When Sparks Fly

Unfortunately, now I have to question hers.

I drop her phone and pull up the Life app on my own that allows me to track where she is and where she’s been. We added it when she went back to work for peace of mind. Based on the tracker, she drove more than an hour out to some adventure camp place and stayed there most of the day before finally heading home around dinner.

Which means she basically spent the entire day with Sam. Her ex and my former best friend. And now she’s in the shower washing away the evidence. Exactly like my parents used to do. My dad would come home in his tennis or squash gear, all sweaty like he’d been working out, but he reeked of women’s perfume. Or my mother would come home from one of her friend’s houses, stinking of wine and men’s cologne that belonged to my dad’s best friend.

I push up off the couch, anger and betrayal propelling me forward. Her bedroom door is open, the bathroom door ajar. It bangs against the wall as I stalk into the bathroom and yank the shower curtain back.

Her smile drops when I hold up her phone, not giving a shit that I’m getting it wet. “You’re cheating on me.”

25

I SAW THE FUTURE AND IT WASN’T BRIGHT

AVERY

I spent the entire drive home going over the conversation I needed to have with Declan in my head. It wasn’t going to be easy. And in all honesty, the shower had been a stalling tactic. I’d been thinking a little connection would be a good idea, pre-conversation. And a good opportunity to tell him how I feel. That I’m in love with him.

So when Declan pulls back the curtain, I expect him to be naked and ready to join me for the back half of this shower. That usually entails some fun foreplay in the form of soaping each other up while paying special attention to our naughty bits.

However, Declan’s face is a mask of rage. His lip pulls up in a sneer. “How fucking long, Ave? How long have you been talking with Sam behind my back?”

“What?” I glance at the phone he’s thrust into my face. Water dots the screen, but I can see very clearly who the message is from. My stomach sinks, not because I’ve done anything wrong, but because Declan’s first instinct is to jump to conclusions.

He jabs at the screen. “Thanks for agreeing to see me today? Let me know how things go with D? What the fuck?”

I cover my breasts with my forearm and turn off the water. “I think you need to take a breath and let me explain.”

“Explain what exactly? That you’ve been seeing your ex, the one who trampled all over your heart, behind my back? How long? How many times? Are you fucking him?”

I grab a towel from the bar and wrap it around myself before I step out of the shower. “I get that it’s a shock, but that’s a pretty extreme conclusion to jump to over one message, Deck.”

“You were with him all damn day! I checked that app, or did you forget I can see where you go? Or maybe you thought I was too fucking stupid to see what you were doing. I want some answers. How long has this been going on? When did you two start talking again?”

The only other time I’ve seen Declan this upset is when he found out Sam had been cheating on me. I don’t know how to deal with this level of anger from him when it’s directed at me.

I move around him, unable to have this conversation while I’m naked and feeling particularly vulnerable. Today was hard for a lot of reasons. I had to swallow my pride to go out there, aware that my screwup was the reason we were floundering and London was so stressed. I quickly slide my legs into a pair of panties and cover myself with an oversized nightshirt before I turn to face Declan. His face is a mask of betrayal.

“It just happened today, Declan. You can check my work emails. Sam contacted me this morning.”

“Why the hell would you even entertain talking to him, let alone seeing him? He put you through hell. He cheated on you!”

“He reached out about a potential opportunity to set up a program with his camp and Spark House. That’s the only reason I went out there.”

“He was my best friend and I cut him out of my life for you and he sends you one goddamn email and you go running to him. What the fuck, Avery?”

I take a breath, aware one of us needs to remain calm, and that this is a sensitive topic. “You’re jumping to conclusions, Declan. I get that you’re upset, but give me a chance to explain.”