Page 109 of Trustfall

“That’s—” I’m not sure what she’s getting at, but the look on her face is dead serious. “That’s it. He went through my fucking phone, Allie. He took matters into his own hands without consulting me, just like Nate did.”

“Yeah, that sucks. And I will kick his ass for it if you want me to, but…”

“But what?

“Both times, what Nate did and what Luke did, the end justified the means, right? If Nate hadn’t threatened Jaxon to leave town, you might have gone and married him. And Luke…he was defending you. Protecting you. You told the man who loves you beyond words every twisted detail of what that douchebag put you through. Can you really blame him for wanting to knock the guy out?”

Anger ignites low in my belly, and I stand up with more force than necessary. “He didn’t do it for me,” I yell. “He did it to assuage his own anger at the situation.”

“Maybe. But?—”

“But what?”

She looks down in hesitation. “Look, I know this makes me a hypocrite of epic proportions, but maybe if had you told him about Jaxon sooner, this would have turned out differently. I know that’s hard to hear. Believe me, I do.”

My anger melts as regret seeps in. God, I hate how right she is. He was so patient, and I kept him in the dark at every turn.

“You’ve been hurt, Em. Bad. I get it. But I don’t think I would be a good friend if I didn’t remind you how happy you have been these past couple of months. I’m not saying marry the guy, but…”

“You don’t even believe in love,” I say quietly.

“I don’t believe in it for me, but I think it exists for other people. When I saw the look in his eyes when he was leaving yesterday…that boy’s got it bad, Em.”

I huff out a long breath and sit back down next to her, my arms crossed defiantly. I sneak a glance at her, but she’s back to staring at the screen, the show playing silently in the background.

“You think so?” I ask with hesitation.

“I know so,” she says, finally looking at me. “Neither of you has experience being in a healthy relationship. I’m assuming—I didn’t get the vibe that he was the relationship type before you. Anyway, you’re learning as you go. You’re going to make mistakes. But Emory, that night at the bar…you were so frustrating. You were being a Grade A brat, but he didn’t yell. He didn’t make you feel bad or ashamed. I watched him. He took a deep breath and distracted you. With drive-thru chicken nuggets because you’re a literal child, but it doesn’t matter how he did it.” She throws the blanket off dramatically and looks me dead in the eye. “Emory, he fucking tap-danced for you.”

My eyes go wide and my breathing hitches.He tap-danced for me?I must have told Allie that story a hundred times, and now she’s using it to convince me. But when I really think about it, he did. He distracted me. He didn’t start a screaming match. He didn’t blame me. He took me to do something that he knew would make me happy in that moment.He tap-danced. Metaphorically, of course. Although I can’t help the laugh that bubbles out of me as I picture him actually tap-dancing.

Fuck, I’m an idiot.

“Yeah,” Allie says. I guess I said that out loud.

“Shit, Allie. I have to go talk to him.”

“Yeah,” she says again. And then she presses the unmute button, picks up her laptop, and continues to type as if she didn’t just change my entire life with a single sentence.

“Hey, Al.”

“Mmm?” she hums absentmindedly.

“Thank you. You are a good friend. I’m sorry for how I reacted the other night. I know you were looking out for me when you told Nate. I’m still not happy you went behind my back, but…I get it.”

She flashes one of her rare smiles. “I will always fight for you, with you, beside you…whatever.”

“I know.”

Her gentle smile morphs into a determined smirk. “Now go get your damn man.”

37

LUKE

“Thanks a lot, man,”I say, as Ryan finishes putting the protective wrap over my arm. “I really appreciate you fitting me in on such short notice.”

Ryan chuckles and looks over at Marco, who is sitting in the corner, his legs casually kicked out in front of him, with one leg crossed on top of the other. He’s scrolling on his phone, but his lips curl up into a smirk when he hears Ryan’s laugh.

---