He chuckles, leaning closer so his forehead rests lightly against mine. “Aye, but you like me anyway. Besides, you’ll be on your way to me soon. You’ll get sick of me again in no time.”
I laugh. “Oh, I doubt that. You’re too good at being an annoying, lovable pain in my ass.”
His arms come around me fast, tight and fierce. “I’ll make sure to send you the world’s most obnoxious selfies every day,” he promises. “Just so you don’t forget how lucky you are.”
As we pull apart, I try to steady myself, plastering on a smile even though it wobbles at the edges. “I’ll be counting down the days.”
He winks at me with that signature mix of mischief and charm that should honestly come with a hazard warning. The warmth in my chest spreads like wildfire. How is this man simultaneously sweet and hot as hell? He looks at me like that, and suddenly my heart’s doing the Macarena, my brain drifting to thoughts likeI could leave tomorrow…
Then, as if he knows exactly what he’s doing to me, he leans in and presses a soft, lingering kiss to my lips. It’s the kind of kiss that says everything he hasn’t.I miss you already. You’re mine.
“All right, Sunshine,” he murmurs, pulling back to meet my eyes. “Here’s the deal. You get in that car and drive off. I’m not stepping foot inside until you’re out of sight.”
He knows how much this goodbye is shredding me, yet somehow, here he is, making me feel like the center of his universe.
“Okay.” I finally nod.
His eyes sparkle, that familiar glint of wickedness lighting them up. “Go before I start thinking about how much I’m going to miss you and ruin my manly reputation.”
I can’t help but laugh. His ridiculousness is the only thing that keeps me from completely losing it. “You’re impossible,” I say, backing away slowly and trying to keep it together, even though my feet seem to get heavier with every step.
He responds with a lazy salute, the corners of his mouth curling into that smile that always gets to me. As I climb into the car, he doesn’t move. He just watches me.
I shift into gear and pull away from the curb, but I can’t stop myself from glancing in the rearview mirror one last time.
There he is. Standing still. Watching me go. His smile is there, but it’s laced with the same weight I’m carrying. That sadness, that ache, that longing to not be apart, to not say goodbye.
I push it down, telling myself it’s just for a little while. Eventually, everything will fall into place. Even if the space beside me is too quiet and empty now.
I blink rapidly, but the tears are already back, welling up and blurring my vision. I’m supposed to be strong, supposed todrive away with my heart intact, but it’s impossible. He’sstillstanding there.
I take a breath, shaky and uneven. Then another. As I press my foot to the gas, every part of me is screaming to turn around.
thirty
CALLAN
The door clicks shut behind me, and the rich scent of oak barrels and whisky hits. The distillery is my second home. A sanctuary in the chaos.
Well,usually.
It’s been a week, and that goodbye still lingers like a bruise I can’t stop pressing. Every time I try to focus, I see Bree’s blue eyes staring back at me, hear her laugh, feel her hair slipping through my fingers as if still holding onto her.
Today’s the real kicker, though.
She’s meeting up with her ex.
I tell myself it’s fine. That I trust her. That it’s just a conversation, not some grand reunion. My brain doesn’t give a damn about logic. It just loops the same torturous reel—her sitting across from him, tilting her head the way she does when she’s really listening.
I try to focus and bury myself in the usual grind, but it’s useless. No matter what I do, I keep seeing them together. I can’t decide who I’m pissed at more. Her ex for being the absolute piece of shit he is, or myself for letting this eat at me likeI’m the one who lived it. I wish I were there to knock that bastard into next week.
That son of a bitch didn’t just break her heart. He brokeher. Left bruises, got inside her head and made her question herself. That kind of damage doesn’t just fade with time. It lingers and turns into scars that don’t show, except…I see them.
And that kills me.
Here I am, sitting useless in this office, pretending I’m not miles away. I can’t protect her or stop him from doing it all over again. It’s a fucking nightmare.
I want to believe she’s strong enough to handle it. Hell, Iknowshe is. That still doesn’t deter the thoughts of her standing in front of him, hearing his voice, letting him exist in her space again. Every time I think about it, a steel band tightens around my ribs, squeezing the air right out of me.
