“One sec.”
Two seconds later, both Mason and Eli join the call. Lovely. This is exactly what I wanted to do after watching my future crash and burn around me.
“Seriously?” I hiss, not bothering to hide my annoyance.
“What’s wrong?” Mason asks, frowning.
“What’s wrong is you fuckheads won’t leave me alone,” I snap.
Eli’s eyes narrow. “What did you do?”
“Who says I did something?”
“Uh, your face. You look guilty as fuck,” Brantley tells me.
I raise my hand and give him the middle finger.
“Spill, or I’ll call Iris,” Mason says.
“You want to know what’s wrong? Fine, I’ll tell you. I told Iris that I loved her, and she kicked me out of her place.” I leave out the bit about how much I fucked it up.
“Bullshit,” Eli says with no hesitation.
“Yeah, I’m with him. There’s more to it.” Brantley nods.
Mason raises a brow. “Give us the full story, don’t leave a detail out.”
“I don’t want to,” I huff.
“He fucked up.” Brantley shakes his head.
“He totally fucked up. I can call her and get the details,” Eli offers.
“You know what? Call her. Maybe she will answer for you,” I mutter.
“Oh fuck. You messed up bad. Tell us,” Mason demands.
“She got a box from Astor Conglomerate while I was there. I went to tell her about moving to Boston, but then she opened the box, and I was hurt. She said she wasn’t taking the job, but that led to how we were both keeping secrets, and by the time I told her about Boston, she was too hurt to be happy. She asked me to leave and give her time to think.” I admit.
“And you did tell her you loved her?” Brantley asks point-blank.
“I did. I told her I have always loved her and always will.” I frown.
“Well, at least you said the words. You gave her something to think about. Don’t give up so soon. She will come back.” Brantley sounds so confident.
I wish I felt the same.
“I’m not giving up. I have called her and sent her texts. She’s reading them but not responding. I’m trying not to seem so desperate, but I can’t let her go without a fight. I don’t think I can live without her.” I rub my hand down my face.
“I’m glad you aren’t throwing in the towel. It means you really do love her,” Eli adds.
“Dick. Of course I love her,” I scoff.
“I mean, we know that. We have known it for years. Just like we know she loves you too. It’s always been there. I can see why she is hesitant now, though. Big changes are happening, and her head is probably feeling like it is spinning. If she asked for time, give her time.”
I sigh. “I know. She doesn’t like her job as CFO, though,” I admit.
Mason grimaces. “Ouch. What does she want to do then? Do we have somewhere else we can put her?”
