Page 7 of Basil

I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. “She says she doesn’t care about those things.”

“Maybe not,” Lola cut in, smirking. “But she sure as hell enjoyed them.”

The words sat uneasily in my chest, but I said nothing. Because the truth was, Summer had never asked for any of the perks I came with. She was happy in her apartment above her shop. She didn’t care about networking or status. She lived her life on her own terms, and that’s what had drawn me to her in the first place—because she wasn’t like everyone else in my world.

She had walked away from everything we’d built over a kiss that wasn’t even a kiss. Over a hug. Over my friends being exactly who they had always been.

Gareth raised his glass, shitfaced. “Here’s to you, man. You dodged a bullet.”

Drew clinked her glass against his, her gaze flicking toward me. “To a new era where Basil finds someone who’s right for him, fits with him.”

I forced a tight smile and took a sip of my drink, but the taste was bitter on my tongue. I knew why. For the first time in two years, Summer wasn’t in my world, and my heart was broken.

4

AM I CRAZY?

SUMMER

Istood frozen, my hands trembling as I clutched the strap of my duffel bag. Everything felt surreal. I felt as if I were watching everything unfold from outside my body. My relationship—all the love, laughter, and plans—had just shattered, leaving me standing in Basil’s perfectly curated home, trying to remember how to breathe.

“Hey, you okay?” A hand touched my shoulder, and I turned to see the caterer. She was probably in her mid-forties.

“I—” My voice cracked, so I swallowed and tried again. “I don’t know.”

“Look, I know it’s not my place.” The woman let out a long exhale as if torn between decorum and speaking her mind. “But I saw…heard what happened.”

I pressed my lips together to stop myself from crying. “I…I have to go.”

I had to leave, get out of here, andnevercome backbeforeI burst into tears.

“I can’t believe he….” I closed my eyes as his words hit me hard even in memory, especially in memory.

Stop being so fucking insecure, baby. Grow a spine, will you?

Tears filled my eyes. “Am I crazy? I…she kissed him…I…did I overreact?”

She winced. “No, hun, you didn’t. I thought they were a couple.”

A sharp, painful pang hit my chest.

“I’m sorry,” she breathed. “The way they were talking and hugging. And”—she probably saw I was getting upset—“now, I’m going to shut up.”

I shook my head. “It’s fine. It’s good. I need to hear this. You’re right. They do behave like a couple, and I feel like theother woman.”

The caterer gave me a wan smile. “I’ve worked events for people like this for years, and let me tell you, they’re all the same. Fake. Self-obsessed.”

My throat ached. I wanted to argue—wanted to say that Basil wasn’t like that. That he was sweet, kind, wonderful…. But I didn’t know who he was anymore.

“So, it was as bad as I thought,” I whispered, staring at this stranger who was trying to make me feel better while my boyfriend had gone back to be with the same toxic people who had ruined our relationship.

She breathed out softly. “Yeah, hun, it was.”

For a long moment, I just stood there, gripping my bag like a lifeline. Then I finally centered myself. “Thank you.”

She gave me a sad, knowing look. “I don’t know that man, so I can’t say if he was gaslighting you or if he’s really not able to see what is clear to anyone with eyes.”

I let out a huffed laugh. “Does it matter why he said or did the things he did? The impact of his words and actions doesn’t change because of his intent.”

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