“Apparently, your pizza is already on the way,” Shane said. “Want me to stay on the phone until it arrives?”
“It’s okay. I’m sure you and Eric have plans.”
“No, this is my plan.”
A tiny smile crossed my lips, the empty crevice in my chest somehow filling with warmth. “Thanks,” I said, ignoring the way my voice cracked slightly. “I just want to get through today and then… I don’t know. I wish I could forget him as easily as he’s forgotten me.”
“I know. It’ll get easier, I promise, but it might not be for a while.”
“That’s bollocks.”
“Yeah, it is.”
I sighed and added more vodka to my glass before walking over to the sofa, collapsing onto the end, and looking around the empty shithole I now called home. None of this had been in my plan; it hadn’t even entered my mind. Reed and I were supposed to have our happily ever after in the fairy-tale life we’d built for each other, only now I’d realised that dream had been made of straw and the big bad wolf had come knocking at the door.
“I’m not doing this again,” I said, half to myself and half to Shane.
“Doing what? Drinking? Because I can guarantee that’s a lie.”
“God no. I mean dating, love, getting married, all that bullshit. I’m not doing it again. I can’t.”
“You don’t have to,” Shane said. “Just… look, fuck, this might be the worst thing to say and you don’t have to do anything you don’t want, ever, but maybe don’t completely close yourself off to idea that you might find someone else. And you don’t have to. You can be single forever if that’s what makes you happy. But promise me you won’t let someone like Reed take away your chance at being happy. Don’t do it just to spite him. The best revenge you can have is living the best fucking life you can, so when he stalks your socials—which he inevitably will—he’ll be reminded of what he lost. And then he’ll be miserable, which is what he deserves.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“Thank you,” Shane said. “Hey, do you want to watch a film? We can video chat while we buddy watch something on Netflix. Your choice.”
I thought about telling him no, but then I realised how much I didn’t want to be alone tonight, despite all my earlier plans. And if I could finally get Shane to watchRush, then I’d take it.
“Yeah, let’s do that,” I said, putting down my glass and searching around for the remote so we could pick something while I waited for the pizza.
Today was still a shit day, but it wasn’t quite as shit as I’d imagined it being.
Maybe Shane was right. Maybe the answer to my misery was living the fuck out of my new life.
That could start tomorrow, though.
I was allowed one more night to wallow.
CHAPTER THREE
Danny
“What about that one? Hey…”Charlie’s elbow nudged into my side, digging right into my rib. “What about that one?”
“Which one? You’re pointing at about three,” I said, rubbing my ribs and trying to pretend I’d been looking at the engagement rings Charlie had been pointing at and not staring into space like a gormless muppet.
“That one at the back, with the round diamond in the middle. Do you think Amanda would like it?”
I looked at the ring and rolled my eyes so hard they nearly hit the back of my head. Today was going to be painful as fuck if Charlie was going to keep making shit suggestions like that. Did he even know his girlfriend? “Mate, are you even looking at it? That is the least Amanda ring I’ve ever seen. She’d fucking hate it.”
“You think so?” Charlie’s face fell, and I felt a sting of pain whip across my chest as I put my foot in my mouth. Again.
Shit, I shouldn’t have been so harsh. Poor Charlie looked about ready to pass out from nerves, and we were onlylookingatengagement rings. At this rate, he wouldn’t even make it to the asking part.
I wondered if I could be there when he finally proposed so I could catch him if he fainted or maybe throw a bottle of water at him if he threw up. If it wouldn’t ruin the whole surprise, I’d have told Amanda he was thinking about asking her so she was prepared for shit to go sideways.
Charlie had always been one of the most confident people I’d known, but right now it was like he was falling apart at the seams. It was a little unnerving, and once upon a time I’d have ripped the shit out of him for it.
