Letting Go (Thatch 1)

“You didn’t,” Grey assured her, and my eyes darted over to her. “Jagger stayed up drawing all night, so we fell asleep after lunch. We just woke up, you weren’t interrupting anything.”

Part of me knew that Grey would’ve said that no matter what. It’s not like I wanted my sister to know what I did with Grey when we were alone, but I couldn’t help but think of the panicked look on Grey’s face when we’d broken apart, and the way she’d been gripping Ben’s ring.

“Um . . . okay,” Charlie mumbled before looking back at me.

“Oh my God, I had no idea it was this late.”

I looked over at the microwave to check the time, but right now the fact that we’d slept until seven wasn’t enough to faze me. My sister still looked hurt and betrayed, and Grey was standing far enough away from me that I couldn’t touch her if I tried.

“Are you hungry? We can order something, or I’ll make dinner.”

Charlie’s head jerked back, her eyes stuck on me before they slowly drifted to Grey. “Do you live here now?”

Grey’s face fell at my sister’s tone, and she scrambled to find something to say. “No . . . I don’t, I just . . .” She trailed off and looked helplessly around. “Jagger doesn’t cook, and I thought you might be—I’m gonna go home.”

I didn’t say anything; I didn’t know what to say in that moment. I was pissed off and so fucking confused. My sister and my girl were trying to leave, both looked uncomfortable, and I had no idea what to do to fix it.

“No, don’t,” Charlie said just as Grey started walking toward the bar to get her purse. “I’m sorry, it’s been a long day and I’m just crabby. I was with those girls in a car for a month and a half, it all got to be too much. We can order something, and I want you to stay, I’ve only seen you once since you moved back.”

Grey turned to look at me, but my eyes were still on Charlie. She sounded and looked like my sister again, but there was still that underlying hurt in her eyes. When I realized they were both looking at me, I cleared my throat and shrugged. “I don’t want either of you to leave. Decide what you want, I’ll call the restaurant.”

By the time the food had been delivered, Charlie and Grey were completely back to normal. But Grey was still sitting far enough away that I couldn’t touch her, and even when Charlie went outside to get something from her car, she was acting like nothing had ever happened between us. I couldn’t help wondering how much she regretted what little we’d done, and if she was blaming me for it.

Grey

July 28, 2014

AS SOON AS I walked into The Brew, I spotted Charlie sitting at one of the large couches and started toward her just as she waved at me. She already had two drinks on the table, and I knew without having to look at the cup farthest from her that it was an iced caramel macchiato for me. Charlie and I had always taken turns getting something from this shop in the morning before classes during high school, so it was impossible to not know what each other’s favorite was.

“Hey, sorry I’m late,” I said as I sat down beside her on the couch.

She waved me off and pushed my drink closer to me. “You’re not. I came here early so I could grab a few books.”

“Get anything good?”

“Of course,” she scoffed. “Some more romances from a few of my favorite authors . . . you could always borrow them when I’m done.”

A sharp laugh burst from my chest, and I rolled my eyes. “Oh yes, please, I would love nothing more than that,” I said drily.

“You never know, Grey, you might just fall in love with them.”

“Doubtful. But, really, enjoy them for me.”

I wasn’t a fan of reading much, as it was, but romance was definitely the opposite of what I would look for if I was. Charlie had been trying to get me into reading since she started high school, but I didn’t see the point. Because of romance novels, she had expectations that were absurdly high when it came to guys, and even though I’d always joked with her that she’d only ever find those kinds of guys in books, she’d just smile dreamily and say, “He’s out there.”

“I will get you to read one, Grey LaRue. One of these days, I promise you.”

“They’re all fairy-tale-ish, and there’s always the happy ending that never happens in real life.”

Charlie looked like I’d just stuck a knife in her stomach. “It does happen in real life, but not all the stories have happy endings. And fairy tale? Come on, Grey, this isn’t Cinderella.”

I laughed softly and took a sip of my drink. “You know what I mean. Girl meets guy, they’re perfect for each other. Something happens that will threaten to keep them apart, and then they live happily ever after.”

Charlie’s expression told me she was trying to figure out a way to disagree, but then her shoulders slumped and she mumbled, “Yeah, that’s usually how it goes.”

“See?”

“But there’s so much more in them! Yeah, okay, fine . . . that’s generally the outline to any romance novel, but it’s what happens to fill up that outline that makes it amazing. It’s the different circumstances, it’s the lengths they’ll go to in order to be together, it’s their struggles that are real.”