. “Go ahead. Talk to him, and I’ll call you later.”
“Are you sure?” Emily asked, pulling her hair out of its ponytail.
“Yep. I’ll call you tonight.” Fallon placed a chaste kiss on Trevor’s cheek and walked away.
Trevor looked at Emily. “Want to go sit in a booth?”
“Sure.” Emily untied her apron and made her way behind the bar. “Do you want something to drink?”
“No, I’m cool. Thanks.”
After making herself a double espresso, she led Trevor to a booth tucked in the back of the restaurant. Emily slid into the seat and sipped the hot liquid. With sleep coming close to non-existent the past several days, she hoped the double shot of caffeine would shock her zombie-like system back to life.
Trevor gazed at Emily, his eyes shimmering with remorse. “First, I want to say I feel like an asshole about this whole thing with Dillon.”
Emily shifted, taken aback from his sudden declaration. “Come on, Trevor, none of this is your fault.”
“No, Emily, really. I need you to hear me out, all right?”
Reluctantly, Emily nodded.
“I’m sorry this is the first time I’ve come to see you since all this shit went down. Part of me wanted to show up the day it happened, but I couldn’t. Over the past year, I watched, without saying a fucking word, as he tore you down.” Trevor paused, his fingers nervously tugging at the white linen tablecloth. “I remember how vibrant you were when you two started dating, and piece by piece, he dismantled everything about you. Don’t get me wrong, I think I knew things were starting to get bad, but I guess I didn’t realize how bad.”