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I scoffed. “You were dating his brother!”
“And I got out before I became dependent on something that wasn’t mine.”
“I’m not with Hale for his money or lifestyle.”
If anything, his stature made me second guess myself. She, more than anyone, should know that.
“Maybe I do rely on Hale from time to time. So what? I’m allowed! How could you villainize me for that when my entire life has been riddled with trust issues when it comes to men? Of all people, you should be proud of me finding a partner I can rely on. Where is this resentment coming from?”
“I know you didn’t fall for him because of his money, but let’s not pretend his wealth hasn’t had an impact on your life. You never have to worry about anything ever again, Rayne. You’re set.”
“I worry all the time!”
“About dumb stuff. Do you even realize how lucky you are? How much your life and the lives of your children will change because of him?”
My eyes prickled, but I refused to cry in a restaurant bathroom. “Hale helps me because he’s going to be my husband. We’re partners. And I might be the broke one, but believe it or not, I help him too. Not everything is about money. Sometimes it’s just about love.”
She knew I was upset but made no move to comfort me. Instead, she popped her fists on her hips and looked hard at the pain she’d caused. “It doesn’t feel good, does it?”
My breath skipped as if she’d stabbed me. Was she purposefully trying to hurt me? “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about feeling judged. Having your man measured unfairly for being exactly who he is.”
Was she really trying to compare her inflated crush on Paul to what I felt for Hale? Was that even relevant? I couldn’t get past her admitting that she intentionally just tried to hurt me.
“Wow.” I didn’t recognize her. I didn’t even care why we were fighting anymore. I just wanted this to be over.
My brain flashed over a lifetime of memories. Swing sets and tree houses. Breakups and crushes. How had we gone from that to this?
I remembered painting her nails when she was in the coma. I could still feel the cannonball weight of worry I’d carried in my stomach for her during those months.
Maybe I just always loved her more than she ever loved me. “What did I do to make you so angry?—”
“Oh, please, Rayne. You’re the one trying to fit us into a mold we both outgrew a long time ago. Why can’t you accept that things changed?”
“I do accept that! I just don’t understand what happened to you.”
“I can’t be old Elle for you anymore!” She pointed to the scar on her head where her face had broken the windshield. “I’m never going to be the pretty hairdresser again. I can’t even cut paper in a straight line. Yet you somehow expect me to rush to your rescue whenever life gets complicated. This is my first time living, too! I don’t have the energy to worry about my problems and then take on your first-world meltdowns about heel height, apéritifs, turbulence on your fiancé’s private fucking jet, or whatever other calamities you’re facing at any given minute of any given day!”
Her words literally knocked me back a step. I talked about those things because that was the mundane bullshit Elle used to enjoy discussing. I didn’t bring them up to whine or brag, and I had no idea she resented my life so much. No clue that she resented me.
Oh, my God… This was it.
This space between us… There was no bridge back.
I was losing her. No. She was already lost. My best friend was gone.
The urge to bolt welled up inside of me. My ragged heart, the one she just tore into tatters, raced as if I were being chased by a bear. Then I exploded.
“Me, judgmental? That man out there that you’re obsessed with has critiqued and scrutinized every fucking thing you’ve put in your mouth!” I drove the conversation back to Paul because the things I really wanted to scream were too heavy. “Why are you letting him control you, Elle? It’s like you’ve been brainwashed!”
“Oh, you’ve got nerve! You haven’t made one decision for yourself since the Davenports came into your life!”
“That’s not true!”
“It’s one hundred percent true! If not for them, we wouldn’t be standing here right now.”
“We’re here because Paul picked the shittiest restaurant in a fifty-mile radius!”
