But then...
“I don’t love you anymore.”
Ashley doesn’t say things she doesn’t mean.
I grip the railing as I pass through the corridor, the ship rocking gently beneath my feet. This last year has been hell. For both of us.
I’m trying to protect her, damnit. I just need a little more time to make things right, to clean up the mess before it touches her or the boys.
I’d just assumed she’d be there after. But now…
“I don’t love you anymore.”
The words hollow me out all over again.
She’d said other things, things I’d known already. Things she’d told me before…
But today. Tonight, it’s different.
She’s different.
Closed off. Quiet. All the things she’s said I’ve become.
And… I deserve it.
“I hated the person I was becoming—waiting for you to notice me.”
I drift through mostly empty corridors until the low thrum of music pulls me toward one of the ship’s smaller bars—The Brass Compass. The lights are low and the music’s quiet.
A few women at a high-top pause their laughter to glance over when I step in, but I barely see them.
“Beckett!”
When a voice cuts through the din, I spot a tall guy with sun-bleached hair and a cocky grin waving me over. Rocky. One of Noah’s friends, the helicopter pilot.
He raises his glass. “Over here, man!”
The last thing I want right now is to make small talk about the wedding, or anything, really. At least it looks like Rocky is alone.
I weave through the crowd and take the empty stool beside him. The women nearby visibly deflate, and Rocky chuckles. “You just ruined my odds, Carrington.”
I manage a half smile and gesture to a spot at the end of the bar. “I can?—”
“Nah, just joking.” He studies me for a second, head cocked. “What’s your poison?”
I pause.
Sugar told me to keep my head on straight. Keep my wits about me.
I glance at the bartender. “Whiskey. Neat.”
He pours a generous shot, sets it down, and I knock it back in one swallow.
Exactly what I need.
Rocky’s watching me over the rim of his glass. “That bad, huh? You look like hell, man.”
“I feel like hell,” I admit, rubbing the back of my neck.
