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It’s unfair. He knows who I am and I know nothing about him.
I let out a breath. “So Violet doesn’t want to see me. Is that it?”
“She’s not here,” Liam says.
So she was lying when she said she wasn’t feeling well.
“Where is she?” I ask.
Liam shrugs. “She went to buy some food. She just left a few minutes ago. I don’t know when she’ll be back.”
In other words, he wants me to leave. Should I?
I look at the bouquet in my hand. If Violet isn’t here, there’s no reason for me to stay. But should I leave the bouquet with this loser? I don’t want to.
I leave. I don’t even bother to tell the guy to tell Violet I was here. I have a feeling he won’t.
“Aren’t you leaving the flowers?” he asks.
I lift them. “I’ll just give them to her next time.”
I proceed to the elevator thinking our conversation has ended, but the man speaks again.
“Wouldn’t it be better if you just stayed away from her?” he asks. “Haven’t you hurt her enough?”
I stop in my tracks. My hands clench into fists. If he wasn’t making any sense, I would have punched him already, but as much as I hate to admit it, he may be right. Maybe it is better for me to stay away from Violet.
I look at the bouquet I’m holding. Then I turn around and throw it at him. It almost lands on his surprised face but ends up in his arms.
It’s his now. Just like Violet.
She and I are done.
As I step inside the elevator, I try to convince myself that I just did the right thing, that it’s for the best.
But then why does it feel like shit?
~
“You look like shit,” Ethan says as he slides on top of the stool beside me. “How many martinis have you had?”
“Oh, he didn’t have any martinis,” Glenn answers for me. “He’s been drinking gin straight up. And he’s been here since three.”
“Three in the afternoon?” I hear the surprise in Ethan’s voice.
“Someone played hooky,” Ryker mutters.
“Shut up, Ryker,” I tell him as I lift my head off the counter.
I look at Glenn and raise a finger.
“Another glass of gin, please.”
“No,” Ethan says. “No more gin.”
I glare at him. “You can’t tell me what to do here. We’re not at the office. You’re not my boss.”
He sips his whiskey and says nothing. Now what? He’s ignoring me?
I turn to Ryker. “Ryker, tell Ethan he’s not my boss here.”
“I don’t think you should have any more gin either,” he says.
I frown. “Did I ask for your opinion?”
“You’re drunk,” Ethan tells me. “As soon as I’m done with my drink, I’m bringing you home.”
“I’m not drunk,” I reply.
I know I’ve been here for hours and drunk four glasses of gin, maybe more. I know that I feel a little lightheaded. And I can smell the alcohol on my breath. But I’m not drunk.
“You are drunk,” Ryker seconds.
I look at him. “Again, I wasn’t asking for your opinion.”
He shrugs. “It doesn’t make it any less true.”
“And I’m not going home,” I tell Ethan. “I’m not going back to my apartment.”
“Why not?” he asks.
“Because Violet is there.”
“I thought she lives there,” Ryker says.
I ignore him. “And her new boyfriend.”
Ethan puts his glass down. “I see. So you got yourself drunk because Violet dumped you and got a new boyfriend.”
“I am not drunk.”
“But you got dumped?” Ryker asks. “Well, isn’t that a first?”
I glare at him. “Shut up, Ryker.”
“I don’t see how her new boyfriend is your problem,” Ethan says. “After all, she already dumped you.”
I fight the urge to cover my ears. Can they please stop saying ‘dumped’?
“Maybe he’s still in love with her,” Ryker says. “Wait. Isn’t that a first, too?”
I give him another glare. Does he want me to punch him? Because if he does, I’d be happy to oblige. My fist is still itching from this afternoon.
“So you finally fell in love with someone but then you let her slip through your fingers,” Ethan says. “Don’t worry. It happens to the best of men, especially those who’ve never been in love before.”
“Are you speaking from experience?” I ask him.
He doesn’t answer that. Instead, he looks at me.
“You know what you have to do? You have to get her back. That’s what you and Ryker told me when I lost Stella. You told me to go after her and get her back. So you do the same. Get her back.”
I snort and let my chin fall on the counter. “It’s not that easy.”
“Because she has a new boyfriend?”
“Because she wants me to be her boyfriend and I’m not sure I’m ready to be that,” I confess. “And I don’t know how to be.”
“Did you tell her that?”
I pause. “No.”
“I’m guessing you haven’t told her you’re in love with her, either,” Ryker says.
