My heart skips a beat, and my stomach clenches so tight.
“Liri is,” Hayley sneers at him. “Sorry we must have forgotten to invite you to the going away party.”
“Can I talk to you?” I can feel those dark eyes boring into me, but I can’t look at him.
I stare down into my cup and swirl my straw around the ice cubes.
“That’s a hell no,” Hayley answers for me and squeezes my hand under the table. My knee is bouncing and forcing the table to shake.
Killian grabs a chair from the table behind him and pulls it up to the end of our table blocking me in.
“Dude, no one wants you here,” Cassidy pipes in bless her heart. She hardly knows me, but she’s sweet. I hope Ben treats her right.
“Liri, I merely want five minutes.”
I keep staring down at my drink ignoring him. I can’t give in to him. He doesn’t deserve a chance to talk. He’s had plenty.
“Please, baby.”
Don’t call me baby. Don’t call me anything. I’m not yours. I’m not sure I ever was your anything. A sob rips through me, but I don’t give him my attention. I can’t. I’ll break if I do. I know if I give him five minutes I’ll fall right back into old habits. I can’t go there.
“Fuck, man. Leave her alone. Don’t you see she’s about to breakdown right here,” Ben tells him.
Hayley wraps an arm around my shoulder and hugs me into her side like she can protect me from Killian. Nothing can save me from the path of his storm, I’m already in the eye of it. I don’t know why he cares. He doesn’t remember loving me. I’m nothing to him so why is he doing this to me?
“Five minutes, Liri. Give me five minutes.” He grabs my chin, and his fingers sear me. I jerk against him.
“No,” I croak unable to meet his eyes. I squeeze mine shut tight. I can’t meet those dark eyes that haunt me. The eyes that once regarded me with what I thought was love. There is no love. Not for me. Not for Killian.
His fist comes down hard on the table, and I jump when my drink spills. “Goddamn it, Liri. Just look at me.”
“What’s your problem?” Cassidy shrieks, and I wish a portal would open up below my feet and send me anywhere but here right now.
“Liri,” Killian begs and tries to hold my hand.
“Please. Just stop.” My chest heaves. “I…I don’t want to talk to you. Why are you doing this?”
“You love me. You love me, Liri. Look at me.” His words break me. I do love him. I love him more than he will ever know, but I can’t do this with him.
“Just leave me alone. If you love me…if you ever loved me, you’ll leave me alone.”
Ben climbs over Cassidy and pulls Killian up out of the chair. “The fuck is your problem, man. She said no.”
“I just need to talk to her,” Killian’s voice breaks, and my heart shatters hearing the pain that is laced in his tone. Could he remember? Does he remember, or is he only playing another game?
“Outside, man. Co
me on. Cool off and maybe she’ll give you a shot, but if she says no again in ten minutes then I want you leave her alone.”
Killian doesn’t say anything and follows Ben outside.
I feel like I can finally breathe once he’s gone.
The waitress comes over to our table with a rag to wipe up my spilled drink and replaces it with a new one. “Can I get you guys anything else?”
I need to get out of here. “Do you have a back door?”
“Yeah. Follow me.”