Page 46 of Austen, Edited

Chapter 28

Abby had never been more excited to arrive back at her dorm than she was that evening. Her cheeks hurt from all the fake smiling she’d done at Jeff’s awkward jokes. She’d tried to give several hints that she wasn’t interested in him, hoping that by calling him a friend to everyone they spoke to that he’d get the hint.

She sat outside on the small wall that led into her building, enjoying the cool evening weather.

Taking out her phone, she opened a message to Greyson, knowing she needed to tell him how she felt. On the off chance he felt the same, maybe dating the son of a different billionaire would help her uncle see she wasn’t willing to keep dating Jeff.

Was she ready for all that, though? Was she ready for life as she knew it to change drastically? Because rejecting Jeff Summers would mean she’d have to find other ways of paying for college. Even with her current job, it would take much longer to pay off her tuition while still trying to survive with the high price of rent and the other costs of living in the city. Sure, she could get a student loan, but if she could figure out something else, she’d take it.

Hey. Do you have time to talk?She paused, staring at the screen for several seconds.I’m open tomorrow before I head to work. Maybe we could grab breakfast or something?

The screen went black as she waited for an answer from him, stirring up the anxiety she’d had around the time he’d left for Princeton. Was he going to do the same thing? Had the phone call to Hannah been the opportunity for them to make up and get back together?

Shaking her head, she walked inside, trying to calm down. She only hoped she’d be able to tell him how she felt, no matter if he was with Hannah or not.

Closure was what she was looking for, and she was done with sitting by and hoping he would understand. If she never spoke up, she’d regret it for the rest of her life.

* * *

Greyson sawthe texts the next morning. It was already eight o’clock, and Abby hadn’t messaged him anymore. He’d spent the night furious as he recreated the scene with Abby and Jeff in his mind at least a dozen times.

He’d managed to avoid his home long enough that when he arrived back home after seeing Abby with Jeff, there was no sign of Hannah or his mom, giving him some time to be left alone.

He clicked on the box to begin typing out a message, but his thumbs hovered over the screen, not sure what to say. It would be easy to just forget about her, to move on and lock his heart even tighter this time around. He’d been so determined when he came back from New Jersey to focus on his career and worry about women later, but something about Abby had drawn him in, even more than Hannah had before.

Sorry, I just saw this. Today is kind of busy, but let me know another day you’re free this week.

It hurt to type the words, knowing the only reason she’d want to talk to him would be to tell him about Jeff. He’d done the same for her with Hannah because they’d always promised to talk to one another about everything. But look where that had gotten them. The ache and feelings he had for Abby now were something he’d never experienced in his prior relationship, and the fact that she was dating the scumbag down the street didn’t settle as well.

Okay, I’ll let you know. I hope your day is going well.

He wasn’t sure whether he should be happy or frustrated with her.

Exiting the messaging app, he found Jorge’s phone number and dialed.

“Hey, man,” he said when Jorge answered.

“Greyson, how’s it going?”

“It’s going. I was curious when you think you’ll be back from Georgia?”

Jorge chuckled. “I’m actually boarding a plane as we speak. I should be back in a couple of hours. What’s up?”

Greyson ran a hand through his hair and blew out a breath. “My schedule at work is slammed next week, and I didn’t want to just forget about the Love, Austen project. Do you have time for me to update you on it and hand everything back over?”

He sat in front of his computer and clicked on the calendar. In reality, he only had one meeting Wednesday morning, but the sooner he removed himself from contact with the girl he was falling for but was too late to tell, the better off he’d be.

“Yeah, man. Of course. Thanks for taking care of them for this long. I really appreciate it.”

“How’s your dad doing?”

“Better,” Jorge said. “It was touch and go there for a while, but he should be leaving the hospital in the morning. I thought about staying longer, but he’s already got my mother to fuss over him. I don’t think he’d survive with me there too.”

Greyson chuckled, thinking of the man he’d met a few years ago. Jorge’s father’s picture had to be next to the word independent in the dictionary.

After chatting another minute or two, Greyson hung up and scrubbed his face with his hands. He couldn’t get the scene of Abby getting into Jeff’s car out of his head. Why couldn’t he have realized how much he liked her just a couple of days sooner? Then he might have had a chance with her.

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