Page 103 of Keeping it Real

“But if it weren’t for me, he wouldn’t have made that choice,” she cried.“He would still be here today.”

“That’s crazy talk.Do you even hear yourself?You had nothing to do with it.”

She pulled out of his embrace and wiped her face on the sleeve of her robe.When she turned back around to face him, an expression that looked a lot like dread had settled in her eyes.“There’s something I need to confess.”

His chest constricted.“Confess?”He didn’t like the ominous sound of that word.

Sheridan pulled in a deep breath as though it was her last.“All this time, you’ve blamed Jamie for taking Madison away from you.”

“Yeah.Because he did.”

“No.Jamie didn’t do that to you.I did.”

Sheridan’s heartcracked a little more seeing the way Alek’s face hardened at her disclosure.They’d grown so close in the past month, moving past their previous roles of brother’s best friend and best friend’s little sister.Yesterday, he’d been talking about the future.She’d be lucky if he was even talking to her once she said her piece.

“That doesn’t even make sense.What are you talking about?”

He looked ragged from spending the night on the sofa.When she woke to find him there, she knew yesterday’s revelations had knocked him off kilter, too.He’d made Jamie out to be the bad guy in this scenario for so long.Finding out Madison was flawed must have been a huge paradigm shift.It was easier to blame Jamie for taking something away rather than to believe Madison hadn’t chosen him.

And that had to hurt.

It was impossible to avoid the truth now that it was out there in the open.He tossed a plastic bottle between his shaky hands, trying to appear more composed than he was.She bit back a sob.This was going to be even harder than she imagined.

She sank down on the corner of the bed.“You might want to sit.”

He crossed his arms over his chest, practically anchoring himself to the floor.“Just tell me what’s going on.”

Nodding, she drew in another deep, calming breath, only to have it sound fractured.“It was the summer you were in Europe, and Jamie was in New Hampshire waiting for the draft.”

Alek made an annoyed sound.

“I’m sorry.Of course you know when it was.”She picked at a piece of fuzz on the robe.“Madison hung around our house a lot.I assumed it was because she missed you and wanted to be around familiar faces.I was taking on every shift I could get at the bar to earn money for school.She and Jamie spent most of their time together.Then, all of a sudden, she was sitting in on the meetings with his agent.Even the contract negotiations.The next thing I know, Jamie is telling me they are in love and he’s taking her with him to Las Vegas for the draft.”

Alek gave his head a little shake.He held his palms out.“Yeah?That’s on Jamie.I don’t see how you are to blame for anything.”

Sheridan jumped up from the bed.Shewasto blame.And Jamie was gone because of her silence.

“Jamie thought you’d broken up with Madison!”

He shot her a confused look.“What?”

She huffed a frustrated sigh.“Madison told him she’d given you an ultimatum.She wanted to know if you two had a future together.According to her, you told her no and then broke things off.Jamie was furious at you for stomping on her heart like that.”

“That’s a bunch of bullshit.I never broke up with her.I was going to propose to her when I got back.You know that.I showed you the ring.What did he say when you told him that?”

Her throat grew so tight she couldn’t get any words out.At least that was the excuse she was hiding behind for not answering him.Time stretched painfully until she could see the exact moment the truth dawned on him.

“You told him, didn’t you?”

God bless him.He doesn’t want to acknowledge the truth.After everything I’ve told him, he still wants to believe in me.

She didn’t think she could love him more.At the same time, she could feel the pieces of her heart skittering around her chest, where it was slowly disintegrating.

Alek slammed his fists against the wall he was leaning on.“Are you kidding me?All this time, Jamie believed that aboutme?My best friend hated me for something I didn’t do?”He barked out an ugly laugh.“Hell, I hated him right back.What the fuck, Sheridan?”

There was no excuse she could give that would make him understand.

He tossed the half-drunk sports drink onto the bed so he could work his fingers through his hair as he paced around the room.His face was pained when he turned on her.

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