My hands move to the back of the couch as my mouth grows dry. I feel something hot slide down my cheek, but I keep staring like this train wreck is somehow going to sort itself out, so long as I don’t say the wrong thing right now.
This can’t be goodbye. We still have nine more days.
This is way too sudden. I simply failed at seducing him—that’s all.
I really am terrible at seduction, but it doesn’t warrant an abrupt goodbye.
If I open my mouth to argue, I’m going to get emotional. If I try to change his mind, I’m going to feel manipulative. If I try to salvage the situation, I’m going end up in tears, and it’ll just make him feel bad.
“O-okay,” I stammer softly, eyes dropping back to the floor. “Yeah. Sure. I get it,” I add, feeling the burning at the backs of my eyes.
It’s selfish to draw it out when I know I can’t possibly stay. It’d be stupid to even consider moving across the country for a guy I had a fling with.
As a matter of fact, I’m not even sure why that absurd thought crosses my mind.
We can part as friends who will never speak again, since he doesn’t have the internet, a phone, or any desire to contact me in the future, as made evident by the fact he hasn’t arranged anything like that to stay in touch.
He doesn’t even know my social media handles.
He doesn’t know my number.
He doesn’t have my email.
He doesn’t know my address.
We can’t even be penpals.
This is truly goodbye.
A clean cut.
Take the hint, Piper.
When I can’t seem to form another word, I simply stare down at my feet some more, waiting for him to go.
I’m startled when a hand circles my wrist, and I’m yanked against his firm, hard body. I never even heard him walk over here, and I can’t look him in the eye. Instead, I press my face to his chest, breathing in his clean scent, as two more tears leak out. His arms close around me and hug me to him, and we simply stand like that without words.
His heart is pounding against my ear, his arms are tightly bound around me, and his breaths are shallow and warm against my hair.
Abruptly, he clears his throat, his hold loosening. Wordlessly, he releases me from the soul-searing hug and walks out, slamming the door behind him.
He never even got out of his coat.
Hell, he never even got to take his boots off.
Wiping away some of the tears, I sink to the floor, barely able to see him through the window as he walks down the narrow road. He doesn’t turn around, and he doesn’t use the impossibly fast pace he normally sets.
The tears don’t seem to want to stop falling. I thought I was more mentally prepared for this.
In my head, our inevitable parting of ways was going to be happy, fun, exciting…
He was going to make me laugh instead of cry.
He was going to get a phone so we could stay in touch from time to time.
He was going to get social media so I could keep up with the town…
Not that I ever asked him to do any of it. Obviously I wanted him to want to do that on his own.
This is why I can’t do casual. I have a problem letting go of things I enjoy, because they seem to get fewer and farther between the older I get.
Kai finally disappears from my vision, and my hand flies to my mouth, muffling the unexpected sob that tries to escape.
Why are so many tears falling right now?
Flings aren’t supposed to hurt—
The sound of someone pulling up has me shoving up to my shaky legs, and peering out the front. Reese is getting out of Hale’s Jeep, slamming the door behind her, and waving over her shoulder as she heads toward the door.
Of all the fucking times for her to finally come back to our cabin.
Wiping my eyes the best I can, I drop to the couch and pull a blanket over me to hide the fact I’m still mostly naked. I don’t have the energy to put on clothes. I don’t even have the energy to pretend I care about what I’m wearing right now.
The door swings open, and Reese steps inside. Her jaw tics as she shuts the door and drops back against it. A single tear slips down her cheek as her jaw wobbles, and her face crumples like she’s about to burst out into tears…just as she spots me.
Her eyes widen, and as though she’s a magician, she schools her features so well you can’t tell it looked like she was about to cry.
“Hey,” she says as she clears her throat. “What are you doing here?”
The tears she’s restraining aren’t as easy to hide as her expressions. My tears start leaking out without my consent because I’m not strong enough to keep on a poker face.