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I sighed, sniffing back more falling tears. “I know. I know I’ve lost you both. Zara will hate me for this.”
“Oh, I’ll make sure she does more than just hate you,” he spat. “I’ll make sure she curses the very air you breathe. She’ll never speak a single word to you again. She’ll never even look at you. She’ll make you realise the huge fucking mistake you just made.”
“I truly am so sorr—”
His hand latched around my throat before I could blink. “I said stop saying that. You’re not sorry. If you were, you would never have strung me along in the first place.” He squeezed my neck just as a girl standing beside her boyfriend shifted toward us with wide eyes.
Letting me go, he shook out his hand as if he hadn’t meant to do that. “I never want to see you again, Nerida. Ever, do you hear me? Don’t come round. Don’t call. Don’t text. Don’t even fucking think about me. I’m done. We’re done. If I catch you trying to speak to Zara...” He wiped his mouth, swallowing back whatever threat he would’ve said. “Just stay the hell away from both of us.”
Spinning on his heel, Joel barged through the crowd and vanished.
The girl who’d seen Joel touch me, wriggled her way out from under her boyfriend’s arm and clicked in vibrant pink heels toward me. “Are you okay?”
My voice cracked as tears flowed. “Not really.”
“Aw, sweetie.” Wrapping me in her embrace, the shock of being hugged by a total stranger broke the dam of sadness within me.
I hugged her back and cried.
I let go for exactly ten seconds, and then I pushed her away and smiled the best I could. “I’m sorry for getting your pretty cami wet.” Using a napkin from the bar, I sopped up my tears.
She waved her hand. “Don’t worry about it. Do you want to talk? I’m a pretty good listener.”
I sucked in a watery breath. I didn’t know her name. She knew nothing about my life. But I suddenly had the strongest need for her validation.
“I just broke up with my boyfriend. We’d been going out for over a year—”
“Oh, that sucks—”
“But I’m not crying over him.”
“Oh...you’re not?” Her eyebrows rose. “Why are you crying then?”
“Because I just broke up with his sister too. She was my best friend.”
Her face fell. “Oh, girl, I totally get that. Those bonds are sometimes so much stronger.”
“I used her brother because I’ve been in love with a boy since I was twelve. A boy who I’m pretty sure feels the same way about me.”
“Jesus, this just keeps getting juicier.” Her green eyes lit up, her dark-blonde curls shining from the craypot candelabra above. “Why aren’t you with him, then?”
Because he’s illegal and won’t do anything to jeopardise his safety.
And I love him too much to run the risk of him being deported.
I shook my head and reached for her hand. Squeezing it, I murmured, “Long story.” Slipping off my barstool, I pulled her in for another hug.
She giggled and squished me hard. Our breasts smooshed together. Our collarbones sharp against each other. Tears came hot at the thought of never having another bond like I’d shared with Zara.
I knew why I was so attached to her. It was because of Sophie. My childhood friend who’d been laughing one morning and then torn into pieces by a dog the next.
A part of me had never truly gotten over it and...I clung to girls out of fear that they’d be next. It wasn’t healthy and I knew I needed to deal with it...but I couldn’t help how I felt and it already hurt so, so much.
“You should message her,” the girl whispered into my ear. “If you’re as close as you say you are, she might one day understand and be able to forgive you for hurting her brother.”
I pulled away. “Do you truly think so?”
“Worth a shot, right?”
“Definitely.”
“Honey, ready to go? Our table’s ready.” Her boyfriend with his huge, broad shoulders and a thick Aussie twang appeared, smiling at us with questions in his brown stare. “Made a new friend, huh?”
The girl snickered. “Looks that way.” She pulled out her phone, its pink rhinestone case blinding me as she opened up a new contact page. “What’s your name and number? If you truly have lost your bestie, then you can have me to replace her.”
My heart squeezed. “Do you live around here?”
“Nah, we’re on holiday from Sydney but that doesn’t mean we can’t keep in touch.”
“Sure.” I took her phone and entered my number. “That sounds great.”
“And you will never lose me as a friend for dating my brother. Know why?” She giggled. “Because he’s as gay as they come and has been shacked up with his lover for years. They’re gonna be buried together, that’s how committed they are.”
