LYDIA
It was Friday, so the gallery was super busy, especially with people staying in Blowing Rock for the weekend. The Mistletoe Mania Festival was one of the highly anticipated events during the Christmas holiday. It was romantic and perfect for couples who wanted to get away for a short vacation.
Violet and Ben left early to go out to dinner, but luckily, closing time was fast approaching. That didn’t mean my work stopped tonight, though. Violet was leaving it up to me to choose the next photos of Ben’s to put up in the gallery. He had so many great ones. I was tempted to put the same ones on display, but there were other photographs that deserved attention. However, that wasn’t my only plan for the night. There was something I needed to do first.
I grabbed my coat off the back of my desk chair and was about to put it on when the door opened. Hailey walked in nervously and waved.
“Hey, best friend. I mean, if that’s what you’ll still let me call you.”
Shaking my head, I set my jacket down on the desk and sighed. “Of course you can. I don’t hate you for tricking me, Hailey.”
She shrugged. “Well, when you never answered my calls, I started to wonder.”
“I’ve just had a lot on my mind.”
Hailey walked over to me and held out her arms. “I’m sorry for everything. Do you forgive me?”
I hugged her hard. “There’s nothing to forgive. You were only trying to help your brother.”
“Who is so in love with you,” she said, letting me go. “I’ve known it for a long time.”
That made me smile. “So I heard. Nice touch with dragging Daphne away at the Christmas Eve party last year so Jake and I could talk alone.”
Hailey brushed off her shoulder. “I’m good like that.” But then her smile faded. “But it’s not like it did any good. You and Jake still aren’t together.” Her brows furrowed with concern. “What’s going on with you, Lydia? I know you have feelings for Jake. You’ve had a crush on him ever since we were little kids.”
“How do you know that?”
She placed a hand on my arm. “Because I knowyou. We’ve been inseparable for as long as I can remember.” Her gaze roamed around the gallery, and she smiled. “Some people in this world are destined to be together.” When her eyes met mine, her grin widened. “You and Jake are those people. Everyone has seen it for years: your sister, your grandparents, and evenmyparents. I don’t know why you haven’t.”
I shrugged. “Apparently, I’m not good at keeping my eyes open to things like that.”
She cocked her head to the side, regarding me curiously. “What do you mean by that?”
“Nothing,” I replied, waving it off as if it wasn’t a big deal. Not keeping my eyes open to others around me had almost cost the happiness of two people I loved.
Hailey moved closer, her expression serious. “Do you have feelings for Max? Is that why you don’t want to be with Jake?”
“I never said I didn’t want to be with Jake,” I corrected. “It’s complicated.”
She nodded. “That’s what Jake told me you said. What’s the complication? If it’s me, I don’t have a problem with you and my brother being together. I think it would be the most amazing thing in the world.”
“That’s not it,” I admitted.
“Then what is?”
There was nothing I could say that would make sense to her.
“I just need more time,” I said. “You’re not going to understand. But I’m hoping I’ll know what to do soon.”
Hailey pursed her lips. “Yeah, I don’t understand. Just answer me one question, though.”
I knew what she was going to ask and held my breath, waiting for the words to leave her lips.
“Do you love Jake?”
And there they were.Yes, I wanted to answer. I wanted to say it out loud and scream it from the rooftops, but I couldn’t . . . not yet. I didn’t want to be selfish. There was still Max to consider; I had to make sure he would be okay. What if my choice ruined his future? I couldn’t do that to him, even if it meant not being with the man I truly loved.
When I didn’t answer, Hailey sighed and backed away.
