“You’re an awful liar, Liv.”
Liv dropped the wide eyes and pursed her lips. “Unlike you, apparently!”
Callie winced. “I’m sorry. We wanted to tell you but, you know… You’re an awful liar.” She focused on her tea, watching the warm liquid swirl in the white China mug. “How is he?”
“You haven’t talked to him?”
“Not in a day or two. I mean, we’ve been texting a bit but…” She broke off with a shrug.
“Okay, well that won’t do,” Liv said, scooting her chair closer. “Look, if you want to make long distance work—”
“No, we’re not doing that. It was all pretend, Liv. We’re not together.”
“Oh, please. Now who’s the awful liar?” Liv paused as the server returned with their orders, nodding politely to her in thanks, before she continued. “I know my brother, Cal, and I know you, and there was nothing fake about what I saw between you two this past week.”
An impossible flame of hope flickered in Callie’s chest. She’d been doing her best over the last few days to snuff it out, but no matter how many times she told herself their connection was purely circumstantial, that by the time he came home from the campaign he would have moved on, that stubborn flame refused to be put out. And now her best friend was fanning the fire.
“He needs to focus on his work—”
“And what about whatyouneed?”
Callie closed her eyes. She would not cry over breakfast in some hole-in-the-wall diner. She’d made a conscious decision to let Noah go, to release him from whatever sense of obligation he felt towards her so she would never have to look in his eyes and know he regretted choosing her. It had been the right decision, even if it felt like a kick in the gut every time she thought about the way his hair had moved in the breeze on the beach, the tightness of his voice as he offered to give it all up for her. As if she ever would have let him.
When she opened her eyes again, Liv was watching her with her head cocked to the side in that way she did when she was puzzling something over.
“I’m alright, babe. Just don’t tell my mom, okay? If she knew we lied she’d never go through with selling the house and moving away.”
“I see.” Liv stabbed the corner of her toast into the runny yolk of her eggs with far more aggression than was called for. “Your mom gets to move to Ohio, and Noah gets to compose his film score—and what do you get, Cal?”
She opened her mouth to respond but found she had no answer.
“What do your cards say about this, huh? Have they yelled at you yet?”
“The cards don’t yell,” Callie said in a small voice.
“Okay, then I guess I’ll have to do it. You are arranging your life so that everyone is happy except you.”
“That’s not—He wouldn’t be happy, Liv. Not for long. Not when he realized what he’d given up for me.”
“First of all, that’s crap. He didn’t have to give up anything. From what Noah says, he was willing to try long distance and you’re the one who said no.”
Callie sat back in the chair. How did Liv really not understand? “I—”
“I’m not finished,” Liv said. “Second of all, even if he did have to choose between you and the job, that’s his choice to make. You don’t get to decide what’s best for him. Isn’t that exactly what you’re always complaining about other people doing to you?”
Well, shit, she has a point.
“And third of all, when are you going to realize that loving you is not a sacrifice?” Liv reached across the table and squeezed Callie’s hand, her eyes softening. “You are not a consolation prize. You’re the whole damn jackpot, Cal. It took my stupid brother far too long to realize that, and now that he has, you’re going to throw it away?”
Liv reached up and wiped away a tear streaming down Callie’s cheek. She hadn’t even realized she was crying.
“I love him,” she said.
Liv rolled her eyes. “Yeah. I know. And he loves you, too, you big dummy.”
Callie dropped her head into her hands. “God, I’ve made such a mess of it.”
“Yeah, but lucky for you, I’m here to help.” Liv speared a grape with her fork and popped it into her mouth.
