I changed my answer. “Actually, that’s a lie. I will tell him.” If I ever actually had a chance to speak to him again. “I told you before—we’re working on honesty. I can’t betray him.” Even if he’d betrayed me by not being forthcoming.
My transparency had likely cost me Stacy’s cooperation, but my only other option was to lie to her. And that seemed shitty too.
She pursed her lips, her eyes darting back and forth between me and Liesl. Finally, she sighed, leaning back on the counter behind her. “What do you want to know?”
Knowing our time was short, I jumped right in. “Why did you film Hudson and Celia kissing? I mean, what did you plan to do with the video in the first place?”
“Prove he was lying.” She said it matter-of-factly, as if I’d understand with just that much. When she realized I didn’t, she expounded. “I was supposed to meet him that night. For coffee—I think I told you that before. As I was walking up, I saw him with her. He’d protested so much about them being a couple that I knew he’d deny it again. So I filmed it. As proof.”
My chest tightened. Oh, how the protest story sounded familiar. Still, there were holes. “But you never showed it to him.”
She shook her head. “I didn’t end up needing to. I walked up to them right after I filmed it. While they were still...like that.” She cringed as if the memory of seeing them kissing hurt her.
I knew how that felt. And it hurt doubly that Stacy was upset about it. She obviously had something with him, even though he’d denied it. How many women had he been with that he’d told me he hadn’t? Was Norma also on that list?
Well, that I’d find out tomorrow, if all went as planned.
Stacy brushed a strand of golden hair off her face. “I’d filmed them in case they stopped before I got there. In case he denied it. But he didn’t.”
No, denial wasn’t Hudson’s thing—redirection was. And avoidance.
Or maybe that was just with me. “What did he do when he saw you?”
Stacy’s nose crinkled as she recalled the scene. “He acted surprised, even though I was supposed to be meeting him. Or maybe it was because he’d lost track of time or forgotten he was meeting me. I don’t know. Celia apologized first, which was strange because I didn’t realize she knew anything about me. Then Hudson apologized. Most of the explaining came from Celia. I guess he was shocked to have been caught or something. I really didn’t listen to most of what she said. I was shocked as well. And too busy feeling stupid.”
“Feeling stupid?” This was where I needed clarification. Hudson had seemed honestly perplexed when I’d mentioned Stacy had been there to meet him.
“Yes, stupid. He’d made me feel like he liked me, you know?” She seemed to be recalling an old ache that hadn’t healed entirely. “And all the time he was with her. Why would he do that? ”
“Why do any men cheat on their women?” Liesl asked then returned to biting the nail she’d been working on since we’d arrived.
I frowned. Of all the negative traits I was realizing about my lover, I sure hoped cheating wasn’t one I had to add to the list.
Stacy protested the logic in that. “He asked me to meet him, though. Hudson Pierce doesn’t seem like the type to mix up his dates. If anyone could successfully pull off an affair, that man could.”
That’s exactly why Norma scared me. But, like Stacy was saying, if Hudson were really with Norma—or back then, with Celia—wouldn’t he be better at covering his tracks? That was the part that didn’t make sense.
Maybe Stacy had misread his intentions. “How did he make you feel like he liked you? I thought you only accompanied him to that charity event last year.” Taking a stab in the dark, I added, “I didn’t realize you were together.”
Stacy lowered her eyes. “We weren’t. Not really.” She ran her hands along the counter behind her. “After that charity event he never asked me out again. But we talked a lot—by email. He flirted. Sent me flowers a couple of times. That’s why I thought there was a possibility. That night on the video was the first time he’d offered to see me in person again.”
“Maybe they were dicking with you together.” Liesl wiped her freshly “manicured” hand on her jeans. “You know. Like maybe the emails weren’t from him.”
“You mean Celia sent them?” I considered it. I’d certainly learned Celia wasn’t to be trusted, that she’d manipulate information for her benefit. “Yeah, she could have.” And I liked that scenario better than some of the others.
Stacy, on the other hand, didn’t like the idea at all. She straightened up to her full height and narrowed her eyes in my direction. “Are you saying that you think Hudson couldn’t possibly like me? That’s pretty nervy to assume. What, you don’t think I’m good enough for him?”
Man, that woman had claws. It wasn’t even me who’d suggested the idea.
I put my hands up in an attempt to calm her. “No. That’s not it at all. There’s just details that don’t add up. Like you said he seemed surprised to see you there. And when I mentioned you being there to meet him, he had no idea what I was talking about. Total deer in the headlights. Maybe he was faking his reaction—I’m not denying that’s a possibility. But that’s exactly why I wanted to talk to you. I’m trying to figure it out for myself.”
Liesl poked me with her elbow. “And tell her about Celia WerWhore.”
I ignored her jab though it inwardly made me smile. “That’s the other thing, Stacy. Celia tried to pull a scam on me recently. And now she’s messing with me in other ways. I may not be the first of Hudson’s interests to get that treatment.”
Stacy’s posture didn’t change, but her expression said she was pondering the new information. “So when he took me to the charity event, I showed up on her radar?”
“Possibly.” I hoped that was it. Otherwise Hudson was lying to me about his relationship with Stacy. “And possibly not.” That was the problem with secrets—anything was potentially the truth.
Stacy’s eyes grew dim, as if the idea that all of it had been a hoax disappointed her more than catching the guy she liked with another woman. I got that. She’d wanted Hudson Pierce to be interested in her. Simply by being a woman, I could relate to crushing on a guy. Being me, I could relate to crushing on Hudson. If I’d discovered he’d faked being into me…well, that would have been more devastating than the current situation I was in.
I decided to give her some compassion. “But even if it wasn’t Hudson who wrote those emails, Celia obviously thought you were a threat. That has to mean he showed some interest in you in front of her.”
Stacy blew out a stream of air. “It’s actually an interesting theory. It fits in some ways.”
“Do tell.” Liesl was as eager now for the information as I was.
“Like I said, he did act strange when I came up to him. And whenever he came in the shop, he ignored me. As if he hadn’t said all the beautiful things he’d said to me online. He was very poetic. His emails were like long letters.”
“I’m not claiming to know who the actual author was,” I started tentatively, afraid of hurting Stacy’s feelings more, “but from what I know of Hudson, he’s not much of a letter writer. And Celia does seem to be comfortable around the literary world.” The quotes she’d picked to highlight in my books indicated as such, anyway.
“What was the email address he sent from?” Occasionally Liesl came up with things I should have asked.