Final Score: Part One (Game On 5)

Another buzz.

Leah!

I pressed my hands against the table top to heave myself up and walked to the door to open it. Bryce stood there, his phone in his hand, looking like he’d been about to text me again. He shoved it in his back jeans pocket and stared at me.

“What?” I asked. My voice wasn’t harsh or angry. More empty and quiet.

Without a word, Bryce stepped inside and wrapped his arms around me, pushing the door shut with a backwards kick. My head nestled against his chest as I circled my arms around his waist and sagged against him. A hug from Bryce was second only to being in Radleigh’s arms, and I let him hold me tight.

“Did Radleigh send you?” I mumbled.

“Yes. But if he hadn’t, I would have come anyway.”

With another sigh, I pulled away from him. “Aren’t you supposed to be with him? Supporting him?”

Bryce shook his head. “I thi

nk you need me more than he does.”

“I’m fine, Bryce.”

I turned away from him and walked back towards the kitchen, back to the temptation of my glass of wine.

“Sure you are,” I heard him mutter as he followed me.

Before I sat, I nodded towards one of the kitchen cupboards. “Wine?”

“Not for me.” Instead of reaching for a glass, he went to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water then we both sat down at the kitchen table where I quickly picked up my own drink and took another gulp.

“Okay.” I swirled my wine around in the glass, watching the ruby liquid as it splashed gently against the sides. “Say it. Tell me I’m an idiot and I’m making things worse.”

I risked a glace up at him, and he raised his eyebrows. “I don’t think things could get much worse, Leah. But now you mention it, I think the last thing you and Radleigh need is to be apart right now.”

“I appreciate your honesty, but… he told you why I’m upset, right?”

He nodded. “He told me. And in spite of what you might think, he does understand. And he knows he was wrong. But he wants more than anything to be back here with you and Jessica.”

“It’s just a couple of nights, Bryce. Just so I can think. And so he can think, too.”

“About what? He knows where he wants to be. That’s never been in question.”

“Maybe you think that.” I placed my glass on the table, sickness creeping over me and taking away the desire to drink another drop. “But the truth is, I don’t know. And I’m not sure he knows either.”

Bryce placed his hand on mine and I looked up at him. “You’re not being fair.”

“Fair?” I snatched my hand away and stood up. “Nothing about this is fair. Least of all him lying to me.”

“Fine. He lied. That was a dick move. But don’t let Jen come between you. That’s what she wants, Leah. It’s who she is. For her, nothing’s worthwhile if it doesn’t cause maximum destruction.”

“She didn’t do this to us. I mean, yeah, she didn’t have to come here and say what she did, but it wasn’t her who tried to hide it from me. We promised each other, Bryce. No more secrets. Ever. But he lied to me. Twice.”

“Leah, you’ve got to understand how hard this is for him. How would you feel if the first person you ever loved came back into your life with a huge bombshell? Wouldn’t you have wanted to some time to process before talking to Radleigh about it?”

Bryce’s question stopped me in my tracks. Luke. Maybe he wasn’t even someone I truly loved. But he was the first person who popped into my head, and the only guy aside from Radleigh who had ever had the power to get under my skin. If he rocked up in Westberg with apologies, telling me he’d made a mistake and that he regretted the way he treated me, would I have told Radleigh right away?

“Maybe,” I said. “But I wouldn’t have taken so long about it, especially knowing that person had the power to make the situation worse if he got to Radleigh before I did. She’s poison, Bryce. And he should have known better.”

Bryce nodded. “He should have. And he messed up. I’m just asking you to see this from his point of view for a second. He’s just found out he has another child. And you threw him out.”