“Hm,” he hummed.
“Right now, we’re just friends,” I explained slowly, feeling my way as I went, unsure myself of where things stood.
Had he lost interest?
Decided I was too much trouble?
I know I admitted to running scared, but good god, Daire didn’t waste any time running in the opposite direction.Backing off was one thing, ignoring me, quite another.
Tonight, hopefully, I’d get some clarity.
Get a feel for where his head was at.
“He’s a good person, Harley.You could do worse.”
“He’s a really good person, Max.”
“Did he find you on that day?”
God, did we all refer to it asthat day?
“He did.He was wonderful to me.Thank you for telling him where I’d be.”
“Well, fuck,” he breathed a sigh of relief.“I knew this would come up at some point, but I really wasn’t sure which way it would go.”
I laughed.“Am I that scary?”
“No.”He cupped the back of my head and pulled me into his chest.“You’re just that special.”
“Oh, come on,” I scoffed.
He gave me a little squeeze.“Harley, you deserve the world.Of all of us, you deserve every good thing.”
“Don’t say that Max.”I turned away, irritated.
“Harley, I don’t know what happened—”
“No, Max.No.”I looked at him over my shoulder.“There are lines you can’t cross, and this is one of them.”
He held his palms up.“Okay, Harley.The offer stands if you ever want to talk.”
“I’m good,” I replied shortly, guilt spreading and burning like tear gas in my chest.
By the time Hawk and Noelle showed up with baby Hunter, I still wasn’t feeling any better.
And when Daire showed up, he treated me no differently than he did Max, Hawk, or Noelle.
More than once I caught Max assessing the situation.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t the only one.
By the end of the night, I couldn’t wait to go home.
“Can I drive you home, Harley?”Daire asked.
“I’ve got her,” Hawk interjected.
Daire’s eyes flitted to me momentarily before he simply raised his hand in goodbye and walked out the door.
