"What does your weekend look like?" the email read. "How would you feel about an impulse trip to the city?"

I like the idea, and it freaks me out.

The idea of a relationship freaks me out.

Scott is his name. Met him at my friend's reception.

My height, dark hair. Some Scottish in him, I think?

~

"Who's the lucky man?" James asks, when I mention the date.

"Scott," I tell him.

"Oh," he says. "Oh dear."

"What?" I ask, with some firmness.

"I don't know details," he tells me, "but L wrote in her blog that she woke up in a cold sweat at the thought of Scott flirting with you."

I was confused.

"She's his ex," he explains. "I don't know specifics, but I know it ended badly."

I was quiet for the rest of the evening.

~

What am I supposed to think?

Here is a woman who, while we are not precisely friends, I respect the opinion of.

She is also dating my ex, Paul.

I would have warned her away from Paul had I been aware of something going on, and had I known her better. That being said, they now own a house together and seem happy, so what do I know?

Is it something about Scott I should be legitimately worried about?

Or is it the bad blood after a bad break-up?

I don't know.

He's coming in to town from three hours away to see me.

He'll be here in three hours. Maybe four.

I don't know what to think.

~

I think one more heartbreak is going to kill me.

My heart is a shrivelled little walnut, black and bitter.

.

Rosie.

Before&After