“Hey,” Patrick’s voice says clearly through the speaker. It’s achingly familiar, and it makes my insides twist hard enough to make my brow sweat. “I didn’t know if you’d answer.”
I close my eyes, letting my back lean against the rough railing of the bar’s porch. “I figured it was important if you called four times in a row.”
“Sorry,” he says quickly with a slight tinge of embarrassment in his voice. “I really wanted to hear your voice. I’ve been thinking about you a lot lately.”
My grip tightens around the railing and my nails scrape against the wood. “I don’t know what you want me to say. If you don’t need anything, then?—”
“I do need something, Em. I need you. I made a mistake letting you go.”
And there it is. The regret call. I figured it would come sooner or later, and maybe that’s why I kept his contact information saved. I was a masochist for closure.
“You didn’t let me go, Patrick. You cheated on me, and I’m the one who ended things. You expected me to forgive the fact that you slept with my boss so we could move on and start over. I hate to break it to you, but we can’t move past that.”
The wood of the porch creaks, shifting under the weight of someone new. I know who it is before I look over my shoulder.
When my eyes meet with Knox’s, I expect to be annoyed he’s eavesdropping, but instead I feel some strange sensation of comfort resting on my shoulders. He arches a brow as if to ask if I’m okay, and I nod with a reassuring smile. Knox nods back and leans against the opposite side of the porch, offering quiet support.
“I know and I regret what I did every day. But you have to understand, Em, you were being emotionally distant, and we hadn’t slept together in weeks when it happened. You have to understand?—”
“I don’t have to understand anything,” I sigh, getting flashbacks of how easily he used to spin our problems onto me. It took me entirely way too long to realize that’s something my parents used to do to me, too.
“Patrick, you don’t get to make me feel like I was the reason you cheated. I deserve better than that and now I know it more than ever,” I say, my voice trailing off. “Listen, we were never really right for each other. You only liked me because I did everything to fit into your life, and when I finally wanted to do something for myself, you showed your true colors. I really hope that you find what you’re looking for, but it’s not me anymore.”
He goes quiet and the pit in my stomach slowly starts to fade away. I turn around to face Knox and I find him still standing there with an encouraging smile.
“So that’s it then?”
“That’s it,” I reply, ending the call before he can respond.My thumb trembles over the screen, but once I finally delete his number, I let out a strangled breath of relief.
When I look up, Knox cautiously walks across the porch. His gaze is warm and sweet. It’s the complete opposite of the devil I encountered inside the bar.
“Everything good with your friend?” he asks, but I know he heard everything. He knows that wasn’t just an old friend, yet he doesn’t press for more information.
“Yeah,” I respond, still using the railing to support my weight. “Is that offer for burgers still on the table?”
“Of course,” he smiles, tucking his thumbs into his jeans, “but first I have a surprise.”
“Another surprise?” I groan, slumping my shoulders forward.
“Yep,” he says with a glint in his eyes. “I think you’re really going to like this one. Come with me.”
I grab his hand with zero hesitation, feeling grateful for the distraction. I don’t mind the way the crowd parts for him as he pulls me toward the makeshift stage sitting in the corner. My stomach dips when I realize what he’s doing.
“Knox,” I whisper, pulling his arm back. “There’s no way. You’re not going to?—”
“Oh yes, Bambi,” he cuts in, turning to me with a huge goofy grin on his face. He tugs me a few more feet until we’re right in front of the karaoke sign-up sheet, and lucky for me, it looks like he’s the first brave soul to sign up.
“You can’t be serious,” I say, anchoring my feet in place.
“Relax,” he says, ghosting a hand over my cheek, but pulling away before it can make contact. “We’re not doing a duet. I’m going to serenade you. You look like you need a laugh, and I need to remind this town that I’m more than just a pretty face.”
He waggles his brows, and I snort out a laugh before covering my mouth in shock. “I didn’t know you could makethatsound, Bambi. Now I’m convinced this is my best idea yet.”
A few minutes later, when Knox’s name is called, he bounds onto the stage with the confidence of someone who’s sold out a show at Madison Square Garden. The cheers from the crowd seem only to boost his confidence, making him send me a cute wink before pulling the mic to his lips. I clock each and every one of the death glares I get from scornful women.
The opening notes to the ’90s classicI Touch Myselfby the Divinyls fill the room, and the cheers get louder if that’s even possible.
My jaw drops. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” I say under my breath. I smile so wide my cheeks start to ache, and he hasn’t even finished the first verse.
