The boy, now a man, had never done anything to make me fall for him.He’d never flirted.Never made a move.Never given me any reason to think he saw me as anything other than… me.
He’d just been him.
And I guess that was my type.
Jude was my type.
Another sip.
“Fuck me,” I muttered under my breath.
I dragged my sleeve across my mouth, wiping away the leftover sweetness as I shook my head.
I had just been on a pretty good date.A good date.
And I was still out here thinking about Jude.
“What is wrong with you, Ever?”I said out loud, the words carrying just enough into the quiet to make it feel real.
I tipped the bottle back, taking a longer drink this time.
I needed to get over Jude.
That wasn’t new.
But I was finally tired of it.
I leaned forward slightly, resting more of my weight against the railing as I stared down at the water.
Jude was never going to look at me as more than just the fat girl who worked at the Dairy Bar.
I straightened, lifting the bottle again before taking another long drink.The liquid was almost gone now, just a few sips left sloshing at the bottom.
I tipped the bottle back, finishing the last of the wine cooler before lowering it slowly, my grip tightening slightly around the glass.
“I’m done,” I said, more firmly this time.
The words hung in the air for a second before fading into the night.
And for the first time in a long time, I let myself believe it.
Chapter Four
Jude
I sat at the bar with a beer in my hand, elbow resting against the worn wood as I stared at nothing in particular.The clubhouse was mostly empty tonight.A couple guys were out back, their voices carrying faintly through the open door, but inside it was just the low hum of the fridge and the occasional creak of the building settling.
Ten o’clock.
Nothing going on.
Which should’ve been a good thing.
After everything with the Northbound Reapers, I wasn’t about to complain about a stretch of normal.We’d earned it.We made it clear we weren’t a club anyone wanted to push around.End of story.
I tipped the bottle back, taking a long pull before setting it down again, my fingers loose around the neck.
The clubhouse door opened, the sound cutting through the quiet, and I glanced over as Adley and Mason walked in hand in hand.
