It’s been a week since that night. A week that I haven’t even been able to do anything other than hold my emotions close to my chest because I’ve been so fucking busy that my head is no longer on straight. I remind myself that it’s all a part of me getting my shit together, going out and getting what I want for a change. Whoever I am, it’s time that I figure it out.
“What was her real reason for the break-up?” Sam asks, leaning in close so the others don’t hear.
“Nothing that I’ll share right now.”
Sam surprisingly looks impressed with my answer, nodding at something he’s seeing when he looks at me.
For the rest of the evening, Oakleigh’s name is taboo, like a scary story told to children at night. It’s unnecessary, but I appreciate my friends being friends. The four of us laugh, eat, and drink and it feels like it always does: like I’ve been friends with these guys for way more than nine months. Unfortunately, Gus had some stuff to sort out on the farm and was unable to come, or so he says. In reality, I think he’s avoiding me just like his fiancé is. Wren has spent the past week at the farm with Gus, leaving me all alone in the house. I understand that she’s hurt, but I do not regret the way things have panned out, not when it’s gotten me the closest I’ve ever come to being in something real with Oakleigh. I will apologize to Wren again soon, but for now it really is best to just give her some space. She’ll come to me when she’s ready.
When we’re about to head home, I hesitate outside the bar. Sam notices and whispers something to Jamie who looks over at me before leaving. Sam walks over and leans against the wall beside me.
“I’ve made a decision,” I say, looking out at the deserted street before me.
“Oh?”
I take a deep breath before saying, “I’ll sell Southwick Construction to you.”
“Amazi—”
“I wasn’t done.”
Sam smirks at me. “This new Finn is very refreshing.”
“All of my staff keep their jobs.”
He nods. “That one was a given.”
“Their pay either remains the same or increases.”
“Done.”
“And you increase the offer up to eight mil instead of seven.”
He blows out a breath. “I thought you said it wasn’t even worth seven.”
“And I thought you said it was worth ten?”
His laugh is loud and carefree, and I hope my laugh can sound as unrestrained as his.
“And my discount?” he asks.
“What about it?” I counter.
He shrugs. “Fair enough. I was surprised you even went along with that in the first place. It was mostly a joke.”
We stand beside one another and appreciate the moment of silence. I’ve always preferred this—the quiet that soothes my nerves and dulls the ache in my mind. Now, however, I miss the arguments, chasing one another around the house as if we’re children playing tag. I miss her smell, her smile, her chaotic nature. I miss her. I just hope I can hold out a little longer without snapping.
ChapterThirty-Two
OAKLEIGH
“Can people just…Oh, I don’t know…stop getting injured?” Antoine asks as we savor a rare quiet moment within this shit show of a shift.
“The world doesn’t love us enough to let us find out,” Nicole drawls as she spins around in her chair, her jet-black ponytail flowing with the light breeze her movements create.
I am listening, but I’m also halfway to drifting into my own daydream, one that I know will leave me broken all over again. It’s been happening a lot—one minute, I’ll be able to get on with my life and pretend as if it isn’t falling apart and breaking into a million little pieces; the next I’ll be acknowledging my reality—that I’m here with no best friend, and no man to love.
When our shift finally ends, I get dressed and check my message thread with Wren.
