Becca leans forward. “Was my dad there?”
“Front and center.”
She winces. “He’s not subtle.”
“Apparently the whole thing was a blend of passive aggression and weirdly polite interrogation. They were nice, in a way that made him feel like he’d done something very, very wrong.”
“That’s their specialty.”
“I think they rattled him.”
Becca frowns. “He said that?”
I shake my head. “He came straight from there to my office and told me we should stop fake dating because my dad doesn’t like him.”
And it felt like someone had kicked me straight in the solar plexus. The air had rushed out of me, my stomach dropping to the floor with my mood. He was ready to stop whatever this thing is between us that easily. Just one word from my dad, who was way out of line, and he was ready to give it all up?
“Oh no,” Becca says.
“Oh yes.”
“So what did you say?”
“I told him he’s my fake boyfriend whether he likes it or not, and that I can’t be seen dating someone who gets intimidated by our dads, famous musician or not.”
“That is so true.”
Ihatethat this town, the one that has given me so much, continues to let Jaxon down, at least in his eyes. I love Wild Bluffs, and my dad, and all the coffee guys who feel like they need to defend me, but at the same time, I wish they’d give Jaxon a chance. Show him the support they’ve always shown me.
“Did he say anything?” Becca asks.
“Not really. Just smiled that sad little half-smile of his. The one that makes you want to wrap him in a blanket and never let go.”
Becca lets out a long sigh. “You’re screwed.”
“Absolutely.”
“Just so we’re on the same page, you’ve fully forgiven and forgotten at this point, haven’t you?”
I nod.
“And your feelings for your fake boyfriend are…?”
“Not as fake as I’d like them to be,” I confess, dropping my head into my hands.
“And that makes you?” Becca asks.
“So fucking screwed,” I whisper to my chest.
We sit there for a moment, the sound of the street outside drifting in through our large glass windows. It’s a regular Tuesday afternoon—except it’s not. Something shifted this weekend inside me. I successfully held an important sales meeting without Becca. I was able to forget about the one bad part of my past with Jaxon, the one decision that I’ve let overshadow eighteen years of friendship.
I wrap my arms around myself, even though the office isn’t cold.
Maybe it’s not just that something shifted. MaybeIdid. And I don’t know what that means for me going forward.
Chapter thirty-five
Jaxon
