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“Okay, see you, Ellie.”
“Bye.” She waves and walks out of the studio, leaving me with bombarding thoughts and guilt.
I need to right the past before Lex and I can move forward. No more impulse kisses until she knows how much I care about her. I don’t want what happened to linger as resentment between us. It’s easy to get caught up in her, but I need to make it a point to work through it.
“Did Ellie leave?” Lex returns in jeans and a sweater. She shoulders a bag.
“Yeah, she said she’d call you later.”
“Oh, okay.” She shifts on her feet, looking everywhere but at me.
“You okay?”
“Yeah, great.” Her smile is forced, but I drop it. I don’t want to push her too forcefully. Spending quality time with her will allow me to bring up the past without being abrupt about it.
“Let’s grab some dinner and feed that monster in your stomach,” I tease with a wink.
“Ugh,” she huffs out. “I’ve been dancing for hours. My lunch is long gone. No need to insult the monster.” She pats her belly.
I chuckle and guide her out of the studio with my hand on the small of her back. We pause while Lex locks the door, and then we head to the diner. Ellie’s words continue to run through my mind. The last thing I want is for Lex to think she isn’t good enough for me. She was always too good for me, but I told myself I deserved her. If it weren’t for my parents, who knew where we’d be today. We could be happy in love, never having experienced the pain of losing each other.
Unfortunately, that’s not the case, and I can’t throw all the blame on my parents. I was a player in the downfall of our relationship, but it hurts to hear that Lex questioned how amazing she is.
We sit at a table, and I look at her, reaching for her hand. Her eyes look between our hands and my eyes, her eyebrows lifted, and an amused smirk across her lips.
“People are whispering,” she says.
“I don’t care.” I shrug and squeeze her hand, making a point that I’m not letting her go. Let the town talk.
“I want you to know that you were everything I ever wanted. I never doubted that and what happened between us had nothing to do with you and everything to do with me being an inconsiderate jerk.”
Lex stares at me in silence.
16
Lex
“Say something.” Hudson squeezes my hand as I continue to look at him, trying to gather my words.
“I…” I shake my head. “I wanted to be enough for you to stay, but I shouldn’t have interfered in your career, either.” We both are at fault in some way.
“A career I always told you I didn’t want. I felt responsible for following in my family’s footsteps, but I shouldn’t have.” He shakes his head.
“I just despise that you let go of your dreams for theirs when they don’t really care. I know they’re your parents, but I watched the disappointment on your face time and again as we grew up when they wouldn’t show up for you or support you. You deserved better.”
“I had better—you—and I threw it away.” Hudson casts his eyes downward.
“Hey—Whoa…this seems intense.”
What is it tonight with all the interruptions? First Ellie when Hudson and I were sharing our first kiss after all this time, and now…
I look up and jump to my feet.
“Tristan!” I hug him.
He laughs heartily and returns the hug. “Didn’t expect you to be so happy to see me. I bet this is twisting the envy knife into Hudson’s stomach right now. Let’s make him a little more jealous.”
I laugh and shove him playfully, looking at Hudson to find him with furrowed eyebrows. I sit back down and smile at Tristan.
