Despite everything, I laugh. “You’re not murdering anyone.”
“Yet. I’m not murdering anyone yet.” She grins.
“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that.” Jax smirks.
“Best you do,” Riley states.
“Can I get you ladies a drink? Water, coffee, wine?”
“Wine!” Maggie and Riley answer together.
“Can see why you’re friends.” Jax winks at me as he disappears into the kitchen.
Maggie and Riley stare at me, and I can see the millions of questions running through their minds. Riley looks around the cabin. “This place is cute. Very cozy. Perfect for a romantic snowstorm hookup.”
“Riley,” Maggie hisses.
“What? I’m just acknowledging the obvious.” Riley grins at me, and I can see the concern underneath the bravado. “But seriously. Are you okay?”
“I am now,” I say, and I mean it. Having them here, having this buffer between me and the confrontation that just happened, makes everything feel more manageable.
“Good.” Riley plops down on the couch. “Now. We need to make a plan. Because that dick weasel is probably sitting in his car trying to figure out how to get you back.”
“I have a cabin,” I say suddenly. “The one I originally booked. It’s a few miles from here.”
“Perfect!” Riley claps her hands. “Girls’ trip! We’ll hole up there, eat junk food, trash-talk your ex, and plan your future.”
“What about him?” Maggie asks quietly, looking over at Jax in the kitchen.
“He can come visit,” Riley interrupts. “But right now, you need some time with us. To process. To breathe. To remember who the fuck you are without either of those men.”
I look at Jax. This was inevitable. Maybe I need to pull the Band-Aid off and just go with my girls.
“Here you go, ladies,” he says, bringing in glasses and the bottle of wine, and starts pouring.
“Hey, big boy, thanks so much for looking after our girl, but we’re here now,” Riley tells him.
Jax stiffens as he looks at me for clarification. “I was thinking of taking them up to the cabin I had originally booked to um … sort myself out.” I hate the way he looks at me, one part devastation, the other part resolve.
“Sounds like a plan,” he says quietly. “I’ve got to go check in on things anyway. I’ll leave you girls to it. It was so nice meeting you both. Sloane talked about you a lot,” he says, turning and leaving the room.
Shit.
“Guys, give me a sec,” I say, getting up and walking after him back into the bedroom where he is packing up his things. “Hey,” I say, turning him around to look at me.
“There’s nothing to say, time’s up, I guess,” he tells me.
“My life is a complete mess at the moment.”
Those hazel eyes look down at me as he nods sadly, then he continues to pack.
I stare at his back as the tears fall down my cheeks. “You have nothing to say?” I ask him.
“Don’t cry,” he says softly, reaching out and wiping my tears away.
“Have you changed your mind? Am I too much? What?” I ask him.
“You have a lot on your plate right now, and I don’t want to add to it. Seeing that asshole in the flesh and how he truly is …” He shakes his head. “I think you need some time with your people to figure out what you want with your new life.”
