Page 68 of Always a Chance
“I think I need to quit.”
“Quit what?” I reached for a soda and cracked it open.
“Working for you.”
That made me pause, the can halfway to my lips. “Why on earth would you do that?” It made no sense. Aidan and I were a team. Team Trinity. We always had been.
He sighed and stuffed a roll into his mouth to avoid answering right away. I waited for him to swallow. “You’re my crutch.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Ever since we were young, I’ve followed you, molded my life into what it needed to be to stay your friend. I think it’s time I make my own way, be my own person.”
I had no words. Did he really think that was what our friendship was like? “I never asked you to be anything you weren’t.”
“I know,” he said quickly. “It’s not a you problem. I just… I need to see what else is out there besides being Johnny Kelly’s sidekick.”
“So, you’re breaking up with me?”
“No, Johnny, I’m still your friend. Just… not your business partner anymore.”
I understood what he was saying, but it still hurt. Had I really treated him like the sidekick? He’d always just been there. Kind of like… like Talia before graduation night.
“Wow, I’m a terrible friend.”
A roll hit me squarely in the forehead. “No, you’re not.”
My phone ringing broke up our chat, and I sighed when I saw my publicist’s name. She always called on behalf of the publisher. “Hello?”
“Johnny, about time you answered. I’ve been calling all day.”
“And I’ve been ignoring the calls. What do you need?” I wouldn’t forget how they tried to squash the interview.
“Have you seen it?”
“Seen what?”
“The article. Just Google yourself, kid. It’ll be the first thing that comes up. Legal will be in touch.” She hung up, and I sat there staring at my phone, scared to open the internet.
“What’s wrong?” Aidan asked.
I pulled a plate of cookies toward me. “I’m going to need these.” My secret was out.
With shaking fingers, I typed my name into the search bar. The feature pulled up at the top, and I hesitated before clicking it.
As my eyes focused on the text, my mind whirled. “No.” She wouldn’t. “I didn’t say any of this stuff. I mean, I did, but they removed important words.”
“Let me see.” Aidan took the phone. A moment later, a string of curses flew from his mouth. “Pass those cookies over.”
I shoved one in my mouth and did as he asked. He took a bite before reading part of the article out loud. “I lied to my readers, the people who trusted me. Sometimes, I even regret selling that first book, writing the first word. Life would certainly be easier if I hadn’t.” He stopped.
“Keep going. It gets worse.”
“It was for my books, the money. I chose this lie.”
The article was titled “Trinity tells all.” Yeah, tells lies.
Aidan lifted his eyes to mine. “Why would Talia do this? I know you guys aren’t on good terms, but this is… not like her.”
