“Uh huh,” Adriana said, her tone cold enough to suck the joy right out of Isaac. “Like you’ve loved all your ex-girlfriends, right? You don’t knowhowto love.”
Isaac swallowed. He’d never claimed to love them all, but…
Hehadbeen in love with Adriana once. Or at least, he’d thought he was, at the time. He could see now that he’d just been desperate for her approval—approval he was never going to be good enough to have.
She’d spent most of their time together making him feel like crap.
Julian hadn’t made him feel like crap even once. Not in the entire time they’d known each other. Julian was the first to lift Isaac up, to dust him off if he failed at something and encourage him to try again.
The first to tell Isaac that he mattered, and he was good enough, and that he didn’t have to be so hard on himself.
Julian had loved him one way or another for a long time. Isaac just hoped he could keep that, now that he was finally realizing just how badly he wanted Julian in his life.
Not just in his life. By his side. Always.
The feeling was so desperate, sourgent. Isaac could feel himself trembling at the thought.
Julian meant the world to him.
“I know how to love,” Isaac insisted. Maybe he wasn’t the world’s greatest boyfriend, but he could learn. And Julian would give him the space to do that, and help him along the way.
He’d been through a lot of ugly breakups with people he never should have been dating in the first place, but… he was twenty-six. He didn’t have to know everything.
He just needed someone to love him. Someone who’d let him love them, and let him figure things out at his own pace. Hecouldlove, and love with all of his heart, and he planned on proving it.
“Everything you do is aboutyou, Isaac,” Adriana growled at him, leaning in closer. “You only ever think about yourself, and what you want, and screw everyone else.”
“What’s your problem with me?” Isaac asked. Sure, they hadn’t exactly parted as friends, but this was more aggressive than he’d ever expected. Than he’d everexperienced, from any other ex.
“You broke my heart,” Adriana hissed, holding Isaac’s gaze with a venomous glare. “Now it’s my turn to break yours.”
Before Isaac could draw a breath to ask what the hell that meant, Adriana turned on her heel and strode away, her racquet swinging beside her leg.
Isaac swallowed. He wasn’t sure what the hell that was about, but he was glad it was over.
The faintest twinge of worry made the pit of his stomach hurt. What if itwasn’tover?
There wasn’t much he could do about it, but that wasn’t going to stop him worrying. He expected to hear from her again, and he knew he wouldn’t like whatever she had to say next time any better.
