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“I can’t trust you when all you do is lie.” My voice cracks.
His eyes soften around the edges. “I promise that every conversation we had was real. The person I am with you…that’s who I am. You probably know me better than anyone.” He trips over his words.
“I don’t care.” I shake my head. How can he expect me to believe a single word out of his mouth?
“I swear I wanted to tell you.”
“But let me guess—there was never a right time.”
He nods.
I let out a shrill laugh. “You liars are all the same. It’s amazing how no matter the circumstance, people like you find a way to justify your actions with the same cliché reason.” Lance gave me a similar speech after I caught him in the act with Tammy, and now Rowan’s doing the same. The truth is that there never will be a right time to break someone’s heart.
He blinks at me. “I understand you’re upset—”
A strange noise escapes my throat. “Upset doesn’t begin to cover how I feel.”
I thought I had a chance with Rowan. It might look stupid now, but we seemed…connected. And with Scott—I’ve spent too many hours feeling guilty over kissing Rowan while texting him.
At least you know the truth now. Before you invested your heart in a losing battle.
I stand with shaky legs and grab my backpack from the floor.
“What are you doing?” He rises above me.
“I’m leaving. We’re done here.”
“That’s it? I deserve an opportunity to explain myself and make it up to you.”
I shake my head. “Are you for real? You deserve nothing but a courtesy hello whenever we pass each other in a hallway.”
“You’re going to throw months of friendship away because of this? I’m coming clean now when I didn’t need to. Doesn’t that count for something?”
Does he seriously believe him being honest is some kind of achievement? I stare at him, unsure how the hell he could expect anything close to appreciation.
He’s a man who gets everything he wants. You’re probably the first person who dares to tell him no.
“We were never friends to begin with. You made sure of that when you decided to lie to me as Scott while manipulating my attraction for Rowan.” I release a bitter laugh. “Maybe the reason you don’t have friends has nothing to do with being awkward or wanting to protect yourself from other people. It’s because you are so damn cynical about everyone and everything. Who would want to open themselves up to someone like that? I sure as hell don’t.”
He recoils, and I instantly feel shitty. This isn’t me. I’m not the kind of person who hurts others on purpose.
I sigh, trying to gain control over my temper. “Maybe one day you’ll be open to the idea of showing the world the real you, rather than hiding behind your mask of indifference. Life’s too short to hide who you are because you’re afraid of getting hurt. Just like life’s too short for me to give someone like you another chance.”
I’ve never seen Rowan wince before, and it makes me sick to my stomach to upset him like this. I don’t want to hurt him despite everything he did, but I won’t be silenced anymore. I spent too much time holding back because I was afraid of standing up for myself. I did it when Lance stole my idea, and I allowed it when Regina treated me poorly because she felt like it.
Not anymore.
I leave without giving him a second glance.
* * *
I slam the door to my bedroom and drop onto my bed in a huff.
Claire pops her head in. One side of her head is still curly while the other side is straight as a pin. “What happened?”
I sit up. “Remember Scott?”
“How can anyone forgetScott?” She says his name in a sing-song kind of way.
