Images of her remain, running laps in my head like a treadmill with no off switch.
I shouldn’t care. Not after the way she tossed me aside like yesterday’s garbage. Not after she made it clear exactly what I was to her.
But I do.
Because for the first time in my life, I fell in love. Hard. Fast. All in. And I got fuckingobliterated.
Thankfully, I haven’t seen Kiki in the last few weeks. That’s about the only positive thing I can say, which is surprising considering the size of Sparkwood.
But I’ve been hanging on the fringes, drifting back to some of my old haunts—places closer to where Deirdre and I used to live. My friends are here, I know the bartenders, and there’s zero chance Kiki shows up.
Win-win, right?
Yeah. That’s what I keep telling myself, anyway. If I say it enough times, maybe it’ll start to sound true.
It doesn’t.
I wonder if she’s found someone else to fill the void.
Not that I want to know.
And maybe Kiki is right. My situation… being a single dad, the bullshit with Deirdre, it’s a lot. And she’s got enough on her plate without taking on my crap too.
Not that I’m forgiving her for the way she treated me. That will never happen.
Hell, for all I know she decided to give it another go with Drake.
I bite back a belch, the sour taste of beer coating my tongue at the thought of her giving that bastard even an inch of space in her life.
Right now, he’s locked away, unable to touch her. But I’ve heard rumblings. Talk that Drake’s got some kind of ace up his sleeve—something that might let him walk free.
With enough money and power, you can buy just about anything, right?
I press the heel of my hand against my eye.
Eddie, you’re not doing this anymore tonight. You need to forget about Kiki. The same way she forgot about you.
Nicole, one of the regulars here, slides onto the stool next to me, shooting me a flirty smile. “Look what the cat dragged in. Long time no see, Eddie.”
“Yeah,” I say, lifting my beer. “It’s been a while.”
“Where’ve you been?” she asks, leaning in. “Last I heard,you were shacking up with some woman, and—poof—gone for weeks. Is that still a thing?”
I shake my head and motion to the bartender for another beer. “Nope.”
You’d think a one-word answer would shut this down. Not Nicole.
She tucks her hair behind her ear, angling toward me like she’s got all night to hear my tale of woe. “Didn’t end well, huh?”
I shoot her a look. I’ve seen this play before.
Don’t get me wrong, Nicole’s good-looking. She’s fun. We’ve hung out plenty of times, playing pool, shooting darts, drinking beers and having a few laughs.
But she doesn’t give a damn about my broken heart, and I sure as hell don’t want to discuss it.
“Nothing to end,” I mutter, taking a pull from my drink.
She grins, not buying my words for a second, then glances up as the bartender heads our way. “How about this. You buy me a drink, we grab a pool table, and figure out how to turn that frown of yours upside down?”
