“Are you alright?” Simon’s voice is soft, carrying like a wisp through the warm summer night.
“No.” I wrap my arms around myself, trying to quell all the emotions. My voice wavers, giving me away.
“Layla.” His hand lands on my shoulder turning to face him, but I shrug it off. “Talk to me, love.”
Love. That damn nickname that made me swoon.
Now it’s a knife to the heart.
“What’s there to say? Somehow Brad found out about us, and now my store is gone.”
“Shit.” A remorseful look comes over his face. “Layla, look—”
A mirthless laugh escapes, cutting him off. “Of course this would all come unraveling so close to the end.”
“But that can’t be it.” Simon takes a step toward me, but I take a step back. Right now, I don’t think there’s anyone that can comfort me.
“Seems pretty final to me. This was always going to end, Simon. It just blew up in our faces so why keep fighting? It’s done. Over.”
I’m a ball of emotions, and I have no idea which emotion is winning. Except a frustrated, angry tear slips out.
“You’re serious.” It’s not a question. It’s almost like he knows. Now that the cat is out of the bag, there’s no reason to continue this.
“What’s the point?” Locking eyes with him, his pain matches mine. “I live here. You’re in London. We always knew this thing would end as soon as you went back home.”
“You’re going to let those wankers dictate the rest of your life?”
“It’s not like I can keep fighting back. I’m tired, Simon. I’m done. Just done.”
“That’s not the girl I know.”
“Then maybe you really didn’t know me. It’s not like this was real. We were never going to beat them.” I brush away another tear.
“Not real?” Simon closes the distance between us, pulling me into his arms. “Fuck that, Layla. This was never fake. It’s been real since the day we met.”
“It’s never been real for me, Simon.”
The lie cuts deep. But on Monday, Simon will be out of my life for good. There’s no point in keeping this charade going.
“You’re taking the easy way out, Layla.” There’s a bite to his tone. “I didn’t think you’d give up this easy.”
“It’s called self-preservation.” I step out of his hold, turning my back to him. It’s better this way. Not looking at him.
“Call it whatever you want, but it’s not the woman I fell in love with.”
“What?”
Simon is gone, his shoulders hunched as he jogs down the trail.
“Fuck.”
More tears escape. Ever since I left Brad, I’ve kept my walls high. I never wanted to feel like that again. To lose myself. To not recognize the girl in the mirror.
No one ever attempted to scale them. I never bothered to even try with some guys.
Yet, with one visit to Dixon, I let Simon in. He’s the only person who showed himself worthy. No, proved himself worthy.
No one ever cared enough to try before. And now?
