He’s clutching me desperately, but his hand then slips away. “Sorry.” He’s breathing heavily and frowning. He has bags under his eyes, and his hair is sticking up like he’s been tugging at it. “I’ve sent you a bunch of messages.”
“I got them, but I haven’t read them.” I lift my hand in a stopping motion. “I can’t do this right now. I’ve got work.” I step to the side, but he does too.
“You need to listen to my side of the story.”
Hurt turns to irritation. “Why should I?” I raise my voice. “So I can listen to more lies? Haven’t you stolen enough from me?”My heart...my time.But maybe he needs to hear the pain he’s caused. “How could you lie to my face?” I don’t let him answer. “You have no respect for me. You just play mind games, and I’m the idiot who fell for it.”
His head jerks. “No, I love you,” he insists, his voice thick with emotion. “You felt it too, didn’t you?” He lowers his voice. It’s almost a whisper now as vulnerability washes over his features. “I was never fake with you.”
I laugh rudely. I might be losing my mind. “You don’t love me. You’d never be able to hurt someone you love the way you’ve hurt me.”
He looks down, then back at me. “I’m sorry I hurt you. I’m an asshole and I fucked everything up, but I made the bet before I met you. Then things changed. I didn’t take the money.”
I grit my teeth at his words. “Do you want a pat on the back for not taking the money?” I’m burning up as anger pours out of me.
He raises his hands defensively. “No.”
I see Mel and Cameron standing by the front door of the restaurant. I need to just walk away, but I can’t help myself and ask, “What about the other girls then? How many were there?”
He frowns and cocks his head to the side. “What other girls? What are you talking about?”
“Vera said you were cheating on me with other girls.”
He swears under his breath. “She’s a fuckin’ liar.”
“Seems you two have that in common.”
He paces. “I was never with anyone while I was with you. The last time I was with a chick was literally the night we spoke on the phone for the first time. That was it! And anyway, you were the one talking to your ex.”
Rage told him.“We have only texted. At least I don’tlivewith my ex,” I bite back. I hate that I’m yelling at him, but at least I’m standing up for myself.
Mel walks toward us. “I’m coming,” I say to her and brush past Axle.
“I love you, and I’m not just going to let you walk away from what we have.”
I stare up at his handsome face. My vision blurs. “You can’t fix us...” I whisper and walk to Mel.
I dart inside the restaurant with Mel close behind. I rush into the bathroom and go to the basin to wet my burning face. At least Axle looks like he’s in pain, so there might be a part of him that’s upset too. But is he upset because he got caught out or is he truly upset about what he did to me? Now I’m questioning everything.
Mel rests her hand on my back. “What happened?”
I rub under my eyes and clear my throat. “We broke up.”
“Oh no.” Her voice sounds sympathetic, but the smile tugging at the corner of her mouth reveals that her true emotions are quite different. She reminds me of Grace and Vera.
“I’m fine,” I say before she says anything else. “We’d better get to work.” I square my shoulders and plaster on a fake smile—fake it till you make it. But Axle’s words haunt me as I work. I do my best to keep my distance from Mel and Cameron, but at the end of my shift Cameron calls me over.
When I reach him, I say, “I’m sorry I dropped the plates.” Luckily, there were only two and they just had leftover food on them.
“No need to apologize.” He tucks a stray strand of hair behind my ear.
My muscles tense and my heart accelerates. He drops his hand to my shoulder and rubs my arm. I’m so mentally exhausted I can’t bring myself to say how uncomfortable he’s making me.
“You should come have a few drinks with me after work one day. Loosen up and forget about everything.”
To forget and not experience pain sounds appealing. I muster up all my energy and give him a small smile. “I’ll think about it.”
Once my shift finishes, I grab my bag. Mel is by my side.
