Page 36 of Four Simple Rules
Blake nibbles her lip. "Okay, I'll go with you." She smiles softly, digging into more of her French toast.
"Okay, then," I mutter breathlessly. "We're going to the reunion together. But first, we need to help my mom and your dad dance the night away tonight." I wiggle in my seat, shoving another bite into my mouth.
"They really love each other, don't they?" she asks, setting her fork down.
"More than you'll ever know, Tulip. They're perfect for each other. And tonight, we're going to celebrate that."
Jared
Please. I just want to tell you how sorry I am over the phone. Can we talk?
Blake
There. You just did.
Jared
Are you okay? Nikki said you went home? Is he there?
Iinwardly groan. Dang it, Jared. Could you give it up? I’m tired of getting these texts begging me to talk to him likehedidn’t rip my heart out without looking back. He’s the one who walked away with a crappy explanation as to why he was breaking off our one-year relationship. Now he’s acting like I’m the one who gave up on us when I was the one rooting for us all along.
Gosh, my head hurts.
And on that note, I’ll kill Nikki later for telling him about my personal business. She knew that he had dumped me when I told her I was going away—more like obliterating me into pieces.
Blake
I’m good.
There. Short and sweet. Hopefully, he gets the hint I want nothing to do with him.
Jared
You sure?
Blake
I’m fine. Seriously. Now leave me alone.
Fresh oxygen enters my lungs when he reads the message and sends nothing back. It’s about time he gave up. I swear since I left home, he’s been messaging me nonstop, turning into some sort of stalker. When we were together, he never acted like that. He’d go days without sending a message or asking how I was. And I was okay with that. When I’m with someone, we don’t need to speak every second of every day—thinking back, though. Maybe that was a red flag. Something I’ll pay attention to in the future when I step foot back into the dating world.
Or maybe….
“Tulip?” Jesse’s voice carries through my closed door, which separates us.
Not that it’s stopped him before. Or last night. For some wild reason, I’ve never given up on my promise to leave my window unlocked, leading to him crawling through my window and under my sheets. I’d be a liar if I said I hated it. I don’t. Deep down, I love the way his body feels next to mine. The way I allow his hand to creep across my hip and rest on my stomach, slowly inching lower and lower until he stops altogether, leaving it there until he’s asleep.
Then the dark memories resurface, and I’m in a bad place all over again, confused as frick, and suffering in my feelings. Why is my world so dang complicated? Why is Jesse messing with my head so badly? Is it because of our rich history together?
“Yeah?” I croak, trying to clear the emotions from my throat.
Despite loathing Jared and what he did, he still stirs weird emotions inside me—pulling me in two completely different directions. I thought I loved Jared. Now, I hate him. Or I think I do. Yeah, I do. My head is a dang mess, mixing with Jesse and my feelings going haywire.
So, tonight, I’ll dive into some champagne to celebrate my father’s happiness and indulge myself before I have to go back home to my regular life.
“You ready? Mom and your dad are already out at the venue. I told them I could drive you.”
Am I ready? Like fully prepared to leave this room, get into a car alone with Jesse, and surrender myself to the night? Maybe. Maybe not. Time can only tell how much I’ll heal from Jared. Heck, perhaps even Jesse, and my father, too. There are still so many unresolved issues between us. I hope to clear the air before I leave for home and settle back into my boring life. All I need is work, my plants, and my apartment.
