Page 88 of Harper's Holiday Romance
“You lost the right to feel anything about me and my life when you did what you did.”
“I know, and I want to make it up to you. If you will give me a chance, I know we can be good again,” Natalie pleaded.
Julia, say something. There was silence again. Was she considering her proposal?
“Or would you prefer to throw it all away for someone you’ve known for a week? You’re not that foolish, surely.”
“This isn’t about Harper!” Julia yelled. “Why does someone else have to be involved? Can’t you just accept the fact that maybe I’m still hurting from what you did? You brush things under the carpet like it’s nothing, but you broke my heart, and now you’re trying to make me feel bad about a girl I just met on holiday and had a fling with to take my mind of it.”
Oh. I held my breath. My heart rate slowed. Is that all I was? A holiday fling? A distraction?
“I’m sorry I broke your heart. I just want the chance to prove to you I have changed. If you give me the opportunity I will never, ever, hurt you again.” She sounded sincere.
“I can’t.”Julia’s voice turned to a whisper. If she said anything else, I couldn’t hear it. I heard the door to the balcony slide open. They were now in the place we’d had sex that very morning. Our bodies had touched everycorner of that room over the last twenty-four hours. My essence would still be in that bed, and now she might share it with someone else. She had the right to because they had history, and I was just afling.
It stung, probably more than it should. Julia had said nothing in the parts of conversation I overheard to indicate we were anything more. My eyes filled with tears, and I felt foolish.
I felt foolish for imagining, even if only briefly, a life where me and Julia could be something more.
I walked past Sarah’s room and bashed my hand against the wooden door too hard; it started to throb. From there I continued to my own room next door.
“Woah, what’s going on?” Billie dropped her book on the nightstand.
“I knew I shouldn’t have listened to you.” I flopped on the chair by the balcony.
Sarah strolled in after me in a sports bra and a pair of brightly coloured knitted shorts she somehow managed to pull off.
“Did you guys play knock a door run, seriously? You’re a little too old for that.” Sarah saw me slumped in the chair, probably with dark mascara running eyes and streaks in my makeup. “What’s going on?”
I edged forwards to look in the full-length mirror to my right, yep, definitely numerous makeup streaks. How embarrassing. I curled my knees up to my chest. The chair was big enough to fit three decent sized humans, so I could comfortably curl myself into a ball without fear of falling off the end.
“She said I was a fling.”
“She actually said those words?” Billie asked.
“Yes, I was a fling and a distraction.”
“Oh, shit,” Sarah added.
“What exactly did you say to her?” Billie moved over to my side of the bed to get closer to me.
“I didn’t say anything to her; I overheard her telling her ex.” I should’ve given more context, but the words were falling from my lips in bits, and I couldn’t summon the enthusiasm to express the whole story at once.
“Now I’m seriously confused,” Sarah said.
I explained who Natalie was, what she’d done, why she was here, what she said, what Julia said, and left it all out on the table for them to analyse.
“That little bitch.” Billie sat forwards. “How dare Natalia,”
“It’s Natalie,” I corrected.
“I don’t care. How dare she fly to Mexico and try to win our Julia back.”
“I didn’t realise she was our Julia,” Sarah said what I was thinking. Billie ignored it.
“Who cheats on Julia anyway? She’s probably the sexiest lesbian I’ve ever seen, no offence to you two.”
“None taken.” I totally agreed with her statement. Julia was sexy.
