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He shrugged and went back to looking over the plays.
“Oh, for Pete’s sake, tell me.”
Wyatt peeked up at me. “You sure you want to know?”
I wrung my hands in my lap. “Yes.”
“They’ve been out a couple of times. Mitch said he felt guilty about sleeping with her and blowing her off, so he took her to lunch. That was about two weeks ago. He hasn’t talked to her since, and he said nothing happened between them. He messed up, Sky. With Michelle and you not talking to him, he’s in a bad place.”
I reached for Wyatt’s muffin and broke a piece off. Popping it into my mouth, I responded with, “Good.”
“Good?”
“Yes, good. The things he said to her, Wyatt, were cruel. He might as well have told her she was boring as hell and that he was tossing her out for something new, shiny, and kinky. I can’t imagine he is hurting any more than Michelle.”
“What if he regrets it?”
“I’m sure he does. I know, deep inside, my brother loves Michelle. He got bored and wanted to have a bit of fun. He did it at the expense of her heart. What he did is unforgivable.”
Wyatt leaned back in his chair and looked at me.
My brow lifted. “You don’t agree?”
“Oh, I agree with you one hundred ten percent. Him cheating was terrible. The things he said were wrong. But I’ve talked to him, and I hear it in his voice. He’s hurting, Skylar. He hates knowing he hurt Michelle, and all he says is how he is going to win her back.”
I laughed. “Win her back? While he dates the girl he cheated on her with?”
“He’s not dating her.”
I let out a frustrated groan. “It’s hard for me, too, Wyatt. He’s my brother. I want to understand what was going through his mind when this happened. I want to stand by him and Michelle.”
“Maybe the best thing we can both do is be there for them. I’m not saying what he did was right, but damn it, Sky, he realizes how bad he fucked up, and he feels alone.”
In my heart, I knew I was part of the problem. By taking Michelle’s side, I’d basically cut my brother out of my life. I didn’t agree with what he had done, but I owed him the chance to tell me why he had done it.
“I’ll call him here in a bit.”
Wyatt reached across the table and took my hand in his. “Thank you, angel.”
“Now, enough about Michelle and Mitch. What are your plans for this evening?”
A wicked smile crossed Wyatt’s face. “That’s easy. I plan on holding the woman I love in my arms tonight after making sweet love to her.”
My cheeks flamed. “I like the sound of those plans.”
Taking a huge bite of his muffin, Wyatt wiggled his eyebrows. “Me, too!”
***
Sitting on the chair on my balcony, I pulled up Mitch’s number. Hitting it, I waited for him to answer.
“Sky.”
In one word, I heard the sadness in his voice.
“Hey, how are you doing?”
“I guess okay. Miserable as hell, but I deserve that, right?”
“How are your classes? Football? Everything going okay?”
“They’re fine. Football is football, and no, Sky, nothing is going okay.”
I pulled my knees up to my chest. “I wish I could tell you something to make you feel better, but, Mitch, you brought it on yourself.”
He sighed. “I know I did. She won’t take my calls. When I stop by her dorm, her roommate or one of the other girls in her hall tells me she’s not there, but I look up and see her staring out her window at me. She refuses to talk to me.”
“Do you blame her?”
“No. I treated her like shit.”
“Tell me why you did it, Mitch. I need to understand why you hurt someone you claimed to love.”
“I do love her.”
“Really? Because I’m pretty sure, when you love someone, you try not to hurt them.”
I heard a door open and close. It was then I realized how loud it had been in the background.
“Where were you?”
“Locker room. We just finished up practice.”
I nodded even though he couldn’t see me. “Is this a good time to talk?”
“Yeah, I’m walking back to my truck.”
Resting my chin on my knee, I blew out a breath. “Why didn’t you just tell her how you were feeling?”
“I was confused, Sky. I really do love Michelle, more than anything. The idea of heading off to college and starting this whole new life was exciting. But then, at the same time, it felt like I wasn’t leaving my old life behind.”
“Was it that bad that you wanted to leave it behind?”
“Yes, and no. Skip’s always bragging about all the things he’s done. The places he’s seen. The women he’s been with. I got freaked out, thinking that Michelle was the only woman I would ever be with. Ever experience anything with.”
