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Yeah.
Then let me drive you home.
Thankfully the valet showed up with her keys and Sofi texted when she was in her seat but not yet driving.
Already behind the wheel. I’m good. Tell Lake and Logan I’m sorry but I’ll be seeing them plenty.
She followed that text with a winky face.
Sofi. Come back. I’ll drive you home.
Sofi ignored that text until she was safely in her driveway.
Already home.
I’m in my car. I’ll be there in five.
Sofi shook her head. She couldn’t see him now. She wouldn’t be able to bear it.
GO BACK. I’m fine.
She should have thought this through better. She should have known Austin would be worried. But she’d just run, damning the consequences.
It was then that a brilliant thought hit her. Enough of the truth that just maybe Austin would believe her.
I didn’t tell you the whole truth. My headache isn’t that bad but I left because the wedding was too much. It made me realize how much I’m missing out on by not taking dating seriously. It just gave me a lot to think about, you know? I needed some space.
Sofi sat in her car as she watched three dots appear, soon followed by Austin’s response.
You gave me a scare. I’m glad you’re okay. I’m sorry you’re feeling sad about not being married, but you know that’s all on you, right? Any guy worth his salt would be dying for a chance to date you, Sof. Give them a chance and you’ll be married within a year.
Three dots appeared again.
I guess I should go back then. But call me if you need to talk. Love you, Sofi.
And there it was. Love you. Not I love you. And how different those two phrases were. Sofi got out of the car, feeling badly for her selfish reaction but also knowing she’d acted in the only way she could have to preserve her dignity and her friendship. If she’d stayed in that romantic setting with Austin saying the things he was saying, touching her the way he’d been, watching her the way he had . . . Sofi might hate being the center of attention, but being the center of Austin’s world was like a drug. She craved it even as she knew she shouldn’t have it.
Austin was right. She needed to give other guys a chance. She needed to date more. Find someone out there. Because there had to be someone who could hold sway over her heart like Austin currently did. Someone who would help her forget she’d ever been in love with her best friend. Because if there wasn’t . . . Sofi couldn’t think like that. There was. There had to be.
And it was only that thought that helped Sofi fall asleep that night.
“We need you,”Rachael said through the phone as Austin stepped out of the restaurant where he’d met some friends that evening. “Sofi said you’d come and we need you,” she reiterated.
Austin was already on his way to his truck.
“Where are you?” he asked, vaulting into the driver’s seat and turning on the car in one fluid motion. Who knew what kind of situation the girls were in? Time was probably of the essence.
From Rachael’s slurred words she was as drunk as she’d been the last time Austin had seen Sofi in trouble, and he knew she’d be poor backup if Sofi really needed help. His heart dropped as he remembered the giant guy and his rough grip on Sofi’s arm. Possessive in a way that made Austin’s stomach curdle. Especially when he recalled the panicked look on Sofi’s face. If it was that same guy . . . no, if it was any guy.
“Gray’s.” Rachael named the popular bar thankfully just a few blocks over from where Austin had been.
“Give me a minute,” Austin replied, knowing he could make quick work of the distance between them. “Is Sofi okay?” he had to ask. Rachael was too out of it to worry too much about anyone other than herself. But he needed Rachael to be aware of Sofi. Knowing Sofi, she was bearing the brunt of whatever situation they were in while Rachael chatted on the phone. For all the urgency of her words, Rachael’s tone was too relaxed. Something was off, and Austin didn’t like it.
“She’s fine. She needs you but she’s fine,” Rachael said, her voice quieting. Was she falling asleep?
Austin hopped out of his truck and ran the short distance to the entrance of Gray’s Bar. He waved to the bouncer, a high school classmate, and hurried in, glancing this way and that for the emergency Rachael had called him about.
“I’m here.” Austin had to yell into his phone over the sound of the music playing beside him. Gray’s always had a live band.
