Page 92 of The Fake Out

“Are you talking again?”

I sighed. “I’m still pissed at him, but I get why he did it. I wished he had warned me. Maybe I wouldn’t have concocted the plan to fake date Blaise. Then I wouldn’t be feeling like this today.”

Olivia gave me a small smile. “Oh, V. You really fell for him, huh?”

“I didn’t mean to. I wasn’t supposed to. And now he’s gone! Just like Seth.”

I sipped my coffee and rolled my eyes when my phone buzzed. It hadn’t taken long for everyone to start in on me about the breakup. I was a little surprised to hear from Dinah first.

DINAH: Are you okay? I heard about you and Blaise.

ME: Fine.

DINAH: V!

ME: Okay, I’m wallowing a bit.

DINAH: Look, I know them being away’s hard, but if you love him, you’ll push through.

I sighed and didn’t answer her. I didn’t want to think about this or have any of the other WAGs try to persuade me to get back together with Blaise. None of it had been real. I had to keep reminding my heart that we agreed to no feelings.

I noticed Liv staring at the work-in-progress painting I had leaning against the window. It wasn’t my normal still-life or floral-type painting; it was a painting of Blaise looking strong and powerful on the ice. I wasn’t even sure why I started it. Maybe because the man had dug his way into my heart. I hadn’t shown it to him, and now I wasn’t sure if I was going to finish it.

She gave me a sad look. “Oh, Veronica.”

“I know.”

“Don’t you have that art show?”

“Yeah, but I think I’m gonna toss that.”

My best friend squeezed my hand. “You should finish it.”

I shook my head. “What’s the point?”

She narrowed her dark eyes at me and put a finger in my face. “Veronica O’Malley, you never stop a project. As long as I have known you, you suffer over your art because it’s the only thing that makes you happy. You never give up on something.”

“Liv, can you drop it?”

She glared at me. “No! You finish that painting. And then when you have that art show, that needs to be what you display.”

“Why?” I grumbled and shoved more food into my mouth.

“Because you put your heart and soul into it, and you can’t leave it hanging.”

I groaned because she was right. I had to finish the painting, and I had to hang it for the art show I was supposed to be a part of in a couple of weeks. Today I could wallow, but tomorrow I’d pick myself back up and get shit done.

“V?”

I wiped my eyes for the millionth time today. “Sorry, I’m a wreck.”

Olivia gave me a sympathetic smile, and I felt the déjà vu of when I woke up and Seth had disappeared. Last night was it for Blaise and me, but when I woke up and he was gone, it was like all that pain from Seth came back to me. Everyone left me, so what was the point in even trying?

“Why didn’t you tell him how you felt?” she asked.

I shook my head. “It was just sex. Our relationship wasn’t real.”

Olivia squeezed my hand. “Honey, I don’t think that’s true.”