“I made a promise.” I look out at the dark beyond the window then back at him through the screen. “Besides, it took me a long time to convince her. She’s not backing out now.”
He snorts. “Pull your head out of your ass, Zach.”
“Excuse me?” I furrow my brow
“Ah, fuck it.” A slow grin traverses his face. ‘Seven hours in a jet should be enough to move two idiots forward.”
I shake my head, reclining into the leather seat. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t patronize. It’s simple.” He repositions his phone and squints at me. “You love her. She loves you. You’ve both been pretending otherwise since law school.”
“Shut the eff up,” I push back, not wanting to tip my hand just yet. “We’re friends.”
“You’ve hid behind those words for years.” He lifts a brow.
I shake my head. “No. I respect our ability to maintain a platonic relationship.”
“Lies.” Irving tilts his head, studying me through the screen. “You’ve been too scared to lose her and have decided to settle for what you can get.”
He isn’t wrong.
“She doesn’t want more,” I insist.
“She doesn’t want toriskmore,” he corrects, resting his elbow on the counter. “There’s a difference.”
I exhale slowly. “You aren’t at our dinners.”
“No,” he agrees with a small shrug. “Except, over the years, I’ve seen you two eye-fucking each other many times. You aren’t exactly subtle, even when you think you’re stealth.”
A reluctant huff escapes me.
“Sky grew up watching her parents tear each other apart,” I try to explain. “Now she dismantles marriages for a living. She’s cynical. I don’t think she wants long-term anything.”
“No,” Irving’s tone softens. “I think she’s waiting for a safe landing.”
The word “safe” hovers between us.
“And you,” he adds, angling closer to the camera, “haven’t made things easy.”
I stiffen.
“You’ve thrown your love life in her face,” he continues. “You’re photographed with women who have a million Instagram followers and you confess all of it to her.”
“I’m not gonna sit home. I’m no martyr.” I narrow my eyes.
“I’m not judging your sex life,” he snarls. “I’m pointing out Sky’s been watching you treat everyone else like an actual option while she’s your Monday choice.Monday.For fuck’s sake.”
I go quiet.
He continues, gentler now. “Then, when she finally dates some, you critique his résumé until she breaks it off instead of telling her she deserves better.”
“I don’t want to overstep.” I wince.
“Nah. You’re protecting your access.” He holds my gaze. “Having your cake. Eating it too, etc.”
His words land squarely in my gut.
“She’s been in love with you for years.” Irving levels his tone a bit. “Do you really think she shows up to have dinner with you out of nostalgia?”
