Page 95 of The Best Wrong Move

Chapter 67

Seeing Rex standing at the sliding door is the last thing I need right now.

“Quinton rejected it.” I slide the door open with him on the other side. Better to start this conversation by getting it out in the open, so he doesn’t have to pull it all out of me. I don’t feel like retelling every single detail when the ending is all that matters. And I certainly don’t want him to text me tomorrow morning, wanting to know more.

I start to slide the door closed again, but stop when he holds the full wine glass out to me.

“Shit,” he says.

I guess our last goodbye earlier wasn’t forever after all.

“This is for you.” He holds the glass over the threshold, blocking the path of the sliding door.

I look across the lanai, then glance toward his side of the townhouse.

He reads my face. “She’s not here.”

“Oh.” I’m suddenly so tired, it feels like gravity has hold of my brain, pulling me down to sleep.

“Juju and I broke up.”

“What?” I wake right up. Wondering if I simply imagined him saying that.

He nods down at me, looking sad, and somewhat ashamed.

“When?”

“Earlier today. That’s why I came over to talk. This is for you.” He hands me the fuller glass of wine and I take a step back from him.

“What happened?” I ask.

“She figured out who you were. Whowewere.”

I close my eyes and sigh.

This night can’t get any worse.

Rex shrugs, but my stomach drops like a rock. “You still hadn’t filled her in?” I need to sit down.

“No. I was an idiot. I should have told her. I almost did so many times. I just liked the fresh start here. I liked not being the jerk that rejected the sweet, beloved news anchor on national television.” He smiles weakly.

I just need to sit down. We slowly make our way over to the two lounge chairs that are set up facing the water.

“Fuck.” I breathe out slowly, leaning back in the chair. “I can’t believe she had to find out like that.”

Rex settles into the chair next to mine, shaking his head like he can’t believe it either.

“She said that friend she had over here from the shop showed her the video this morning. Right after meeting you.”

I close my eyes again and shake my head. I’d been coming back up from a quick surf session earlier this morning when I passed Juju and a girl I’d never met before, sunbathing on their towels just off the back deck. Juju had introduced me as her boyfriend’s neighbor, here for an extended stay in the townhouse next door. The girl had stared at me a beat too long, lowering her sunglasses to get a better look at my face. But she hadn’t said a word about potentially recognizing me, so I let it go. I’d been so nervous about tonight, I’d forgotten to mention to Rex that Juju’s friend might have recognized me. I guess she must have pulled up the video later to confirm it was me after all.

“Poor girl.” My heart hurts for Juju. She shouldn’t have had to find out like that.

“We’d kind of been living in this happy little bubble here. No one had recognized me yet, so I figured that whole thing might finally be behind us.”

I take a big gulp of the wine, letting it all sink in.

Juju must hate me.

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