Then I look up and stop.
Natalie is standing near a black Mercedes I don't recognize. She's not alone. A man is with her, and they’re deep inconversation, their body language tense. Natalie's arms are crossed over her chest, and she's shaking her head at something he's saying.
I stay in the shadows, not wanting to interrupt. My body is tense as I try to figure out who this could be.
Then the man grabs her arm.
I take a step forward, ready to intervene, but Natalie pulls away sharply. She says something, and the man holds up his hands in surrender. More words are exchanged. Natalie's posture shifts from defensive as she says something to him.
Then she walks around to the passenger side of the Mercedes and gets in.
The car pulls out of the parking space and drives away, taking Natalie with it.
I stand there, trying to make sense of what I just saw. That must have been Brody, but why is he in New York? And why did she get into the car with him willingly?
Yeah, they were clearly arguing, but she still got in the car. I pull out my phone and call her.
She answers on the third ring. “Hey, how are you feeling? That was amazing this morning.” Her voice is bright and cheerful, completely normal, like nothing is wrong.
“I’m feeling good. Where are you?” I ask.
“I just left the arena. Avery needed me for something, so I'm heading to meet her. Girl stuff.” A light laugh. “I'll see you tonight, okay? We can celebrate properly.”
She's lying.
I just saw her get into a car with some man, and she's telling me she left with Avery. She's lying to my face without hesitation.
“Yeah,” I say. “Tonight. Sure.”
“Are you okay? You sound off.”
“I'm fine. Just tired from the skate.”
“Get some rest. You earned it. I love you.”
The words that meant everything last night now feel like broken glass in my chest.
“Yeah, me too.”
I lean against my car and try to breathe through the pain spreading through my body.
The one person I never even dreamed would lie to me just did. She looked me in the eye this morning and told me she loved me, and then she drove away with another man and lied about it.
I don't know what hurts worse. The betrayal itself or the fact that she didn't trust me enough to tell me the truth. I would have understood if she'd said her ex showed up and she needed to deal with him. I would have offered to come with her, to stand beside her, to make sure she was safe.
Was I a fool to believe her when she said Brody was ancient history? She was engaged to this man, and she planned to spend her life with him. That kind of love doesn't just disappear, no matter how badly someone hurts you. What if she still has feelings for him?
The thoughts spiral through my head, each one darker than the last.
Brody is from her world. Charlotte society, old money, and the right family name. Her mother adores him. Her friends probably adored him, too. He fits into her life in ways I never could.
I'm a hockey player from Eau Claire, Wisconsin. My father is in a wheelchair, and I send money home every month to keep my family afloat. I don't belong at charity galas or country club brunches. I don't know how to make small talk with surgeons and socialites.
No wonder her mother keeps pushing her back toward Brody. He makes sense. I don't.
This is exactly why I don't let people in. I spent years building walls around myself, keeping everyone at arm's lengthwhere they couldn't hurt me. Then Natalie came along with her sunshine smile and her stubborn optimism, and I let her slip past every defense I had.
And now I'm paying for it.
