“Ihavethought about it. I’ve had a lot of time to think things over.”
I turn my back on everyone once the tears no longer stay back. He pulled away suddenly, and I knew something was going on. He decided we were over before he thought to tell me, and then he does it in front of most of the town.
Without Rhett, I have no one here. Darla made it clear that she’s Rhett’s friend first, and with Darla comes Carter. No one else has dared to get to know me, especially after a few were caught talking badly about me. Not to mention half the town is related to him in some way.
“Rhett, man, don’t be stupid,” Carter says.
Darla walks over and rests a hand on my shoulder. “Do you need a ride home?”
I nod, not trusting my voice right now.
“Okay, the truck’s over here.”
“Take care of that scrape on your ankle,” Rhett calls.
“I can’t even feel it anymore,” I say, unable to look back as Darla guides me by taking my arm.
Rhett wants me to leave. We’re not enough, but what he really meant was that I’m not enough. How long has he been thinking about this? About ending our relationship? I have nothing here without him, and I don’t know what to do now. No, I do, and there’s only one thing I can do. Leave.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Rhett
Brynlee didn’t fight. She just gave up and left with Darla. Not that fighting would have changed anything, but I can’t help feeling as though I was right when I said she didn’t know what she wanted. That she can’t possibly love me if she doesn’t know what love is. This is all just too much.
“You’re a damned fool,” Everett says, shaking his head at me.
I whip around and glare at him, my fist ready to finally hit someone. “Excuse me?”
“She stood there and told that asshat, who insulted not only you but everyone in this town, how we were better than his friends and family. Money doesn’t mean anythin’, but more than that, she said you were better than him in every way.”
“And what makes you think you get any say in my life after what you did?”
Punching my arm, he knocks me backwards a step before getting into my face. “Yeah, I drunkenly slept with your ex. But at the end of the day, I wasn’t the only one.”
“You were my friend!”
“Yeah, and as your friend, I told you. And I came to you when I developed feelin’s for her.Yousaid it was fine, and it wasn’t until after I fell in love with her that I realized it wasn’t fine. That you’d lied to me, but by then, I’d lost my friend and my brother. Trust me, I’m qualified to tell you when you’re bein’ stupid.”
“I’m stupid?” I spit out, laughing without humor.
“She’s in love with you!” he shouts. “Everyone but you can see it because you’re all in your head with that bullshit every girl has ever told you before. The bullshit you believe, even though it’s wrong.”
I want to be mad, but I can’t. “You don’t understand—”
“I understand that you let the best thing to ever happen to you walk away because you told her things weren’t workin’ anymore. I mean, I totally hate it when my girl tells her ex I’m better in every way than he is, includin’ in bed. She’s just the worst, huh?”
“What?”
He just shakes his head and backs up with his hands in the air, and I notice Tim standing with him, just blinking at me. “You told that woman she wasn’t worth fightin’ for. That your relationship didn’t mean shit.”
“She didn’t disagree with me,” I say.
“You broke her heart!” Tim shouts. “She spent fifteen minutes tellin’ that city boy that you gave her everythin’ money can’t buy. The shit he can’t give her, and then you come out here and do that in front of everyone?”
“That’s not—”
“We all heard you tell her she’s not worth it to you. Of course, she’s not goin’ to fight you. She was cryin’ and embarrassed. Who are you, man? What happened to the nice guy?”
