Page 36 of Letters From a Broken Heart
I could’ve done the same, yet I didn’t. Why should I expect Easton to put it all on the line when I wasn’t willing to do the same?
“Ok,” I whisper as tears gather in my eyes. “I guess I’ll see you around… Eventually.” I brush a tear off my cheek as I stand. I barely make it to my feet before I'm tugged down onto Easton’s lap.
“Why are you crying, sweetheart? You didn’t actually think I’d let you leave with tears on your cheeks, did you?” He cradles my head against his chest and presses a soft kiss to the crown.
“You hate me and don’t want me around.” I grip his shirt tightly in my fists as the tears come faster.
“I could never hate you, Taylor. You know that. You’re one of the most important people in the world to me.”
“Then why are you mad? Why have you been avoiding me? It’skilling me.”
“I'm mad at Jack and I'm not telling you why. It’s not your concern and there’s nothing you can do to fix it. He crossed a line and he knows it. I haven’t been trying to avoid you, just Jack, but you’re always together so…” He trails off and even though he says I'm not the issue, I don’t believe him.
I saw the way his face crumbled when I told him I was dating Jack. I saw the walls he instantly put up around his heart. He can tell me until he’s blue in the face that he isn't mad at me, I’ll never believe him.
“Are you mad we’re dating?” I whisper softly, almost afraid to ask the question.
“I can't control who you date, Taylor. You’re free to attach yourself to whoever you want.”
My stomach rolls. He didn’t answer my question. He’s doing this on purpose. He doesn’t want to discuss anything about Jack and me.
“Is my relationship with him going to affect ours?” I peek up at him, finding his eyes already on me.
His blue and green eyes are more on the green side today. They’re full of anger, misery, and something else I can't place. He stares at me for several long minutes. Before he even opens his mouth, I know whatever he says is going to be a lie.
“We’ll be fine. Jack can't affect what we have.”
“Hey, where’d you go?” Easton reaches across the counter and brushes his thumb over my cheek. His concerned eyes are locked on me. They’re really blue today.
“Do you remember when I confronted you about avoiding me after Jack and I started dating?”
“Yeah,” he sighs, already knowing where this conversation is going.
“I was right, wasn’t I? You were avoiding me. You were mad we were dating.”
“I was livid with Jack. I couldn’t stomach being around you because every time I saw you, I thought about what he did. How he stole you away from me. I just couldn’t do it.”
“But you didn’t avoid me after that, why?”
“Because I couldn’t handle seeing those tears on your cheeks. I saw how much my absence was upsetting you and I couldn’t do that to you. That day, I vowed I’d do my best to pretend I was ok with you dating, even if I still hated Jack for it. I decided not to blame you when you were blissfully unaware of what actually happened. It wasn’t fair to get mad at you when you didn’t do anything wrong.”
“How did you repair your relationship with Jack?”
“I’m not really sure. I beat the crap out of him a few times and he didn’t really fight back. He knew he deserved it. There were more than a few screaming matches, but I think I finally just accepted reality. He wasn’t going to break up with you and I couldn’t do anything about it.”
“I'm so sorry,” I whisper, dropping my gaze to the counter astears gather in my eyes.
“Baby, don’t cry on me. You know how much that kills me.” He walks around the island and wraps his arms around me from behind.
“I hurt you so much. I hate that.”
“You didn’t do it on purpose, and now you’ve made me the happiest man in the world. I think we’re even.” He presses a sloppy kiss to my cheek, chuckling when I let out a squeal and swipe at the moisture. “C’mon, I have to get to my meeting. I’ll drop you off at your apartment and you can pack.”
“I need to work too.” I smirk, loving how much he wants me here.
“Yeah, but can't you do that later? Do you have projects due?”
“No. I can spend the day packing, but I’ll need you to carry the boxes. I can't do that yet.”
