His gaze flickers toward me. “Unfortunately, work prevented me from tacking on a few more days and making a proper holiday of it.”
Unfortunate for who?
Certainly not me.
His eyes narrow as if I spoke the words out loud. He shifts on the leather seat and says in a clipped tone, “I know all about you.”
My brows shoot up. “Excuse me?”
“You’re the wanker Alyssa dated before her study abroad in London.”
I press my lips together. I might not be familiar with the term wanker, but I’m pretty sure it’s not a compliment. By the icy contempt marring his face, I can imagine that Alyssa revealed all the gory details of our relationship. What sucks is that there’s nothing I can say to defend myself.
It’s all true.
I’m a wanker.
My fingers tighten around the wheel until the knuckles turn bone white. “I’m not the same guy that I was a year and a half ago. I’ve changed.” More than anything, I want that to be true. I’m fighting not to be the guy who was frightened away by three little words strung together.
His upper lip curls as he snorts, “Well, I should certainly hope so.” Even though we’re roughly the same height while seated next to one another, he’s mastered the way of peering down his nose at me so that I feel like a piece of gum he scraped from the bottom of his wingtip. I don’t like it. And I sure as shit don’t like him. “Did she mention that we had a go at it?”
Had a go at it?
Much like wanker, I can pretty much guess what he’s trying to say.
Dated.
The acidic taste of bile rises in my throat as I stare straight ahead. I can’t even look at him. I don’t want to see the smug expression on his face. I’m afraid that if I do, I’ll jerk the car over to the side of the freeway and beat the piss out of him for daring to lay hands on her.
“You realize she’s perfect, right?” he continues.
Does he think I’m a complete dumbass? Of course, I do!
When I press my lips together, stewing in silence, he adds, “She’s the kind of girl who makes a man think long term.”
I want to slam my fist through the windshield.
Why the fuck is he telling me this? To rub my face in the fact that I had the one girl worth having, and I let her slip away?
“As soon as we met, I knew there was something special about her.”
My foot slams down on the accelerator, and the engine revs as we shoot through traffic. I’m going at least twenty miles per hour over the speed limit as raindrops hit the windshield.
“Unfortunately, she couldn’t move on from the likes of you,” he goes on to say.
That piece of unsolicited information is probably what saves his damn ass from becoming a statistic.
“It wasn’t until the last month that we became romantically involved. Although, she never gave it a real chance to deepen. When the time came for her to leave, we decided a long-distance relationship wouldn’t work. Too many unknowns in regard to the future. But I’ll let you in on a little secret.”
I have to steel myself for what he’ll say next.
“I would have been more than willing to give it a try. Alyssa is worth it.”
Barely am I able to suck in air through the thick lump wedged in the middle of my throat. Why had I thought taking him to the airport was a good idea? I’m tempted to pull over and dump his ass along the side of the road. But then he’d still be here, and I can’t have that.
“Care to speculate as to why I didn’t put up more of a fight?”
Goddamn it! I just need him to shut the fuck up and let me drive. I glance at the speedometer. It’s hovering around ninety.
“Deep down, I realized that she was still in love with you. A man who in no way deserves her.”
My head whips in his direction.
“Quite honestly, I’d hoped Alyssa would return home and realize she was over you. Then we could pick up where we left off, albeit from a distance.” His eyes darken as he shakes his head. “But she still fancies herself in love with a wanker.”
I hit the turn signal and crank the wheel, zipping off the exit ramp.
Everything he’s just confessed churns inside my head as I enter the airport grounds and turn toward international departures. Once the terminal has been located, I pull to the curb and cut the engine. For a long moment, I stare at the steering wheel. I have no idea what to say to the guy sitting next to me—the one who has been unflinchingly blunt regarding his interest in Alyssa.
The thing is...I can’t blame him for it. And I sure as shit can’t fault him for attempting to win her over. Or back. Or whatever the hell they had going on. I would do the same if I were in his position.