Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 105756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
“Twos are helpers; nines are peacemakers.”
“You’ve determined all this from the short time you’ve spent with Maggie?”
“Well, the first time I met her was the day I came to your office to tell you about our parents. My leg had been bothering me, so I needed to use my cane to go down the stairs when I was leaving. Remember the lift was broken? Maggie happened upon me and offered her assistance. It was one of those rare occasions where someone offering me help didn’t get my back up, which makes me suspect she’s a natural helper. There’s no ego involved. Is she the type to take care of others before tending to her own needs?”
“You know what? That does pretty much sum her up,” I replied, impressed by how well she’d read my sister. “She has four younger half-siblings, and I swear she spends more of her time and energy on them than she does herself. It’s impossible to convince her to take some time out and just relax.”
“She’s also good at smoothing over possible tension during conversations. I noticed that this morning, which makes me think she has some enneagram nine in her.”
“And what are you?” I went on, interested to know how she categorised herself.
“Oh, I’m a six,” she replied like I should understand what that meant. I arched an eyebrow and motioned for her to continue. Ada blew a strand of hair out of her face, her expression thoughtful. “Sixes are loyalists driven by safety and security. We don’t like to be alone, and we need support networks. We’re also super anxious worriers, which can hold us back a lot.”
“You’re loyal?”
She nodded. “Once I form an attachment with someone, I’m completely committed, even when warning signs show up. It’s why in all my relationships I’m the one being broken up with and not the other way around.” If that were true, then her past partners were idiots as far as I was concerned. Ada frowned then, looking like she regretted revealing that as she drank more wine. I topped up her glass, enjoying her candour. I didn’t want her to close herself off just yet.
“Hmm, perhaps I have some six in me, too.”
She tilted her head in curiosity. “How so?”
“Well, not so much anymore, but when I was younger, I was broken up with a few times, whereas I was the partner who was always prepared to go down with the sinking ship. I hated the idea of being alone.” Guess I inherited that trait from Mam. It took years for me to be comfortable on my own, realising that confidence and independence led to freedom. Then for a long time, I told myself I didn’t need anyone else, but I still grew lonely, felt a nagging sense that something was missing. A yearning for the person who would complete the great life I’d built, perhaps.
“Really? I can’t see that at all. You seem like the sort of person who, when things aren’t working out, you put a logical stop to them.”
“I am now, but like I said, I wasn’t when I was young.”
“How many times were you broken up with?”
I pressed my lips together. “Three. The last time was the most brutal.”
Without asking permission, Ada slid off her shoes and scooted back to get more comfortable. I didn’t mind. Some part of me enjoyed her relaxing in my space. Having her there made the place feel warmer somehow. “Why is that?”
I cast her a long-suffering look and decided to return her candidness with a little of my own. “Because it happened while I was standing at the altar about to get married.”
Her eyes flared wide. If she’d taken any wine at that moment, I was certain she’d have spat it out. “What?! Okay, I need to hear more.”
I cast my mind back to that younger version of myself. I felt only a tendril of the humiliation that was so all-consuming at the time. Now it was a mere spectre of a memory, no longer the painful thing it once was. “Darcy and I got together when I was twenty-five, and she was twenty-three. A few years later, I proposed. Little did I know, at the same time, she was conducting an affair with a neighbour of ours from down the street and had been for quite a while.”
“Oh my goodness, Jonathan. That’s awful.” She reached out to touch my forearm, and the heat of her palm felt pleasant.
I shrugged. “I don’t entirely blame her for cheating. I was a workaholic, much more so than I am now. I was building my business, and that took all my focus. She felt neglected and started looking elsewhere.”
“I’m so sorry,” Ada said, her brown eyes sad like shining dark pools. “But she dumped you at the altar? That’s reprehensible. Why couldn’t she just … I don’t know, tell you privately before letting things progress to the point where you were standing in the chapel?”