“Sorry.” He takes a breath. I can practically see the wheels turning inside his brain as he chooses his words more carefully. “We’ve never been able to get along. The convent thing was a joke, but she’s never been able to take any of my jokes well.”
“Gee, I wonder why.”
He rolls his eyes at me.
“Is that all it is to you? You’re giving her a hard time for kicks?”
“Look, man, she doesn’t care what anyone in our family thinks of her. Least of all me. Sometimes I envy her that, but mostly I just resent her for it.” He lets out a long sigh. “The worst day of my life was when I had to tell my parents I failed two finals. Not because of any punishment or lecture, but because disappointing them crushed me. I expected them to be a lot harder on me than they were, but I think they took pity on me because I couldn’t stop beating myself up about it. Leti’s never been like that. When she moved back in withour parents, she had no shame. She didn’t tell a single one of us what her plan was, which drove our parents bonkers. We didn’t find out she was streaming or that she was making money from it until she moved in with Bella.”
“She cares,” I say. “More than any of you know. Believe me.”
“Not about me,” he says. “She made up a lie to get out of helping me move and spent the entire day streaming. And if she had her way, she would’ve sent me an impersonal happy birthday text instead of celebrating my birthday tonight.”
“It’s a two-way street, I get it,” I say. “But it’s on you to try, especially after tonight. And you can start by apologizing for all the bullshit you said to her earlier. None of it is true, but I know her. She took your words to heart. As much as she tries to act like it, she’s not nearly as unflappable as everyone thinks.”
He doesn’t say anything for a long moment.
“You really hurt her, Andrew,” I tell him. “Maybe even more than all the other times. Calling her pathetic? It was low.”
“Yeah, I know.” He blows out a long breath. “I’ll talk to her. I’ll apologize.”
I’m about to argue more when a nurse practitioner calls my name. This kind of behavior isn’t going to fly with me. If he doesn’t get his act together, he will soon. I’ll make sure of it.
29
Leti
Nathaniel’s in the kitchen nursing a beer, alone, when I find him. His eyes light up when he spots me, and something disturbingly like guilt clogs my throat. “There you are.”
“I’m sorry for ditching you for so long.”Among other things.“You wanna get out of here?”
“Sure,” Nathaniel says easily, seemingly unfazed by being left alone at a party for half an hour. “Can I walk you home?”
I nod, ignoring the shame burning in my chest and the stinging sensation that hasn’t left my eyes since Andrew caught us outside.Fucking pathetic.The worst part is he’s not even wrong.
“Sorry for the bad second date,” I say once we’re outside my apartment. “It was probably too early for you to meet my crazy family—or to see how crazy they makeme.” I try for a derisive laugh, but it comes out choked and watery.
“Did something happen?” He rubs a hand down my arm in a comforting motion, but I flinch at the contact. Funny. His touch feels like a betrayal in a way Julian’s doesn’t. How messed up is that? His hand falls back to his side, eyes downcast.
“It’s too much to get into.” I shake my head as I step away fromhim. “You don’t want to hear about my family drama. Trust me. And I’m sorry I left you by yourself for so long.”
“It wasn’t all bad,” he says. “Some of my grad school classmates were there, so we got to talk shit about our finance professor.”
That must have been one of the women I saw him with earlier.
“I’m glad it wasn’t a total bust, then. I’d promise to make it up to you, but…” I take in a deep breath. “Maybe we should take a pause on this.”
“A pause.” His brows furrow. “I don’t understand. Did I do something wrong?”
“No, no, it’s not you.” I cringe as soon as the words are out. “It’s—”
“Ah, the old it’s-not-you-it’s-me speech.” He chuckles. “Haven’t heard that one in a while. Gotta say, I don’t miss hearing it.”
“I kind of got wrapped up in something I shouldn’t have,” I confess, racking my brain for a way to explain what happened outside with Julian without sounding like a complete asshole.
“You mean someone.” Clarity lights up his face, but there isn’t any accusation in his tone.
“Yes.” The answer comes reluctantly, but I owe him that much, don’t I? “I’m sorry. I never meant to put you in the middle of it.”
