Page 96 of Love Beyond the Illusion
“It seemed like he was struggling too. How we were and what we were—you can’t fake that.”
“Wow.” Bailey’s eyes are wide. “How much happened between the two of you?”
I tuck a tear-soaked piece of hair behind my ear. “A lot.”
Avery nibbles on her bottom lip. “Was it fake to you?”
“It was, I think,” I say.
Lina clasps her hands in her lap. “But you did marry him the first time you met him, so there has to be something said about that.”
My chin quivers as I pick up where I left off. “You guys didn’t see how he looked at me. And when we made love, how intimate and perfect it was doesn’t feel like something that can be faked.”
“Maybe it wasn’t?” Lina suggests, her eyebrows pinched together.
“But it was because why would he let me go?” I plead with her, but the question is more for myself.
“I’m not sure.” Bailey sighs, shaking her head. “Maybe the same reasonyougot on that plane this morning?”
“I agree with Bailey. He could be just as conflicted as you are,” Avery says.
I nod. “Maybe. I could tell he was getting emotional when he was in the shower with me this morning, but he suddenly shut down.”
“Shit, babe, I had no idea how intimate it got between you guys. Sleeping together—showering together. Sex is just sex, but you used the wordsmaking love.” Lina crosses her arms at her chest. “Damn, this sucks.”
“There’s nothing left of us. It was all a lie. The snuggling, the laughing, the forehead kisses, the conversations we shared—” I suck in a breath. “And now it’s all gone.” My lower lip trembles as I speak. Lina gets off the couch and wraps her arms around me while my head hangs low between my legs. “Why does being away from him make my soul feel so bad?”
Bailey tilts her head toward me, her face suddenly softening. “Are you in love with him?”
I rub my lips together, biting back the sobs that bang on my chest. I haven’t heard it said out loud, and until this moment, it’s been an abstract thought that keeps resurfacing. “Yes. I’m so in love with Jack with every single part of me.”
Avery’s mouth drops with a gasp. “Sweetie. Oh my god.”
Lina stares up at me from bent knees next to my chair. Her eyes gloss over. “Piper Moon.”
Tears sting the back of my eyes. “I don’t want to be without him.”
Avery sniffs, places her hand over mine, and squeezes gently. “Oh, honey. Does he know?”
I shake my head. “I don’t think so.”
“You need to tell him.” Bailey’s nasally tone is firm.
“I know, but how would we even work? He’s there, and I’m here,” I stammer.
“That’s just geography, babe.” Lina smiles, her eyes shiny with moisture. “If he feels the same, you guys will make it work.”
Bailey rubs her hand over my leg in a soothing motion. “Lina’s right, you have to make that shit happen.”
“True love is not fleeting. It’s concrete,” Avery whispers, wiping my sticky face. “You said it yourself that you were drawn to him the minute you saw him at that airport in Vegas.”
Lina gives me a half-smile. “Our combined experience with men has shown us that feelings like this don’t happen often, if ever.”
Avery nods in agreement. “Yeah, if the four of us were to add up the number of m—”
“Okay, okay.” Lina’s hand flies into the air. “Let’s not start adding up the men we’ve been with.”
Avery turns back to me, rolling her eyes at Lina. “The point I was trying to make is even though we all know Lina as had more experience than all of us”—she lowers her eyes in Lina’s direction—“we can confidently say that this type of undeniable bond literally never happens.” She sticks her finger in the air at Bailey’s direction. “We don’t need your two cents and your soulmate lecture about your brother’s best friend. My point remains.”
