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No, I wasn’t going to back down. If there was ever a time in my life to channel the words my father had said to me years ago, this was it.
I had to be brave.
I had to do this and hope for the very best possible outcome.
So, I took in a deep breath as I watched him move away from the building with his friend as he laughed about something the other guy said.
For a brief moment, it took me back. Seeing him with that smile on his face, remembering him laughing with me, nostalgia set in. He’d always been so happy every time I’d been around him. Every time except for one.
Knowing I’d been responsible for that, knowing that he blamed me, I felt nothing but grateful for the fact that he was now laughing. He seemed genuinely happy, and I loved that for him.
Before he could get too far away, I opened the door to my car and stepped out. The minute I closed the door, both men looked in my direction.
Jesse immediately stopped moving and stared.
Yep. Just as I had expected.
Shock and surprise.
It remained to be seen whether he still held any anger or if he hated me.
Wanting to leave it up to him, I stayed in my spot beside my car. If he walked away, I’d give him the peace he deserved and do the same.
I promised myself that I wouldn’t come here and cause him any additional heartache, even if I knew how badly it would hurt to walk away a second time. Even if I knew that doing so could result in me winding up dead.
Not taking my eyes off him, I watched as his lips moved and he said something to the man beside him. That guy put his hand on Jesse’s shoulder, close to his neck, where he gave it a squeeze before letting him go. Then, he walked away as Jesse started coming in my direction.
With each step he took toward me, I felt the nerves in my belly grow. It might have been cold outside, but I knew that wasn’t the reason my body was trembling.
I was doing everything I could to brace for this initial encounter after so long, but my efforts were futile. There was nothing that could ever prepare me for it.
Jesse came to a stop in front of me, and his eyes roamed over my face. I did the same with him. Neither of us said a word.
After too much time passed without a word, I realized this was on me. He’d opened the door by walking my way, so I had to be the one to speak.
“Hi, Jesse,” I said softly.
His eyes narrowed on me. “What are you doing here, Sawyer?”
Okay, so that wasn’t exactly the warm welcome I’d been hoping for, but it was certainly not unexpected.
“I… well… I was hoping you might be able to help me,” I answered honestly.
More surprise moved through his features as his brows shot up. “Help you?”
I nodded.
“I don’t even know where you’ve been all this time, and you want to just walk back into my life after twelve years and ask for my help?” he fired back.
Right.
This wasn’t going anywhere good.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized. “If you want me to leave, I’ll go. It’s just that…” I trailed off, trying to figure out how to explain this to him. I hadn’t quite figured it out when I started rambling. “I moved to Maryland, and I was working at this club called Sweet Temptations. There were some things that happened, and now the place is shut down, but I went in earlier today to get my personal belongings and—”
“Sawyer, I’m sorry that you’re having problems, but I’m not sure I’m the guy who can help you,” he clipped, cutting me off.
That was just the thing.
