Craving Her Curves by Nora Stone

player?  A guy who has women throwing themselves at him daily.  I expected him to just shrug it off and move on, but...”  I trailed off.  But what?   I wasn’t sure.
    “But he looked like he genuinely cared about you, and you regretted hurting him?” Janice asked.  I nodded.
    “Exactly,” I almost whispered.
    “Do you truly believe that you made the right decision about you and Mr. Parker?” she asked.  I nodded, a bit hesitantly, but it was a yes.
    “I do,” I said, though I truly wasn’t sure which one of us I was convincing of that.
    “Then stick to it, Charlotte. Maybe that life is something that he’s okay with, or something that he’s just become used to over the years, but that doesn’t mean that it’s right for you, too,” she said.  I sighed and nodded.
    “It hurts,” I said softly. Janice gave me a sympathetic look.
    “That’s the part of all this that really sucks, isn’t it?  The part that you’re having trouble dealing with,” she said.  I nodded and sniffed, feeling a cry coming on that I was fighting with everything that I had.
    “Yes.  Believe it or not, not having him in my life is what’s hurting me,” I said with a sad laugh.  Janice handed me a tissue and patted my hand warmly.
    “But you’ll get through this.  I can already see how strong of a person you are, Charlotte. You’ll get through this, and for the bits that you need help with, I’m here for you,” she said.  I smiled, nodded, and wiped my eyes.
    “Right.  I can do this,” I said.  That was the second time since I’d gotten there that day that I hadn’t been sure if I was talking to Janice, or to myself.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
    “W hy in the world am I doing this?” I asked myself as Isobel and I walked through the massive entryway.
    “Because they were all concerned about you.  Even if you did break Joey’s heart, the coach doesn’t like anyone and he’s a good guy to have in your corner,” she said.  I sighed and looked around at the shuttered shops.  We’d come on an off day again, so I couldn’t even look in the stores that interested me.  Instead, Izzy had fussed at me until I got in touch with Joey’s manager and made an appointment to come back up to the practice grounds.
    “I don’t want to see him,” I said softly. Isobel wrapped her arm around mine as we walked together.
    “Yes, you do,” she said. Yes, I did. But no, I didn’t.
    “I don’t think I can do this,” I said, stopping.
    “Yes, you can!  Now come on,” she said, almost pulling me off of my feet.  I wasn’t there as a journalist, so I was still in jeans and tennis shoes.  But I was there.
    “Charlotte!” Amy squealed as she came trotting down the hallway to meet Izzy and I. I smiled and gave her a hug that I didn’t really have a choice in as she pulled me close.
    “Hey, Amy,” I said with a laugh.
    “I’ve been so worried about you!  But, Joey said that you two had broken up and I didn’t want to make things awkward by coming to check on you because...” she trailed off.  I grinned and nodded.
    “I get it.  And thank you for worrying about me,” I said.
    “Anytime.”
    “This is Isobel; she works with me at  Pinks ,” I said.  Amy and Izzy shook hands.
    “I’m also the one who bullied her into coming out here today,” she said with a smirk.  Amy laughed.
    “I’m glad you did.  The whole team was worried, especially Coach.  He’ll be glad to see you,” she said.  I sighed.
    “I really don’t think this is a good idea,” I said softly.  Amy frowned slightly, watching me as my face flushed.  You could see the exact moment that the light bulb came on.
    “You don’t want to see Joey yet,” she said.  I gave Amy a pained look and she smiled.
    “I’m pretty sure he doesn’t want to see you yet, either,” she said.  I sighed.
    “That’s not helping,” I whispered.  Amy grabbed my hand.
    “I’m sorry; that did not come out the way I meant for it