Page 68 of Fumbled Love

“I’d like to see Kinley,” he said to my friend, who was still standing at the door, blocking his path.

A small part of me wanted to run into his arms for comfort, but I stayed still and shook off the urge. I would not make this easy on him.

He tried to brush past my friend, but Chad put his hand out. “Not going to happen.”

Maverick’s face turned red. “I don’t remember you getting a vote. Now, move out of my damn way. This doesn’t concern you.”

Chad folded his arms over his chest. “She doesn’t want to talk to you.”

“You don’t speak for her.” Maverick’s jaw was clenched, his eyes were narrowed, and as much as I wanted to send his ass back on a plane to Georgia, I knew I had to step in before things got ugly.

I stood from the couch and walked toward him. “Is any of what she said true?” My voice was low and on the verge of breaking. My salty tears hit my lips, but I was past caring how I looked. The world could have stopped spinning, and I wouldn’t had felt a thing.

Maverick shook his head. “Can we talk in private, please?”

“Talk?” My chest heaved. “Now you want to talk. You have barely spared me a second of your time up until last night, yet you show up here and expect me to drop whatever I’m doing so you can what? Throw me a list of excuses.”

He flinched at my words, and as much as I hated to admit it, I was at fault here, too, because I knew what I was getting myself into. “I’m sorry you saw those pictures. Those articles are all bullshit. I was hoping you wouldn’t even fucking see them.”

I bet he did.

“How else did you expect me to find out?” My hands were shaking, and my body was filled with so much fury I didn’t know what to do with it all. “Maybe if you weren’t too busy with taking yourfriendon dates, you’d have more time to talk to me.”

His eyes looked pained, but I would not allow myself to feel sorry for him. I was mentally replaying the brief calls and messages we shared over the week, trying to remember if he mentioned or hinted to taking Della, but everything was coming up blank.

“It’s not like that.” He cursed under his breath. “You have been ignoring my calls and texts all night. I took the first flight out as soon as I could.”

“And you thought you would show up here and accomplish what, exactly?”

He cleared his throat and lowered his voice. “You have every right to be mad at me. All I ask is that we not do this in front of an audience.” He glanced between my friends, who were standing guard and ready to jump in if I needed them.

I sighed and looked between Chad and Taylor. “Thank you, both, for coming over and staying with me, but I think it’s best if Maverick and I talk alone.”

“Kinley,” Chad protested as Taylor grabbed on to his elbow and started shoving him toward the door. “You don’t have to listen to him.”

I knew he meant well, but I did not have the mental energy to deal with him at the moment.

“Thank you for your concern, Chad. We’ll talk later.”

He pursed his lips and nodded his head in understanding. As soon as they left, I walked into the kitchen to pour a glass of water. I could feel Maverick’s eyes on me, but I wasn’t ready to hash things out with him yet. I needed a minute to pull myself together because I was on the verge of breaking down. Everything I feared was happening, and I was feeling overwhelmed.

I wrapped my arms along my stomach, wishing we could turn the clock back and do things differently. We were so happy, so I didn’t understand why he did it? Why did he have to take her? How could he do this?

I gave my head a quick shake, and spun around. The only way I was going to get answers was if I allowed him to explain. But when I got a look at his face, the anguish was enough to bring me to my knees. I leaned against the counter and crossed my arms, praying for God to give me strength.

“Thank you for hearing me out,” he said, his eyes searching mine. “I wasn’t sure if you would even let me through the door.” He smiled sheepishly, but I kept my face frozen. I wasn’t sure what he wanted me to say. All I knew was the longer I looked at him, the angrier I became.

“It’s not like I can just turn you away.” My throat constricted. “You have too much explaining to do.”

He stepped closer and paused in the middle of my kitchen. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am. I was a stupid idiot.”

He started with an apology. I could work with that. At least he wasn’t denying anything.

“How much of what she said is true?”

“Can we start with the pictures first?” He began pacing the room but stopped at the threshold when he realized he wasn’t getting very far. “The picture of us at the fundraiser.” He paused. “The only reason why she even went with me in the first place was because you said no.”

My mouth dropped open. “You can’t be serious?”

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