FORTY-SEVEN
Harper
Leaving Alex is heartbreaking,that Drew has this kind of hold over one or both of us—that he can force us apart with threats like this one is infuriating. By the time I get to Violet’s I’m in tears again, and we’re sitting at her kitchen island eating a late-night snack and complaining about what assholes men really are. Minus Ben and Alex, of course.
“All right. Say he does his worst though… what does that mean? Alex can’t play anymore; the museum loses funding. How do we fix those?”
“I don’t know how to fix Alex.”
She sits for a moment, twirling a chip in her fingers as she contemplates the scenarios.
“In truth, I don’t think Alex would lose his ability to play. He’s too good. The Phantom might not want the off-field distraction but I’m sure there’s another team who’s desperate enough to take a problem that plays as well as he does. Worst case scenario.”
“Worst case scenario he moves hundreds if not thousands of miles away, where he doesn’t play with the guys anymore, he’s no longer in his hometown and I can’t see him?” The thought hurts.
“I know, but at least it wouldn’t be the end of his career.”
“If it is his career that’s over, his father will want him in politics. Though that’ll be harder if his name is ruined with a bunch of scandals.” I take a bite of the pita chip and hummus she has sitting out. “Wait… that might be a way to get help with this. His father…”
“You think Senator Xavier has the sway?”
“If anyone would… it’s him. But Alex will never ask. Not in a million years. And I’m fairly certain he hates my guts after I mouthed off to him.”
“Well, still an option to keep in mind. Now that’s Alex, what about the museum?”
“I have no idea.”
“Well, really the bottom line is the money, right? We need the money for repairs to the building and then more to make sure there’s an endowment to keep paying staff and rent, right?”
“Ultimately, yes.”
“All right. Joss is here tomorrow for Ben’s birthday, let’s get her and your friend Scarlett from the museum here and we’ll brainstorm other ways to come up with the money. If we’ve got that, we’ll just have to deal with the bad press and maybe we could get ahead of it somehow. Joss is a genius at stuff like this.”
“Okay,” I nod, but I still feel so heavy, so fucking sick over this entire situation.
“Are you okay?” Violet gives me a pointed look.
“I don’t know. I feel awful. This wouldn’t be happening if it wasn’t for me. Alex would never have hit that guy. We’d never have been faking a relationship. We wouldn’t have been in a position to have something start between us. Drew wouldn’t be pissed I’m fucking his best friend. It’s all my fault.”
“It’s absolutely not your fault. Drew cheated on you. Which led to you being single. Alex hit that guy to protect you, yeah, but Alex made the choice to use violence when there were other options. You did the fake relationship thing to help him because you’re a good person. And as for the last bit… frankly, I think you and Alex would have found each other again no matter what. Seeing you two together, it’s obvious. You make sense in a way you and Drew never did.”
“How come no one ever says that before the wedding?” I grumble.
“Most would-be brides don’t want to hear it. People said it about me and my ex-fiancé a few times. Joss will tell you how many times she told me. But honestly, if he hadn’t run off to Europe… I might have gone through with it. Which is horrifying to think about.”
“I can’t imagine you without Ben or vice versa.” I frown.
“Exactly.”
She takes a chip and dips it, nibbling off the end and frowning.
“We’ll figure it out, Harp. Don’t worry.”
“Thank you… for everything. I was just thinking the other day I wouldn’t know what to do without you in my life.”
“Oh.” Her face softens, and she gives me a little smile. “I wouldn’t know what to do without you either.”
I jump off the bar stool and round the table, hugging her tight and she squeezes me. I’m thankful for this. A safe place to run. Friends who love me. However this plays out if I lose to Drew and lose Alex in the process—I still have them.
