But the door whips open instead.
A vision of red sweeps inside. Annie hurriedly shuts the door behind her and clicks the lock, chest heaving as her eyes trail to mine across the locker-size bathroom.
What the hell is she doing in here?
Her boyfriend just proposed to her in front of a live audience. He’s probably tearing the place apart looking for her. “What are you doing?”
“Chase.” Her voice splinters with a sharp crack. “I’m so sorry.”
She’s sorry.
She’s always sorry.
And now, more than anything, she has no reason to be.
I droop against the chipped heliotrope-toned sink, pretending it doesn’t match the colored streaks in her hair. “Congratulations, Annie.”
Devastation washes over her face, and it’s not a look I’d expect from a newly engaged woman. She glances down at the diamond ring glittering on her finger, twirling it in anxious circles like she’s trying to spin doubt into certainty. “The timing is terrible. I was on the spot and panicked. I-I didn’t know he was going to—”
“It’s okay.” I force my eyes up, force a smile, force this pathetic wave of dejection to dissipate. “It’s okay. I’m happy for you.”
Her head shakes slightly. “What you said before…”
“Doesn’t matter. I had too much whiskey.”
“But…” She swallows, lacing her fingers together, shifting from heel to heel. “Did you mean it?”
“Would it change anything if I did? You already said yes.” Alcohol courses through my blood as I inch up from the sink, taking a step toward her. The light fixture buzzes, sputtering in and out. “Unless that was a maybe.”
She goes still, blinking up at me as the statement registers. “This is so hard.”
“It shouldn’t be hard. Not if you love him.”
A tear zigzags down her cheek, dangling at her jaw. “It’s not that simple.”
My heart is a moving target. I should walk away, charge out the front door, and disappear into the crestfallen night. But I take another step closer. “Why?”
“Because it hurts.” Her face crumples. “I hurt you, and I never wanted to hurt you.”
I stop in front of her as my shoulders sag. “Annie—”
“I just…I’ve built a life with him, Chase,” she says, licking away a salty tear, trying to find an ounce of rationale to cling to. “We’ve been through a lot together. He’s not perfect, but neither am I, and I feel like I need to see this through, stay committed till the end, because—”
“You feel like? Or you want to?” My hand lifts, and I swipe away another tear, my thumb dusting across her skin. Her gaze shutters, jaw tilting into my touch. “There’s a difference.”
Pain coasts across her face. Guilt, sadness, and all the things she shouldn’t be feeling right now with a ring on her finger. “I know we’ve gotten close,” she says softly. “And that’s my fault. I dragged you into this when I should have let you be, and I allowed this connection to grow into something bigger, and that’s…that’s not fair. It’s not fair to you.”
My hand falls away. “Life has never been fair to me. Not your fault.”
“I’ve been so selfish.” Her breath stutters, pupils dilating. Everything surges to the surface, and she starts to shake, wrapping her arms around her body to hold it all in.
The last thing I should do is touch her.
But I pull her in anyway.
She flops against me, fragile and breaking, her arms winding around my torso. Tears soak through my T-shirt. I hold her tighter than I should, every nerve in my body screaming at me to let go.
“You should go, Annie,” I whisper into her hair, though my heart doesn’t agree.
