Page 26 of Ashes of Us
"She doesn't want to talk to you, and she sure as shit doesn't want to see you. She doesn't want your sad grocery store flowers or your explanations or your excuses." Maya leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed. "She's done, Liam. Completely, utterly, one-hundred-percent done. And you know what? Good for her."
"I love her."
"No, you don't. You love the idea of not being the bad guy. You love not having to face consequences. But you don't love her, not really. Because if you did? You wouldn't have done what you did."
My jaw clenched. "You don't know?—"
"I know my sister cried for three days straight. I know she baked until her hands cramped because it was the only thing that made her feel like she had control over anything. I know she had to cancel a wedding and tell two hundred people and face her friends and her family and explain that the man she was going to marry couldn't keep it in his pants for four goddamn months." She stepped closer, and I actually stepped back. "So yeah. I know plenty."
"I just want a chance to explain?—"
"There's nothing to explain. She caught you. You admitted it. That's the whole story." She pointed at me. "Now get off my doorstep before I call the cops and tell them you're harassing my sister."
"I'm not?—"
"You showed up at her place of residence after she blocked you on every possible platform. That's textbook harassment, my dude. Now leave. And take your ugly flowers with you."
She slammed the door in my face.
I stood there for a long moment, staring at the closed door, the cheap bouquet wilting in my hand.
Then I walked back to my truck and threw the flowers in a dumpster on the way.
I sat in the driver's seat for ten minutes, hands on the steering wheel, trying to figure out what to do next. Maya wasn't going to help. Piper had blocked me everywhere. But I couldn't just... give up. There had to be a way to talk to her.
Riverside Elementary. She'd be back at school by now. Prep week, maybe, or the first day with students. I could go there. Just show up, wait for her to come out, catch her before she got in her car and?—
I pulled out my phone and called Scott.
He answered on the second ring. "Hey."
"I don't know what to do," I said.
"About?"
"Piper. I can't reach her. Maya won't let me near her. I need to talk to her and I don't—" I stopped. Took a breath. "I'm thinking about going to her school."
Silence on the other end.
"Scott?"
"Don't do that."
"I just need five minutes to?—”
"Liam. Listen to me very carefully. Do not show up at her workplace. That's stalker behavior, man. That's restraining order behavior. You do that and you're done, completely done."
"I just want to apologize?—"
“I don’t think she wants to hear it, Liam. She made that clear by blocking you. Showing up at her school isn't romantic, it's creepy. It's cornering her in a place where she can't leave." His voice softened slightly. "I know you're hurting. But you need to leave her alone."
"So I just... give up?"
"You accept that you fucked up and she doesn't owe you forgiveness. So, yeah."
I leaned my head back against the seat. "I don't know how to do that."
"You figure it out. Because the alternative is making this worse, and trust me, you don't want to do that." He paused. "For the love of God, Liam. Leave her alone."
