He was barely keeping it together.
He looked down at the drink in his hand. He didn't drink normally - not that he was against it, he just didn't need it like some did.
He figured the love of your life going off with another man made a pretty good exception.
He looked around bleakly at the other men in the room. They had no idea what had just happened to him.
He should be so lucky.
He remembered the art heist case... She'd looked stunning in that dress. He hadn't been able to keep his eyes off her.
He never could have imagined the position he now found himself in.
How had he manged to lose her?
He'd asked her to move across the country to be with him. Okay, maybe he'd pressured her just a little, but it had been her decision in the end. She had uprooted her life to be with him.
Didn't that show she cared about him?
He understood her. He made her smile, made her laugh, made her happy.
How could she turn her back on all that?
When they'd talked for the last time, he'd heard tears in her eyes.
He didn't even get the chance to see her face one last time. He'd had tears in his eyes too, not that she would ever know.
Pike stared gloomily into his beer. Alcohol was supposed to make you forget. It sure was doing a lousy job.