“We were in love once, Nash.”
“Yeah, once. You cheated on me. You gave up what we had. Ironically, that has a way of making you fall out of love really quick.”
“I thought Mark was what I needed, but he isn’t. It’s you, Nash. I need you. Please. Please forgive me.”
Closing my eyes, I took in a deep breath and slowly let it out before focusing on Lily.
“You know, it took me a long time to forgive you, Lily. I can’t even begin to explain to you how much you hurt me.”
Her eyes filled with tears. “I know, baby. I’m so sorry. I’m ready to be a real couple now. You and me.”
I shook my head. “I forgave you, Lily, but I’ll never forget what you did. Ever. For months I’ve been walking around with a hole in my damn heart, so fucking afraid to let anyone in or even dare to let myself be happy. Why? Because I trusted you, and you stole that trust from me. You never cared enough to even be honest with me. I wasn’t enough for you then. I know now that I will never be enough, and I won’t make that same mistake twice.”
She went to reach for my hand, but I backed away.
“Let me make it up to you, Nash. I know now what I had in you. I was stupid and young, and I thought I needed a bit of excitement in my life.”
I bellowed out and stared at her in disbelief. She wasn’t getting it. Any of it.
“I know how to make you happy.”
“No, Lily, you don’t. You never did. All those months I spent hiding because I was afraid to let someone too close to me after your betrayal. Then something happened tonight. That shit got knocked right out of me, literally. I’m sorry you’re not happy with your husband, I really am. But you made your bed, sweetheart. Lie in it.”
I walked around her and she grabbed my arm.
“No! Don’t do this, Nash. Don’t walk away from what we had.”
Withdrawing my arm from her grip, I smiled as I looked down at her defeated face. The last bit of anger I held toward her felt as if it was finally fading away. I felt sorry for her.
“Just a reminder, you were the one who walked away, Lily. And finally, I’ve seen it was the best damn thing to ever happen to me.”
As I made my way to the door, I heard her start crying. I balled my fists and did my best to ignore it as I pulled the office door open and walked out. I’d go make my call somewhere less crowded.
For the first time in months, it felt like the dark cloud that had been over me was gone. And the girl I had ran into was the reason. When I got back out to the bar, I scanned the place looking for her. I had no idea what caused the instant spark I had felt when she smiled at me. Or the way her voice made my body feel warm and in need of something I hadn’t let myself want in months. But I needed to find her, to see if the connection we had was a fluke. I had to know.
Damn it. She’s gone.
“Who you looking for?” Charlie asked as she walked up to me.
“I don’t know. Someone I ran into a few minutes ago. Lily interrupted us and I didn’t have a chance to get her information.”
Charlie laughed. “Figures Lily would cock-block you.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, right?” I replied with a chuckle. “Well, if it’s meant to be, I’ll see her again. I better get to the party.”
“And I better get to the ladies’ room before this baby makes me pee all over the floor.”
Lifting my hands, I moved out of her way as she made her way past me. It was hard to believe Charlie was the CEO of a billion-dollar consulting firm in Austin. Her parents had died in a car accident a year ago, and she had been thrown into the position and had to fight to keep herself in the position.
The bar was packed, so it took me a minute or so to get across and back to the private room Morgan’s party was in.
Stepping into the room, I felt an instant change. A surge of electricity felt like it made every single nerve ending in my body come to life. What the hell is happening with me tonight?
Sweeping my eyes across the room as I looked for Morgan. I stopped searching when her gaze caught mine from the far back corner.
A slow smile spread over my face when her cheeks blushed. Did she feel the connection between us? I needed to find out who she was, even if that old familiar feeling of fear—or maybe it was excitement, it had been so long that I couldn’t distinguish between the two—had begun to creep in.
Forgetting everything that had happened with Lily, I made the decision that it was time for me to move on. It was time to trust again and let down the wall I had built up around my heart. The woman who currently held my attention was the cause of that decision.