1022 Evergreen Place - Debbie Macomber [94]
“Has he asked about me?”
Teri nodded.
“Tell me,” Christie urged, and edged slightly forward, eager for the tiniest bit of information.
“This might come as a surprise but James can be stubborn, too,” Teri said.
No kidding.
A hundred questions flashed into her head. Did James miss her half as much as she missed him? Did he love her? She desperately wanted to believe he did. But if so, why hadn’t he made the slightest attempt to patch up their differences? For that matter, why hadn’t she? Why did she always sabotage herself like this?
Instead of approaching James with the goal of reconciliation, she’d plowed ahead with her studies, getting A’s on several tests, working long hours and doing everything she could not to think about him. She’d even cleaned her oven, which gave her a sense of accomplishment and a feeling of righteousness.
“What did he ask about me?” Christie inquired, unwilling to pretend disinterest for another minute.
“Oh, nothing much. He wanted to know how you were—that sort of thing.”
“Oh.” Disappointment fell heavily on her shoulders.
“He’s been traveling a lot,” Teri reiterated, placing emphasis on the he.
“Traveling with Bobby?” Her sister was trying to tell her something important, although Christie had never been much good at reading between the lines.
“Traveling with and without Bobby,” Teri clarified.
Christie frowned. “Whatever you want to say, would you just say it?”
“I would’ve told you a whole lot sooner if you’d asked,” Teri said, and pressed her lips primly together.
“Okay, fine. I’m asking now.”
Teri’s face lit up and she grew excited. “James invented an online game that he and Bobby have been working on day and night for weeks.”
“Online game?” Christie repeated. “A chess game?”
“Sort of,” her sister explained. “It starts out with a chessboard and two players.”
That didn’t seem to warrant the enthusiasm Teri displayed. “Okay, but what’s the big deal? I’m sure there are plenty of those.”
“This one’s different. When a player makes a particular move on the chessboard, he or she enters a parallel universe, which is set in medieval times. The player is confronted with knights and beasts and can end up in the same world or in different worlds at different times. It’s complicated. The game’s been compared to World of Warcraft. There are sixty levels and James has been asked to create more.”
“Is Bobby involved?”
“Yes, but minimally. This has been great for Bobby and James. The idea came from James and he did most of the work. It sold, Christie, and it sold big.”
“Big?”
“Really big.”
“Oh.” James hadn’t shared any of this success with her. No wonder he hadn’t been in touch. He had lots of things on his mind—and they didn’t include her.
“Is that all you have to say?” Teri looked dumbfounded by her lack of reaction.
“I’m…happy for him.”
“You don’t act very happy.”
She made a genuine attempt to smile. A moment later she noticed that Teri was staring at the entrance to the kitchen; Christie glanced up to see James standing there, looking healthy and vital and just so…good.
Her sister immediately stood. “I’m putting Robbie in his crib,” she whispered, blatantly an excuse to leave Christie and James alone.
Christie waited until her sister had left. “I…I understand congratulations are in order.”
“Thank you.” He moved slowly into the family room, hands buried in his pockets. “It’s nice to see you.”
“You, too,” she returned cheerfully, wondering if the intense effort that required was as obvious as it felt.
“I’ve missed you.” So he was the first to admit it….
Gazing down at the baby, she whispered, “I’ve missed you, too.”
“I guess Teri told you about Polgar World?”
“That’s the name?” she asked, looking up.
James took the seat across from her that Teri had vacated. “Bobby was kind enough to lend his name. We got word of the sale yesterday….”
“Just yesterday?”
James leaned back. “My agent’s been in negotiations with two companies.”
“You have an agent?” That made her question how many other secrets he’d kept from her.
He didn’t respond.