“Meaning?” Gemma asked.
“Landon wants to stay in Moose Falls for me, and I couldn’t let him do that. He lost everything because the folks at his laboratory stabbed him in the back and trashed his good name. His goal was always to return to California and get justice. How can I let him sacrifice all that for me?” Bailey let out a groan.
“If Landon chose you over going back to California, that’s his choice.”
“You don’t get it,” she said, tears streaming down her face. “He’s the best person I’ve ever known. He’s worked his whole life to achieve things that most people would never dream of. It wouldn’t be right if he had to sacrifice that for me.”
Gemma frowned. “It sounds like he was sacrificing for both of you so you could be together.”
Bailey scoffed. “And what would happen in a few years? When it settled in that he’d given up all that he’d dreamed of for me?” She shook her head. “I don’t want to be the person that stopped him from achieving greatness. I want him to clear his name and make those people pay for what they did to him, even if it means we’re not together.”
“I love you, sis, but this is the most selfless yet stupid thing I’ve ever heard!” Gemma shook her head and stormed out of the room, muttering loudly.
Bailey had been so certain that breaking up with Landon had been the right move, yet now, after listening to Gemma, she was beginning to question whether she’d made the biggest mistake of her life. She had never even told him that she loved him, and now she would never be able to say thosegigantic words. What had she done? So many things were running through her mind. What-might-have-beens. If only she’d had the courage to talk to Landon and ask him face-to-face what he wanted. Maybe it really had been a life with her, one he wouldn’t regret.
You still could let him know how you feel,a voice buzzed in her ear.
But, if she did, Landon would do the noble thing and stick around Moose Falls. That was the kind of dude he was. True blue and as solid as the day was long. Maybe she just needed to suck it up. Stay calm and carry on.
Was this what love was? A constant ache in your chest. The feeling that you didn’t know whether you were coming or going. Yearning for someone. The fear that you might have a broken heart for the rest of your life. Bailey wasn’t so sure about this love thing anymore. Every single song about heartache had been right on the money.
Love wasn’t all roses and moonlight. Champagne and candlelit dinners.
As far as she could tell, love wasn’t all that it was cracked up to be.
