All Good Things Read Online Free PDF Page B

wasn't like it was survivors guilt or anything."
    I had been waiting for this talk, and quite frankly, I was humiliated it had even come to this point. I'd spoken to the guy for a few hours. We exchanged awkward words and heated moments...well, they were heated on my part. Regardless, I had no excuse for my obsession of him. Trisha was right, I needed to move on and forget Jace and all his glory, ever existed.
    "I'll eat." I mumbled. I didn't want to continue with this conversation. It was too much.
    "You are beautiful and brilliant. A man like him would only dull your light, honey. You need someone who isn't so...haunted." She shivered as she thought of Jace and my heart sped up.
    "Haunted?"
    "Yeah, while you were in the hospital," she paused at the memory. "He just seemed like he needed you to live so he could live. It was weird. I didn't like him from the moment I met him."
    "Oh,"
    She continued and I took another bite of oatmeal in hopes she would continue talking if I continued eating. "It's obvious he is a man in power. I mean; no one called him Jace, but me. They all referred to him as Mr. Rush," she laughed. "And when I called him by his first name, people looked at me like I'd sprouted another head."
    "Really?" I needed her to continue talking. I hadn't known his last name before now. I decided then, I would Google him as soon as I got a minute away from Trisha's worry-filled eyes. For now, I was soaking up every miniscule tidbit of information she threw me. I was a woman possessed.
    "I know, right? Who goes by their last name?" She shook her head. "It's so cold."
    "Totally." I agreed, in hopes she would give me something more.
    "Anyway," she shook her head. I felt my heart sink into the pit of my stomach. Suddenly, the half bowl of oatmeal I gorged didn't make me feel so hot. The nerves were back. "I thought we would go visit the site for your café bookstore today. You should really get back to work or you'll never get it open."
    I nodded. She was right. My dream of opening something simple and homey was being stomped on by the memory of a brutally egotistical man. Opening a café bookstore had been a dream of mine since I was a little girl. My parents tried relentlessly to dissuade me from the idea over the years, but I adamantly refused to be swayed. It was a feat I was proud of.
    My parents had wanted me to partner with my brother in hopes the two of us would take over my fathers practice. But, law had never held a smidgen of interest for me. It was so stuffy, and serious, and well...it was depressing. I wanted to find happiness in my life. As a child, there had been little to no joy available.
    I was well aware that a café bookstore wouldn't offer me the kind of lifestyle I had been raised to desire, but I knew first-hand what money did to a family. I hadn't decided for certain if I even wanted a family. I was only twenty-two and in my opinion, that was far too young to bring a child into my life. But, I knew what I did want. I wanted to wake up everyday with the knowledge that I was fulfilling a deep routed passion. I wanted to be happy.
    I pushed away from the island counter and stood. "I'm going to get into the shower."
    Trisha clapped her hands excitedly and a high-pitched squeal of self-satisfied excitement echoed behind me as I made my way down the hall to my bedroom. Our condo was nice, but it was nothing spectacular. There were two bedrooms, each with their own bathroom attached. I'd had enough money from my grandfather's inheritance to lease the apartment for one year. I paid my half and Trisha's parents paid hers. I spent the rest of his money opening my café bookstore. I hoped to God my risk paid off, because I really could not afford to live in New York any other way. And, I could not ask my parents for a dime. I hadn't spoken to them since moving across the globe. They disowned me when I decided to follow my own dreams rather than obliging to theirs. I knew it was going to be hard, but I was