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“You okay? You look…”

I wipe under my eyes again and finally glance up at him, flashing him a tight-lipped smile. “I’m fine.”

“You don’t look fine…”

I’m seriously lacking the energy to deal with him right now. “Why do you care, Easton?”

“Because friends check on each other.”

“Funny, because we haven’t been friends in a long-ass time.”

The memory of our last encounter that night at The Charming Bull slams into me as my words leave my lips.

“Well, you looked like you needed checking in on, so here I am.”

Even though Easton doesn’t realize how hard his words hit me, my hormones have no problem showing their effect. I nearly burst into hysterics right there in front of him and my friends. “I—I need to go to the bathroom.”

Before he can say another word, I run toward the hallway that leads to the restrooms, grateful to find the single-stall bathroom unoccupied. Locking myself inside, I brace myself against the sink as I stare at my reflection in the mirror.

Today has been exhausting, and it’s not even over.

Add Easton checking on me, and I just don’t know how much more I can handle—because there’s no part of my life that he hasn’t had some impact on.

So I guess it shouldn’t surprise me that he’s here for this change too.

Chapter 7

Easton

Figuring It Out

I watch Lennon disappear into the bathroom before turning to Ginny. “All right. What the hell is going on with her?”

Ginny worries her lip between her teeth. “Um, well…”

“Tell me, Ginny.”

She stands tall and faces me head-on. “Look, it’s not my place to say, Easton. Lennon is my friend, and her business is hers. But if I were you, I would definitely try to get her to talk to you, or anyone for that matter.” She blows out a breath. “She’s going to need her people now more than ever.”

The cryptic message she delivers makes me even more worried about Lennon.

I walk in the direction of the bathrooms, leaning against the wall opposite the ladies’ room, waiting for Lennon to come out. It takes a few minutes, but when I hear the lock turn and the door fly open, Lennon’s eyes widen in shock when she sees me.

“Easton?”

“Lennon, please talk to me,” I beg, resisting the urge to leap from the wall, pull her into my chest, and wrap my arms around her.

Her eyes drift from mine, so I reach out for her hand and gently pull her near me to gauge her reaction.

Luckily, she presses into my space and melts against me, just like she used to. But then she realizes how quickly she crumbled, pushing me away a few seconds later. “No. You don’t get to just hug me and—”

“Yes, I do. I’ve known you since we were kids. You’re clearly hurting, and you know I hate seeing you like that.”

She crosses her arms over her chest. “Easton…”

Slowly, I reach out and cup her face with one hand. “Please talk to me, Lennon. Let me help.”

Her eyes fill with tears as she shakes her head. “No. I don’t want to give you another reason to be right.”