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“A lot has happened. You’re pretending it didn’t, and I thought we were going to try and be open.”
“I’m not pretending anything. Maybe I’m just accepting it.”
“That seems unconventional.” I narrowed my eyes.
“You shouldn’t be surprised. I’m not like most other people.”
“No, you certainly aren’t,” I replied, this time more sarcastic.
He shot me a daring look.
“Whatever. It’s me, baby… deal with it.”
I physically stopped my jaw from dropping, stunned at the signature catchphrase he used on so many others before.It’s me, baby, deal with it?Now I knew I wasn’t talking to Alejandro, but instead, his counterpart, the well-known Hollywood celebrity. It made my nostrils flare.
“Deal with it? I thought Alex Rivers was dead… but, apparently, he’s alive and well.”
“Don’t act so clever.”
“Then don’t be so stubborn. You’re doing it again.” I maintained.
“Doing what?”
“You’re running. Just like Alex does. And you’re not like that… you’re better.”
“I’m not running.” He restrained himself from leaning in my direction. “I’m moving past this. Let it go.”
“That’s not going to make us feel better, or at least not for me. I don’t usually face my problems head on, but I’m trying to with you. As much as I want us tomovepast it, I know we can do better.”
“Better than what? I don’t need you to confirm what I already know is true. What happened last night… that photo… it meant nothing. Right?” he asked, partially pleading, his lips pressed into a fine line.
I struggled to express the emotions that had made my week unbearable. Maybe Alejandro was the one, or maybe I was just afraid of losing him now, of losing time to figure out how I felt. “Last night you were so honest, so completely open, and I want that again.”
“So, you want truths?” His mug clanked against the table. “I have been speaking my truths, and since you’re so eager to tell me—today of all days—what your truth is, then please do so.” He refrained from yelling, but he might as well have, his raised voice flustered by the thought of what I could say.
He was right, and maybe this wasn’t the time. Was it selfish to think that it was? He pushed me to answer, but my reply was cut short, disrupted as my phone buzzed on top of Alejandro’s copy of New York Prestige. His eyes caught the screen, reading the name that popped up.
Parker: Leaving the Hamptons. If you need more time, I understand. I can stay somewhere else in the city.
My face drained of blood as Alejandro glared at my phone.
“The truth about him?” he asked. “The man who didn’t appreciate what he had? Who loves you like friend?”
I flipped my phone around, hiding the screen. How could I say so plainly how all of that was no longer true?
“I just need you to know how it happened,” I sighed. “And… how I feel about it.”
“You don’t need to feel anything. This isn’t your fault.”
“Alejandro… don’t.”
“No. It’s true. I ran when things got tough and wasn't honest as soon as I could’ve been. I treated you the same way he did, like you were fragile, not wanting to expose you to my world. If it weren’t for that time apart, you wouldn’t have gone. This is my fault.”
“It’s not. It’s no one’s fault.” I reached out, grabbing his hand.
“And what? Now he’s ready? Now after all these years he wants you? How does that make sense? How is that fair?”
“It isn’t. But—”
