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I glance down at my cell as it flashes on the screen.
Maddison, I’m sorry for the way I left things. I made it back. Things are pretty bad. Talk later, Ash.
I stare at the message for longer than necessary. I must have read it a hundred times, trying to find something else in the message that isn’t there.
What do I want him to say—that he misses me and wants me to fly over immediately?
Would I still do that? I probably would. I miss the fuck out of him.
It was just so awful standing there watching him leave, knowing he had to face the worst by himself. Maybe it’s a pride thing, I don’t know. Maybe he’s changed his mind about me, realizing that things would be way too hard given we live in different cities.
All I know is I can’t stop thinking about him.
I pack up my laptop and files and lock up the Overton’s house. Two good showings went well back-to-back, and I’m expecting an offer to come in later today.
I head out to the airport to meet Em as soon as I’ve slipped into a more casual outfit at home. I’m excited about seeing my bestie, and I’m sure it will take my mind off things.
When I pick her up at the terminal, it’s almost like it was the time she left Taylor over six years ago. Only then, she was heartbroken and unsure. This time, she looks the happiest I’ve ever seen her. It brings warmth to my heart as I wrap my arms around her.
“Em, you look radiant!” I gush.
She smiles. “Getting back with your high school sweetheart will do that.”
“I bet it’s been all play and no work, huh?”
“Something like that.”
“I guess someone has to do it.” I shrug as we go in search of her luggage on the carousel. “Might as well be you.”
She knows I’m deflecting from the big issues here. Me and Ashton. And how Ashton is doing with his dad in the hospital.
“I think Ashton was feeling pretty lost,” she says when we walk to the car.
She knows how well we were getting on,a little too well.
“Things kind of ended a little awkwardly,” I say. “Though I’m sure he wasn’t exactly thinking straight. It all seemed fine on the way to the airport. Then, when we parked, he completely changed tact. I know it must have been a shock for him, but he just left me standing there.”
“I’m sorry,” Em says as we load her luggage in. “He told me that he messed up with you. Well, fucked it up were his words.”
My eyes grow wide as we get into the car, and I start up the ignition.
“He did?”
“Yeah, he did.”
“He sent me a text earlier,” I say. “He said he was sorry for the way he left things, and we’d talk later.”
“What did you say back?”
“I sent one while I was waiting for your plane to come in. Just that I hoped he was okay, and we’d talk.”
“Well, that’s promising.”
“It just feels weird now,” I admit. “I guess I was getting too attached to him too soon.”
“I’m sure when he’s thinking straight, he will be falling over himself to see you again.”
I smile and keep my eyes on the road. I miss him already. It’s as though the oxygen in my lungs has wavered, and I’m not getting as much air as I was before.
