Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 89324 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 447(@200wpm)___ 357(@250wpm)___ 298(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89324 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 447(@200wpm)___ 357(@250wpm)___ 298(@300wpm)
“You don’t have to tell me that,” she said, almost defensively. “He’s my best friend. And I completely agree that he wouldn’t understand.” Her eyes watered.
Fuck. I’d never ached to reach out and hold someone more in my life. Now more than ever, though, I needed to stay in my lane. But I still needed answers. After a long moment of silence, I had to ask. “How come you never called me?”
That question had come from the part of me that was still just Tate, not Taylor’s father.
She sniffled. “Does that matter now?”
It would always matter to me. Because as much as I’d hoped she wouldn’t need to call, I’d also sure as fuck hoped she would. Every damn time the phone rang for the past four years, my heart had filled with hope. I’d been so sure she’d reach out, even if just to say hello.
I looked away, but then back at her. “I always thought I’d hear from you at least once.”
She closed her eyes, and a tear finally fell.
“Hey…” I stepped forward, unable to stop myself from wiping the teardrop with my thumb. It took everything in me not to take her in my arms. But that wasn’t where we were right now. “What’s wrong?” I whispered.
Her voice trembled. “It wasn’t my choice not to call you.”
I narrowed my eyes. “What do you mean?”
She looked up at me. “I was robbed on my way home from that trip. While I was waiting at the train station, someone took the bag that had my phone in it.”
It felt like I’d been punched in the chest. “Are you serious?”
Blair nodded. “I was devastated, and it took me a long time to come to terms with it. I filed a police report and constantly checked in with the authorities near where it happened, but they never found my belongings. I lost everything—my wallet, my phone, all my contacts.” She wiped her eyes. “But the only thing that mattered was your number and the photos I’d taken.” She shook her head. “I lost you that day.”
I let out a long breath, countless emotions swirling through me. “I can’t believe that happened.”
“You think I’m lying?”
I shook my head. “Of course not. That’s not what I meant. I just assumed you’d chosen not to contact me. I never imagined that you had no choice. That’s some really bad luck.
She laughed angrily. “Well, I would say this twist of fate is a lot worse than that.”
I stopped myself from wiping her tears again and tried to organize my thoughts. “I wished every day that I had gotten your last name,” I told her. “But I also thought maybe you didn’t want to talk to me because you never called. Through the years, I think I’d sort of accepted it. But now that I know you lost my number…” I shook my head. “It sets me back mentally. I don’t know how to feel right now.” I exhaled. “Everything I thought I knew about this situation was wrong.”
She straightened her back. “After what we found out today, though, none of that matters anymore. Does it?”
I opened my mouth, then closed it. If only it were that simple. “You’ll always matter to me, Blair. This doesn’t change how I feel about you, even if it changes what I can say or do about it.” I paced, still trying to sort through all of this. “I have questions.”
She crossed her arms as she watched me pace. “Okay…”
“Back when we first met, and you said a friend had gifted you the trip… That was Taylor.”
“Yes. It was the only way I could’ve afforded it.”
I nodded. “When you told me that, it struck me as a little weird, but I didn’t want to insult you by questioning how you had a friend who could afford it, I guess. But it makes sense now that it was him.”
She raised her voice. “Why didn’t you tell me your family owned the resort? If you had, I would’ve surely put two and two together.”
“I didn’t want you to get the wrong idea about me.” I threw my hands in the air. “I’ve never lived off of my parents’ money. Never took a dime from them, and I wasn’t in the habit of flaunting that connection.” I closed my eyes and blew out a breath. “But you’re right. I absolutely should’ve told you, and I regret how I handled it.”
Even as I spoke, I wasn’t sure those words were true. Because if I’d told her, she would’ve figured out who I was. And we never would’ve been together. Even now, I wouldn’t change anything about that. Fucked up or not, I’d always cherish the time we had.
Blair’s face reddened. “You accused me of being deceitful on that trip, yet it seems you were the one keeping the most secrets—not telling me your parents owned the place, giving me your nickname…”