Page 259 of Champagne Nights

I let out a chuckle. “I borrowed you.”

“Same thing because you did it without my permission.” Her brow arched.

“I thought we both needed to get away from New York for a while. I certainly did with everything that went on with my parents and Kirsten. And I know you probably did as well.”

“You’re right, Henry. I did. But the difference here is I needed to get away from you. I’m trying so hard to heal the heart you broke, and you’re making it worse for me.”

“I know, and I’m sorry.”

“Stop saying that!” she shouted. “I know you’re sorry, but it doesn’t change the fact that I can’t trust you.”

“You can’t, or you won’t? I know I screwed up in a big way, and I know how badly I hurt you. I’m human, Ellie, and I make mistakes. All I’m asking from you is to give me one week. Just the two of us here in Malibu with no distractions and no interruptions. No work, no parents, no drama, nothing. The moment we laid eyes on each other at the grocery store, we both felt an instant connection. There’s no denying that. What we had was so special. You make me want to be a better person—a better man. And I screwed that up because I was too afraid you wouldn’t want to see me anymore if I’d told you about her in the first place. Then, after I called off the wedding and broke up with her, I was trying to find a way to tell you. Then my father had his heart attack and open-heart surgery, and so much shit was going on.”

“Then Kirsten told you she was pregnant and?—”

“My mother told you before I could.” I looked down in shame.

“You can make a thousand excuses, but that’s all they are, Henry.”

“I know, and if I could go back in time, I would have told you from the start.”

Her eyes stared directly into mine from across the table for a few moments as silence filled the space around us.

“If I decide to stay, we aren’t sleeping in the same room.”

“I already know that, and I didn’t expect us to. You’ll stay in the primary bedroom, and I’ll stay in one of the other rooms. There are a million things we can do here. We can go swimming in the ocean, go kayaking, shopping, scuba diving, anything you want.”

“We aren’t together, Henry. You need to understand that.”

“I do understand that. But I was hoping after this week we could at least be friends. If anything, that’s what I want the most. Because I’d rather have you in my life as a friend, than not have you in my life at all,” I signed.

“If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go down to the beach by myself.”

“Of course. I’ll clean up.”

Ellie

I sat down in the sand and brought my legs up to my chest. Looking up, seagulls were flying overhead just as the sun was about to set. What he did. God, I could hate him so much right now, and a part of me wants to grab my suitcase and hightail it out of here. But I needed to look beyond his actions. He didn’t do any of this to hurt me. That much I knew. And he really had no choice but to lie to get me here because if he would have flat-out asked me; I would have told him no. I had been filled withso much hurt and anger, and I wouldn’t look beyond what his mother had told me that day in the café. And when he walked into my apartment after I’d texted him, I was already done with him regardless of his explanation and excuses.

While I was pondering my thoughts, Henry sat down in the sand next to me.

“Is it okay if I sit here?” he signed.

“Yeah. It’s fine.”

“The sunset is amazing,” he signed.

“It truly is,” I said as I stared at it.

“Have you decided if you’re going to stay?”

“I’ll stay.”

The corners of his mouth curved upward. “Thank you,” he signed.

“How did you find out the baby wasn’t yours?”

“Addison took it upon herself to do some investigating.”

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