City of Sin Read Free Page A

promised me that he'd never leave me.
    "So, what is this Mason guy like?" My voice sounded
small. I wanted to move on too. I wanted to be able to heal.
    "He's super handsome," Carter said and laughed.
    Marie rolled her eyes. "He's fun. I think he's exactly
the kind of guy you should be dating right now."
    "So he's gross?"
    "No. He just knows how to have a good time. He's always
the life of the party. Like I said before, he's charming."
    "Is he friends with Patrick too?"
    "Not that I know of." Marie looked at Carter.
    "I don't think they've ever met," Carter said.
    "Okay. I'll do it."

Chapter 3
    Bee
    I jumped onto my bed and pulled the covers up to my chin. My
apartment was cold. Everything was cold. I was homesick. The only reason I had
come here was Patrick. And now that he was gone, I wasn't sure what I was
doing. I couldn't afford to continue living here on a secretary's salary. The
apartment had seemed warm and full of life when Patrick had been here with me.
But now it was easy to see it for what it really was. It was rundown and the
heater was on the fritz.
    I didn't want to pitch my ideas during the staff meeting
tomorrow. And I didn't want to go on a blind date with some random guy. I was
so sick of this city. Nothing good had happened to me here. New York had taken
everything from me. All I wanted to do was go home.
    Before I could change my mind, I picked up my cell phone,
scrolled through my contact list, and pressed the call button. The phone rang.
    "Hi, sweetie! How's the big city treating you?"
    "Hi, Mom." My voice caught slightly.
    "Sweetie, what's wrong?"
    "I just want to come home." I pulled my knees to my
chest.
    "Oh, Bee." Her voice was soothing.
    I couldn't help it. I started to cry. It was so nice to hear
her voice. "Mom. I hate it here. What am I doing?"
    "What happened? I thought you liked your new job? And
what about all the new friends you said you made? You seemed so happy last time
we talked."
    "No." I always tried to pretend everything was okay
around my mother. I didn't want her to have to worry about me. But I needed her
right now. "I'm stuck. I don't think I'll ever move up in the
company."
    "Sweetie, you've never been scared of hard work. What's
really wrong?"
    "Everything. I don't belong here. I never wanted to come
to this city in the first place. I followed Patrick here blindly. I lost myself
in him. What the hell was I thinking?"
    "You were in love. You weren't thinking."
    I laughed and wiped away the tears under my eyes. "God,
I feel like such an idiot."
    "You know you can always come home. But don't let
Patrick be the reason that you're running away from the city."
    "I just feel so defeated. I don't know why it still
hurts so much."
    "I know. You remind me so much of myself, Bee. We both
love so hard that we forget to take care of our own hearts."
    My father had cheated on her. When she found out, it had
completely broken her. I grew up faster watching the pain in her eyes. And I
told myself I would never let it happen to me. Patrick had seemed like such a
nice guy, though. The perfect guy. I felt like we were two parts of a whole.
The city had gotten in our way. Or maybe he had expected me to change somehow.
But I thought that he loved me the way I was. The way I am.
    I didn't want to fall apart because of him. He didn't deserve
that. If he didn't need me than I certainly didn't need him. My mom was right.
If I left the city now it would be because of him. I ran my thumb along the
spot where my engagement ring used to be. I wouldn't give Patrick the
satisfaction.
    "Does it get easier?" I asked.
    "It does. It just takes time."
    "More than six months I guess?"
    "Maybe a little more than six months. I know I said you
were a lot like me, Bee. But you're different in a lot of ways too. You're
stronger than me."
    "Mom..."
    "You are. You're going to do everything you set out to
do in New York. And one day you're going to stop thinking about Patrick. And
you'll find the person that you're really