Page 98 of Only Lovers in the Building

“What has Roxy roped you into?” Ben approached from nowhere, catching her off guard.

“She needed an extra set of hands. Someone didn’t show up, and these booklets were just sitting here, and no one really wants them, and—”

“She asked you to fill in for Bella?”

Lily wasn’t going to mention Bella, but since he had . . . “Why didn’t you mention she’d be here?”

“She isn’t here. Is she?”

“Don’t be cute.”

“Lily, we don’t talk,” he said. “But I didn’t think she’d skip the wedding. So yeah, I expected she’d be here.”

“You should have warned me,” Lily retorted. “The last time I saw her, I was wearing her robe in your bed.”

Ben winced, as if the memory still burned.

She handed a booklet to a guest. The older man raised a copy she’d given him moments earlier and declined. Frustrated, she turned back to Ben. “I have questions.”

“Do we have to get into it here?” he asked.

“Yes, here.” She handed a booklet to a newcomer. “Did you know she was in love with you for years?”

He didn’t answer.

“If you knew how she felt and bought into her friends-with-benefits package deal anyway, that kind of makes you an asshole.”

Ben joined his hands behind his back. “You’ve been talking to Roxanna.”

“Yes. And?” Lily handed the last of the booklets to the single ladies.

“Okay,” Ben said. “And you’re done with booklets.”

He tried leading her back to home base. She wouldn’t let him. According to the program, the ceremony would start soon. He ought to join Roxanna. “Get ready for the main event. We’ll talk later.”

“We’ll talk now,” he insisted. “If you think I’m an asshole, we need to clear that up.”

She dragged him to a quiet corner. “Talk.”

“Bella was one of my closest friends,” he said. “I’ve known her my whole life. We went to school together, hung out, and played video games on weekends. She approved every one of my crushes. To answer your question, I did not know she was in love with me. I should have, but I didn’t. I thought she was hung up on her ex. On my end, one thing led to another. We didn’t have dates on New Year’s Eve and made plans to hang out, like old times. We got drunk and messed around. I knew it was a bad idea, but I shrugged it off. It was the holidays . . . Why not have some fun?”

Lily’s heart tanked. Hadn’t she done the same? Used “summer” as an excuse to abandon good sense and dive into the deep end?

“Roxanna says I should have known better, and she’s right,” Ben continued. “This is no excuse, but my father had started messaging me from his death bed around Christmas. I was conflicted. So, what do I do? I act like him, a selfish prick, and hurt someone close.” Ben halted, took a breath, and pushed on.

“Bella ended it when she realized I could not love her back, not like she wanted. It just wasn’t there. Now she won’t speak to me or even risk being in the same room as me. I fucked up and lost a friend.”

Clearly, the breakup had devastated all parties involved. There were no villains, no one to point an accusing finger at. Trying to package it in a neat story was misguided and harmful.

Lily straightened his lapel. He shouldn’t look so distraught before his big moment. “There,” she said. “Better.”

Once again, Ricky came around looking for him. “Hey, man,” he said. “It’s showtime.”

“Good luck,” Lily whispered.

With a long look, he left her to escort Roxanna down the aisle.

Chapter Twenty-Six