Page 73 of Sweet Chaos
Scarlett wasn’t Sienna. Scarlett had never betrayed me. Had never cheated on me. Had never made empty promises or told me lies. She had never doneanythingto deserve the way I’d treated her.
And I had this sinking feeling that if I let her go now, I’d lose something precious to me.
“Scarlett.” I strode after her and climbed the stairs to her apartment, stopping outside her front door. “Wait.”
The door slammed in my face and I heard the locks click into place with a ring of finality. I pressed my forehead against the wood and banged my head against it a few times.
Asshole.
27
Scarlett
Iuploaded my new design photos to my website. While they were loading, I gathered my hair into a messy bun and secured it with a pencil.
Should it be taking this long? I stared at the laptop screen and drummed my fingers on the surface of the glossy white desk, resisting the urge to dive into the gold foil box of hand-dipped chocolate covered fruit. Orange slices and cherries. My favorites. I grabbed the box and tossed it in the trash can under Remy’s desk. Then I stared at the box for a few seconds before retrieving it and setting it back on the desk. No sense in wasting perfectly good chocolates. I’d give them to Ryan. His girlfriend liked chocolate.
My phone vibrated on the desk and I glanced at the screen.
With a sigh, I answered, surprised she’d waited three days to call me. “Hey Mom.”
“Hello sweetie,” she sing-songed. Someone was in a good mood. While my mother recapped the highlights of Saturday night’s engagement party, I typed up the description for my Voodoo Surf collection. “So, did you make any plans to see Logan again?”
I rolled my eyes. “No. He just gave me a ride home. That’s it.”
“Hmm. Well, you could make an effort. He comes from a very good family. They own a big pharmaceutical company.” She’d only mentioned that a hundred times since Sienna and Chase had gotten together. “They said we’re always welcome to use any of their vacation homes. I thought it would be nice if we all went away together. With Chase and Logan, of course.”
Of course. One big happy family. I’d rather stab myself in the eyeball with a red-hot poker than go on a family holiday.
I spun around in the swivel chair and stared out Remy’s office window at the salmon pink façade of the electric bike shop. Jewel-toned flowers cascaded from the hanging baskets and the sun peeked out from behind a wispy cloud, bathing the alley in sunlight.
“I’m pretty busy with work so…”
“Don’t be ridiculous. It’s not like you have a real job. I’ll arrange everything and send you the dates.”
“Mom, the last time we went on a family vacation, it was a disaster. I’d really rather not put myself through that again. And I’m not going to go away with Logan or do anything else with him for that matter, so you can stop matchmaking. It’s not happening.”
“Well, that’s what your sister said before we fixed her up with Chase.”
My gaze swung to the framed surfing photos of Shane. Give me Zen, dude, I could use it right about now.
“I’m not Sienna,” I said through my clenched jaw, still feeling the blow from Dylan’s words. I’d never really seen Dylan’s cruel side before, but I should have known he’d be capable of hurting me more than anyone ever could. I’d provoked him, had incited his jealousy, and he’d retaliated.
“And I’m sorry to disappoint you, I willneverbe Sienna. For better or worse, I make my own choices and the size of someone’s bank account doesn’t impress me. Not to mention that this is not the eighteenth century so arranged marriages are not really a thing anymore.”
My mother sighed loudly. “Why must you always be so difficult?”
“I need to get back to work,” I lied. I was on my lunch break, but she was messing with my vibe which was already less than chilled thanks to the asshole who had crushed my heart.Again. “Goodbye Mom.”
I cut the call and slumped in my seat, internally screaming.
“I know you’re not Sienna,” came a low, husky voice behind me. “You’re not a disappointment. Not even fucking close.” I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to block out the hurt his words had caused, and heard the door close behind him.
I spun my chair around to face Dylan but didn’t lift my eyes to look at him. “What are you doing here?”
He set a Starbucks cup on the desk next to my laptop within easy reach of my right hand. I ignored the peace offering.
“I might have fucked up the other night.”
