Page 109 of Best I Never Had

“And…I think you could use the time off.”

“Me?”

“Hayden,” he says sternly. “I know it’s been rough since your dad died, but you’ve been in a rut. I see you on autopilot every day. You come to work, do your job, and leave. Your eyes look blank, like you don’t care about anything, and I’m worried about you. Your mom and I…we’re both worried about you.”

I look away, keeping my gaze on the bowl in front of me, staring at the leftover crumbs of cereal scattered at the bottom as they turn soggy with milk.

“I’m sorry, Hayden,” he says, his voice hoarse. “I should have made you take the time off sooner. I guess things have been hard for all of us, and I lost sight of things.”

The same constriction in my throat starts to ball up again as I realize how much everything has been weighing me down. He’s right. From my lack of energy at work to the rutted routine that’s been fueling my days as I run on fumes. I’m trudging through each shift at the restaurant. Like I’m barely surviving.

“It’s fine, Pat,” I say, my voice weak and scratchy.

“I already talked to your mom. She thinks it’ll be good for you…for the both of you, if you stay for a while.” He leans back in his chair, tilting his coffee cup back as he keeps his gaze on me, waiting for me to answer.

I finally nod. “Okay.”

44

Natalia

two years ago

“Happy anniversary,”Matteo croons. His smile is lazy and relaxed in contrast to the harsh, cold winds blowing around us.

“Happy anniversary?” I question, pulling away with a confused smile. “Our anniversary was last month. Remember how you forgot?” I tease.

Matteo chuckles, pecking the corner of my mouth. “And this is my way of making it up to you.”

“I thought this was a work trip.”

“Well,” he says with a shrug, draping his arm around my shoulders, “I guess we’re killing two birds with one stone.”

I roll my eyes, lightly shoving away from him before wrapping my scarf around me tighter, nuzzling my nose into the bright orange cashmere. When we landed at O’Hare International Airport, we didn’t expect the normally cool temperatures in Chicago to be so cold this earlyin November. Or at least,Ididn’t.

“Aren’t you glad you listened to me when I told you to pack warm?” Matteo says, gesturing toward my scarf.

“Hmm,” I hum. “What would I do without you?”

Matteo turns away from me, linking our cold hands together as we continue our leisurely steps through Lincoln Park. We simply bask in the one day off that Matteo has before a meeting the following morning, the reason for this supposed “anniversary trip.”

Suddenly, Matteo pulls his phone out of his pocket, the buzzing noise vibrating in his hand before he answers it.

“This is Matteo,” he calls, his hand holding mine slackening as his steps stop. “What are you talking about? They aren’t supposed to be here until tomorrow…yeah, okay. I’ll be right there.” He promptly hangs up and faces me. “Natalia, I’m so sorry. The investors are already at the office. I guess they want to move the meeting up to today.”

I pout. “What about dinner?”

“I’ll try to make it out in time for our reservations but if not, I promise I’ll make it up to you tomorrow.”

I continue to pout, shoving my hands into my pockets as I watch him distractedly look down at his phone.

“Do you want me to walk you back to the hotel?” he asks.

I shake my head. “It’s too far, and you’re in a hurry. I’ll just explore a bit and head back when it gets too cold.”

He nods, placing a quick kiss on my cheek before hurrying off.

I swivel on my feet, suddenly realizing that I’m in a city where I know absolutely nothing or no one. With no specific direction, I continue the steps I was walking with Matteo, hoping to find something to kill the time.

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