“Is duh still a thing?” Theo asked. “I really don’t think it’s a thing.”
She shot him a glare. “I just said it. So, it’s a thing.”
Theo looked to me as though I was some expert in slang. “Is it a thing?”
“It’s pretty dead in the three-year-old circles I run in,” I replied, earning another deep laugh from him and a collective one from the group.
The guy was growing on me, I had to admit.
“Anyone heard from Declan?” Danika asked. “I thought he’d swing by.”
“He’s dealing with some shit, I don’t think he’ll make it,” Theo replied.
Travis shot a sharp look to Theo. “Does he need something?”
“He’s fine,” Theo was quick to reassure him.
I assumed Declan and Theo worked at Talon along with Sid, but didn’t ask.
We sat outside talking for a while. Aside from a few glances, Travis didn’t acknowledge me, and I knew I wouldn’t be staying much longer. Everyone headed inside when it got too cool to sit outside, and I headed for the bathroom.
“It’s her, isn’t it?” I heard Sam squeal from a bedroom next to the bathroom I was about to go in. “I knew you were seeing someone!”
Travis merely grunted.
My heart sank.
“You like her,” Sam stated. “And as you should. She’s smart and beautiful and fun.”
“She’s quirky,” Travis replied with a noncommittal grunt.
Quirky? Of all the adjectives he could use to describe me, that was what he settled on? Was this some kind of joke to him?
My eyes burned with tears that I furiously blinked back as hurt like I hadn’t felt in years coursed through me.
I turned on a heel, no longer needing the bathroom and unable to hear anymore. What I needed was to get the hell out of there.
“Em, you okay?” Danny asked worriedly when I practically ran for the front door.
“Fine,” I stammered, knowing I was a second from losing it. “I just, um—I forgot I have to take care of something. It was good to see you.”
With that I streaked out to my car, needing to get the hell out of there. I fired the engine up and tore away from the curb.
I wasn’t sure where I was headed. I didn’t want to go home, not yet.
For a little while I just drove, unsure of my destination, relieved when the inevitable LA traffic delayed my decision.
Finally, I ended up at the beach. With the cold air against my face and the salt water palpable in the air, I took my first deep breath of the evening.
There were things I didn’t love about Los Angeles. I’d struggled to find my niche. There were only two real seasons, summer and a winter that hardly counted. But being able to come to the beach whenever I wanted? That was a nice perk.
I sat in the sand for a long time, letting the cold air numb my limbs, trying to let Travis’s words roll off my back.
I’d thought he appreciated my quirks. I’d thought he might want to explore things. Not keep it a secret that we’d spent time together.
As I made my way back to my car, exhaustion weighed heavily on me. Sadness did that. I was well versed in the feeling.
I’d left my phone in the car and it immediately pinged when I started the engine up. A quick glance showed numerous text messages, none of which I planned to read or respond to.
Instead, I headed for home, ready to fall into bed and oblivion.
