Page 96 of Don't Leave
“Are you still in love with him?”
“I’ll always be in love him,” she says. “Somehow, I need to find a way to live with my mistakes and move on.”
Even though I shouldn’t ask, the question trips off my tongue. “How do you know he won’t change his mind?”
Her shoulders collapse under the weight of her answer. “Because what we had is over and there’s no going back.”
In a weird way, I can sympathize with her pain.
“I’m sorry. I understand what it’s like to live with regrets. To pick up all the pieces and try to glue them all back together again. It’s not easy.”
With a tilt of her head, her gaze sharpens on mine. She smiles as if seeing me for the first time. “Under different circumstances, I think we could have been friends.”
“Maybe,” I say in return.
In a small way, we’re kindred spirits. We’ve both made mistakes and have regrets. We’re also working to put our lives back together again.
She jerks a thumb over shoulder. “I need to get going. It was nice talking with you, Cassidy. Good luck.”
“You too,” I say softly.
For a long stretch of minutes, everything Jackie said churns through my head. Decision made, I grab my phone and fire off a message. There’s something I need to take care of before I meet up with Cole tomorrow morning.
Something that never should have flared to life.
CHAPTER 28
CASSIDY
Asmile lights up Luke’s face as he pulls me into the warm circle of his arms. “I have about thirty minutes before I need to be at practice. What’s up?”
For a heartbeat I allow him to hold me before untangling myself from his embrace. “Do you mind if we grab a coffee and talk?”
“Sure.”
After we order our drinks, Luke hands the barista a few bills before I can grab the money from my purse.
“I’ve got it,” I say, quickly digging through my wallet. “I’m the one who invited you for coffee. I should pay.”
“You can get the next one.” When he winks at me, the barista sighs. “Don’t worry, I’ll hold you to it.”
A few minutes later, he grabs our coffees from the counter, and we head to a table nestled in the corner. Once settled, we both take a few sips from our mugs. The weather has only grown colder, and it feels good to warm up.
“How are classes going?” he asks. “All caught up?”
Luke understands how stressful my breakup was with Cole was because he was there. It was his and Brooklyn’s shouldersthat I cried on. They held my hand and made sure I was doing what needed to be done in school. I’m lucky to have them in my life.
“Yup. It took a while but I’m finally back on track again.” A tiny smile springs to my lips. “Although, I’m pretty sure the library staff is going to start charging me rent. I’ve been living there since Thanksgiving break.” I take another small sip of coffee. “How about you?”
He shrugs as his blue-gray gaze remains focused on me. His blond hair has grown out and I realize the longer length looks good on him. As I glance around the space, I realize that I’m not the only one who thinks he’s handsome. Several girls are checking him out.
“I’ll be glad when this semester is over,” he says. “I’m a little burnt out right now. I could use a break.”
I think about all the papers and exams I have coming up. “Yeah, me too.”
I’ve been working around the clock and can’t wait to return home and spend more time with my family. The relationship I’m building with my parents feels so much better than even before I left for college the first time. Even though the year apart sucked, it allowed my dad and me to break the dysfunctional patterns we’d established. Not only that, but I feel closer with my mom. We’ve talked on the phone a few times since I returned to school, and we text every day. It’s nice.
Actually, it’s way better than that.
