I didn’t pause to wonder what was happening at Garrett’s place. Whether it was some kind of orgy or wild party where the dress code was your birthday suit, I wasn’t going to stay long enough to find out.
Thank god I’d left my suitcase in my car, so the only thing I had to think about was putting one foot in front of the other and not tripping as I ran down the creaky outdoor stairs as fast as I could.
Someone grabbed my hand just as I reached the ground floor. I didn’t have to turn around to know who it was.
“Wait, Atlas. You can’t just leave like that. At least let me explain, babe,” Garrett said, sounding too casual.
I physically recoiled at the term of endearment. It wasn’t unfamiliar coming from him, but now it was tainted from hearing that man calling Garrett that earlier.
I sucked in a deep breath and turned around to face him. Garrett looked the same as in my memories. He had the kind of face that exuded warmth. One that made you want to smile when you saw it. It was the first thing that’d caught my attention when I was playingaround the online chat forum where you could video chat with strangers from all across the world. One conversation with Garrett led to hundreds more until we met in person and were officially dating.
He’d become my comfort person through all the late-night chats where we’d shared our hopes and dreams for the future. I’d felt safe when I looked at him. Now, all I felt when peering at that familiar face was betrayal.
I pulled my hand from his and crossed my arms so that he couldn’t grab me again.
“And what exactly are you going to explain? That you already have a lover here and still led me around like a fool? Just how were you going to explain all this after tricking me here, Garrett?”
“Fuck, Atlas. I didn’t trick you here. You know just as well as I do that you were looking for an excuse to get out of that town.”
I opened my mouth to refute, but I couldn’t. Garrett must have taken that as a sign or something because he took a step forward and placed his hands on either side of my arms.
“And that guy isn’t my lover. We just like to have fun together. We all do. I was going to tell you, let you slowly get used to the idea, but you arrived without warning me.”
I stared at him incredulously. It wasn’t often that I got mad, but why did it sound like he was blamingmefor all of this? IfIhadn’t arrived early, thenwewouldn’t be in this situation!
“Fuck you,” I gritted. “Is that how it all worked out in your head? That, as long as you got me here, I’d suddenly be okay joining your—what do you even call it—orgy parties? You’re free to live your life however you want, but you should have been honest with me from the start. You knew full well I wasn’t looking for an open relationship.”
“It’s not an open relationship. We’d be exclusive, but we’d just have a little fun with others. Together. This can work for us, babe. You just have to be willing to try.”
“Don’t call me that. I’m not your ‘babe.’ I’m not your anything anymore. Whatever you want to call what you’re doing, I don’t want to be a part of it.”
I shook him off and turned to walk away. I didn’t get far before his words stopped me.
“So what? You’re going to run back to Christmas Falls with your tail between your legs? After you told your entire town you were moving away? After you told your aunt? What would they say? Poor little Atlas got played and couldn’t even keep a man, so he had to run back home to auntie?”
My fists clenched at my side. I’d never been a violent person, but I itched to punch the smug tone right out of him. But I knew that would only make things worse. If anything, it would only give Garrett the satisfaction of knowing that he’d gotten to me.
Instead, I slowly turned around. “No. I’m notreturning to Christmas Falls. I said I’m moving to Kither Springs, and that’s exactly what I plan to do. This town’s going to have one more resident. But do me a favor. If you see me around, don’t bother sayinghi.”
With that, I hightailed it out of the alley. By the time I made it back to the downtown area, the words I’d thrown out finally settled. I counted my lucky stars that Garrett didn’t follow me, but that also meant I had to be alone with my proclamation: that I was moving to Kither Springs. That I was going to live in the same small town as my ex-boyfriend when, other than him, I didn’t know a single soul here.
Never mind the fact that I didn’t have a plan or even a place to stay tonight.
But I wouldn’t be made a liar. I’d gathered all my courage to come here, told every person who’d come through The Snowflake Shack about my grand move, and I’d convinced Aunt Polly of how happy I’d be here, so I wasn’t going to let Garrett—or anyone, for that matter—stop me from finishing the move.
Maybe it was my sleep-deprived brain that had me ignoring all the logistics a move like this entailed—like a place to stay, for one.
I stuffed the panic down before it could overwhelm me. First things first, I was starving. Some food would make this all better, and nothing sounded more comforting at this moment than a cozy diner meal. Good thing there was a diner right in front of me.
The Diner was empty when I entered, but thatwasn’t surprising considering it was nearly midnight. Soft jazz music playing was the only sound that accompanied me as I found a booth to sit at. Since there wasn’t anyone at the front to greet me, I took the liberty and made myself comfortable. Considering the place was completely empty, I doubted the diner’s owner would mind.
I examined the place, admiring how clean and tidy everything was, and almost jolted from my seat when a giant body appeared right by my booth. I didn’t know how I hadn’t heard him walk up, especially considering the sheer mass of the man. Despite his size, he was light on his feet. I’d give him that.
I finally got a good look at him and found an older man standing above me like a force to be reckoned with. Dark brown hair streaked with gray. Dark brown eyes on tanned skin, thick eyebrows, and a fierce gaze.
I wouldn’t say he had the kind of face that exuded warmth or kindness—it was more a “fuck with me, and you’ll experience hell” kind of vibe—and the visible scar running down his left temple and brow didn’t really do much to help soften his aura.
“Sorry, I didn’t see you there,” I said, hoping he didn’t think I recoiled because of his looks or that I was scared of him or something.
