My thin shred of hope shatters. Why do I feel like I could cry?
“I understand,” I manage to say.
“No, I don’t think you do,” Aiden says, looking desperately at me. “Because I really want to date you. I’ve—I’ve never felt this way about any woman I’ve ever met before.”
My heart pounds against my rib cage. He feels everything about our connection that I do. This is something different. Something special.
And something neither one of us want to let go of.
“I want to date you, too,” I say. “If you asked me right now, I’d say yes.”
A painful silence falls between us as visions of a reality we can never share sink in.
“I wish I could date you,” Aiden says, his voice thick with regret. “But I can’t. I only hope you can understand that, Scarlett.”
I bite my lip. “I understand,” I whisper.
He rakes his hand through his hair again, several times over. Then he exhales. “Is it okay if we remain friends?” he asks softly.
Something tells me this is a terrible idea, to embark on a friendship with Aiden. Because all it will lead to is me liking him even more—and knowing I can never have him.
But the idea of never being around him again? After tonight?
I can’t do it, even if it’s a dangerous, stupid move on my part.
“Yes,” I say, nodding.
“Good,” Aiden says. “We can be friends.”
“Yes. Friends.”
Another silence falls between us, and finally, Aiden clears his throat. “Come on, let’s go.”
I nod. He escorts me out the front doors to the valet stand, and we both turn in our tickets. The air is cool tonight, and the lighted palm trees sway in the ocean breeze.
We’re both silent, wrapped up in our own thoughts. I’m sure he’s also thinking about how things could be so incredibly different tonight if my last name weren’t Rivershon. There’s no way a leader like Aiden would ever make a move on the coach’s daughter.
And I can’t ask him to compromise who he is to do it.
My car is brought around first, and I reluctantly look up at him. “That’s mine,” I say quietly.
“Right,” Aiden says.
The ocean breeze drifts across us again, and I watch as it ruffles his hair. I long to reach up and fix it, but I can’t.
I can’t do anything as far as Aiden is concerned.
“Thank you for tonight,” I say. “I enjoyed our conversation so much.”
“I did, too. Thank you for meeting me.”
“Good night, Aiden.”
“Be careful going home.”
I nod and walk around to my car. I slip behind the wheel and take one last look at Aiden, who is standing at the valet stand, still staring at me. As I tear my gaze away from him, a sick feeling washes over me.
Not because I have to leave Aiden behind tonight. We’ve decided to be friends.
