Pain spreads through my chest. But even as the hurt consumes me, a small voice in the back of my head whispers that I could be wrong. There could be an explanation I'm not seeing. Natalie isn't cruel, and she isn't a liar. At least, I didn't think she was.
Maybe I'm jumping to conclusions. Maybe the situation isn't what it looked like.
But she lied. That part isn't speculation. That part is fact.
21
Natalie
“Just one conversation.” Brody's voice is desperate, stripped of the arrogance I'm used to hearing. “That's all I'm asking. One conversation and then I'll leave you alone.”
Every instinct tells me to walk away, but I'm tired of his phone calls. If one conversation will make him finally disappear from my life, it's worth thirty minutes of discomfort.
“Fine,” I say in a resigned voice. “One conversation in a public place. Then you leave New York and never contact me again.”
His face lights up, and I immediately want to take it back. But the sooner I do this, the sooner it's over. I'll tell him to his face that there's nothing left between us. If he contacts me after that, I'll get a restraining order.
“There's a restaurant at my hotel,” he says. “It’s quiet and discreet. We can talk privately.” He gestures toward his rental car, and I walk around to the passenger side and get in.
I can’t believe that I’m giving him my time and attention, but it's thirty minutes of my life. Then it's done.
We're pulling out of the parking lot when my phone rings. Ethan's name flashes on the screen, and my stomach clenches.
I inhale deeply, then answer. “Hey. How are you feeling? That was amazing this morning.”
“I'm feeling good. Where are you?”
Now what? I can’t tell him that I’m with Brody, not without an explanation. “I just left the arena. I'm heading to meet Avery. Girl stuff.” I force a light laugh that sounds fake even to my own ears. “I'll see you tonight, okay? We can celebrate properly.”
There's a pause on the other end. “Yeah, sure.”
“Are you okay? You sound off.”
“I'm fine. Just tired from the skate.”
“Get some rest. You earned it. I love you.”
“Yeah, me too.”
“Who was that?” Brody asks in a tense voice.
“Mind your own business,” I snap.
The drive to his hotel is tense. I stare out the window and try to ignore the guilt churning in my stomach. I shouldn't have lied to Ethan.
But he just had the biggest breakthrough in his recovery, and the last thing he needs is to worry about my ex-boyfriend drama. Besides, this will be a short conversation. Why worry Ethan over something that will be resolved in an hour?
“Remember that time we got lost driving to your parents' beach house?” Brody says, breaking the silence. “We ended up at that seafood shack in the middle of nowhere, and you ate so many oysters you made yourself sick.”
A laugh escapes me at the memory. “I couldn't look at shellfish for a month after that.”
“We had some good times.”
“Good times don't erase bad choices.”
“No, but they should count for something.”
I know what this is. He's trying to remind me of who we used to be, hoping it will overshadow what he did.
