Butterflies flutter in my stomach as his words replay in my mind. I enjoyed hearing those words and seeing him get jealous more than I cared to admit.
“Was he with another girl?”
I shake my head. “Nah, he was with Santiago, Elijah, and Andrés. It was so awkward. I wish I had a cloak of invisibility so I could’ve slipped out of there.”
“How typical of Maddox to fuck things up.” She rolls her eyes. “He needs to grow up.” Scooting closer, she rests a hand lightly on my shoulder. “I’m sorry your night didn’t go well, babe.” She pauses, searching my face. “How do you feel about Lucas? Was there something there?”
“Not really… I mean, he’s a really nice guy, but?—”
He’s not Maddox.
I hate that my head reminds me of this fact, but I can’t deny that it’s true.
“There were no sparks.” I pull the pillow close to my body. “We didn’t have any chemistry. But… I’m hanging out with him again next week, so we’ll see.”
“I hope it develops into something more,” she says, her voice warm. “You deserve to find love again.”
I give her a small smile as I glance her way. “How’s everything going with that girl you met from the bar? What’s her name again?”
“Aretta,” she says with a sigh, her shoulders slumping. “Yeah… It’s not going.”
“Wait, what? I thought you two clicked.” I frown.
“I thought so too,” she says quietly. “But I guess she doesn’t feel the same way. On Tuesday, I texted her asking if she wanted to go on a date this weekend, and she completely ghosted me.” She lets out a heavy, defeated sigh, her hands twisting in the blanket.
“I’m sorry, Mazi. That was a jerk move. She could’ve at least communicated.”
Her eyes glaze over and she sniffles softly. “Is there something wrong with me? All of my relationships have been failures and they never last longer than a couple of months.”
Reaching over, I give her hand a squeeze. “There’s absolutely nothing wrong with you. You’re Mazikeen freaking Rivera—smart, talented, and a total badass.”
She swipes her eyes, a small chuckle leaving her lips.
“One day, you’ll meet someone worthy of you and everything is going to fall into place,” I say, my voice steady and reassuring. “They won’t ever make you feel like you did something wrong.”
“I’m praying that this love finds us,” she replies, the corners of her lips lifting into a soft smile as warmth returns to her hazel eyes. “But right now, I’m in the mood to watch a K-drama and fall in love with a Korean man. Wanna join?”
I laugh. “I’m always in the mood to swoon over Korean men. What are we watching?”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
maddox
I wake up in a panic,my body drenched in sweat and my pulse hammering. Tsuki sensed that I was upset and nuzzled her head against my chest to wake me up.
Ever since I saw Annalise and Lucas together, I’ve been restless. When I do manage to fall asleep, I have the same recurring nightmare that Lucas and Annalise are getting married.
When the officiant asks if anyone objects, I try to speak up, but no words come out—my entire body is paralyzed. I’m forced to watch him marry the love of my life and I can’t do a damn thing about it. I’m sick to my stomach envisioning Lucas living the life I want with her.
It’s dangerous being alone with my thoughts. I can’t get the images of them together out of my mind. When we were dating, Annalise would always reassure me that her relationship with Lucas was purely platonic. But seeing her on a date with him makes me wonder if she had feelings for him back then.
My phone buzzes on the bedside table and I grab it, seeing an incoming call from Veronica.
“Hello, Mrs. Zhang,” I answer. “How’s everything going?”
“Good morning, Mr. Kamado. Everything is goingsplendidly. I was wondering if you were coming by this week? Trang has the new designs ready and we are eager to show you what she came up with.”
“Sorry, I’ve been so busy with practice and games that I haven’t been able to stop by. I’ll swing by first thing tomorrow morning.”
