“Do you love him?”
“Yes.” I say the word without hesitation. There is no fear, no worry, no anxiety. I say that one word confidently, firmly, because it’s the truestyesI’ve ever said in my life.
And though part of me expects to feel pain and sadness… I don’t.
I feel better. Like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders.
“I love him so fucking much, Mandy.” The sob that leaves me is cathartic in a way I’ve never known.
She gives me a sweet smirk. I stare at my watch. We’ve still got at least forty-five minutes until the wedding ceremony, and it’s not far. Though I was hoping to meet up with Alex to talk about what happened, since we never got to have that conversation like I wanted. Even if Hudson doesn’t show up today, I don’t want to hide the truth anymore. Maybe that starts with talking about these things openly, with people I trust. Friends. Like Mandy and Alex. He’s never shied away from his sexuality and doesn’t make a big deal out of it, it’s just… who he is, and I think maybe that’s the point. He just loves Mack, and that’s it.
That’s all that matters.
I also feel like I owe him the truth, considering I’d called him and screamed at him about taking those photos down in a heartbroken, drunken tirade and he didn’t evenaskme why I was upset.
Which is telling in itself, because Alex always wants details. It’s a long shot, but I don’t want to give up hope. I can’t give up hope. If Cameron and Austen can rebuild their friendship and come back stronger—and get married—and if Alex and Mack can put their issues aside and choose each other first, then maybe,justmaybeHudson and I can find some way to reconcile, too. But if I want to show Hudson Iamokay with these things, with beingopenabout how I feel—about him, about us, I need to do what I came here to do.
I need to start fresh, not just with my friends, but with myself, too.
“Awww, Trey…” She sighs, and I hear the sadness in her voice.
“I was an idiot,” I say carefully.
Mandy shifts closer to me, her arm brushing mine.
“Most men are idiots,” she says with a chuckle.
I roll my eyes. “I beg to differ.”
She looks at me with an aching remorse. I know she understands, because she’s sort of in the same boat, but it doesn’t make it any easier to admit.
“I told him it was easier to let peopleassumesometimes. You know, about us—” I look at her. “About our fake relationship, because it was good for our image. My image. And though Hudson and I said we wouldn’t hide our relationship…” I let out a heavy sigh. “I did. I thought it was better that way, you know?”
There’s a soft silence between us.
“You protected me from the assholes, and I’ll always be thankful for that, but… I also used you and our fake engagement as an excuse to shut people out, and I know you did, too.”
I drop my hands, my palms bracing the edge of the sink. “We were going to tell everyone today,” I say softly. “I was scared. I guess.”
“What were you afraid of?” she asks, the concern in her voice evident.
“Fucking it up,” I say with a strained, sarcastic laugh. “I guess I thought if I could just keep things betweenus,the way they were…things would stay good, you know? I didn’t want to break what wasn’t broken.”
Mandy wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me close. I lean against her shoulder without a second thought. She rubs my arm.
The sob that escapes me is my response. My throat is tight and my heart is racing, breaking all over again as I tell her the truth.
And then I see her hand on my arm. Her bare ring finger.
She’s not wearing her ring.
“Where’s your ring?” I ask shakily. Mandy holds my gaze steady.
“It doesn’t fit anymore.”
We both know it fits her perfectly, since she wore it last week. But as I look at her, I understand exactly what she means.
A faint laugh escapes my throat.
