“All right. Let’s do this,” I say, taking the first step toward the door.
Each step toward the door feels lighter. Alek and Amelia trail behind, letting me lead the way, and I’m grateful for it. Part of me wants to shrink back, to hide, but I know it’s time to stop running. Time to drop the mask and face the world, and the man who almost shattered mine.
The music gets louder as I pull open the doors, and I’m hit with the overwhelming scent of barley, whiskey, body sweat, and terrible decisions. Two people are up on a stage singing an off-tune rendition of Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond while the crowd joins in drunken joy. The carefreeness of it all makes me smile as I make my way through the wave of bodies strewn about the area.
Smiling comes easier with each passing day. I’m rediscovering the little joys that once made me happy. The road ahead is still long, but every morning I wake up and Keaton’s betrayal isn’t the first thing I think of, it feels like a small victory. It gives me hope.
Alek grabs my hand, tangling our fingers together and taking over the lead when I seem to get pushed around more than I make progress moving through people. With him at my front and Amelia at my back, the crowd gives us room until we’re finally through the thick of it and standing in front of a group of people.
My body betrays me, flickering between heat and chills as we stop in front of Keaton. He sits beside another guy, who looks trapped in his own misery, eyes fixed on the drink he turns restlessly in his hand.
David spins on his barstool, his eyes sparking when they spot Amelia. His lips curve flirtatiously. “Hey, there, sugar. Around you, I’m like a complex word. Hard and long,” he says to her with a wink.
I wrinkle my nose, barely containing my laughter at how awful that line was. I brace myself, knowing Amelia is about to verbally devour him.
Amelia moves past me and squeezes between David and Keaton. She rolls her eyes over David’s body with a hint of disdain that, only from years of being friends with her, I know is fake. “Funny. The last I recall, around me, you were like my last phone call with that fucking unwanted telemarketer. Lackluster and barely lasted ten seconds.” She turns to the bartender. “Vodka on the rocks.”
David’s expression is too much, and I can’t hold back anymore. Laughter bursts out of me, so sudden and fierce I nearly lose my balance. Alek steadies me, but my laughter fades when I see Keaton watching me, pain etched deep in his eyes. It’s as if my laughter revives him, but every breath hurts.
I give him a shy smile, tucking a lock of hair behind my ear. "Hi."
Keaton climbs slowly to his feet, watching to make sure his movements don't startle me. It doesn't, but my breathing picks up as it moves him closer to me.
Alek drops my hand and steps away toward David.
Panic prickles along my skin as I glance at him. He meets my gaze, nodding encouragement, his eyes promising he’ll stay close if I need him. That silent reassurance soothes the storm inside me, and I manage a grateful smile.
When I peer back over at Keaton, he's watching the interaction between Alek and me with tormented, but understanding, eyes. There used to be a time in our lives when he would be the one I'd seek for comfort and reassurance. He's no longer my safety net, and he knows that.
I watch him take a deep breath before he smiles gently at me and holds out his hand. "Hello, there. I don't think we've been introduced. I'm Keaton Carr."
After he cheated, I used to wonder what it would feel like to meet Keaton for the first time as adults, not as childhood sweethearts. This moment is the closest I’ll ever get. There’s a sadness in that, but also a flicker of curiosity about the stranger he’s become.
And that's what he is.
A new person.
He still looks like the boy I once loved, but seven months apart have changed him. He moves with a new heaviness, more cautious and aware. His smiles come slower, his eyes shadowed by pain he can’t quite hide.
I reach out, our hands meeting in a hesitant clasp. Electricity zings up my arm, and I have to resist the urge to pull away. His gaze locks onto mine, unsurprised, as if he always knew the current between us was still alive.
Keaton tightens his fingers around mine, and I spot the flash of fear that passes through his eyes before he blinks, erasing it.
I hate that my mind immediately wonders what secrets he’s keeping. He must read it in my expression, because he exhales quietly and lets out a soft, self-deprecating laugh.
The sadness in his laugh squeezes my heart.
“Sorry. I was scared you were going to pull away.”
My brows lift in surprise. This vulnerable side of him differs from what I was used to with him. Keaton’s never been huge on vulnerability, but he’d open up to me if he knew I needed that from him. At least, he used to until Rihanna came into our lives.
I lift one shoulder, then let it drop. “I thought about it.”
“Don’t blame you,” he says, removing his hand from mine and shoving it into his pockets.
He nods his head towards the bartender. “Can I get you something to drink?”
At his question, my eyes fall behind him to his drink on the counter. It’s a clear liquid over ice.
