AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Lettie says, “Adalee, I think you have two men waiting for their dances.” Both her dad and Hagan’s dad are anxiously waiting for their father-daughter dances.
The DJ gets things started again while Lettie slips out the back. “Lettie.” I grab her hand and when she peers up at me with her green globes, there are tears threatening.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
She half-laughs, and her voice cracks when she answers, “What isn’t? Why didn’t you fight for me?”
I’m taken back by her words. Does she not remember me begging and pleading for her not to break up with me? “You told me not to. You’re the one who wanted this, Lettie, not me.” My voice quivers.
“You should have fought for me. We have so much to fight for.”
I don’t realize that my hands are cupping her face. “I love you. That hasn’t changed.”
“Dane, everything changed. You promised we would be best friends regardless, and we can’t be. It’s too fucking hard.”
“You were right. We both need to focus on our dreams even if it means leaving each other behind, temporarily. Then…” I can’t finish because I don’t believe a word I’m saying. I know how much I need her and want her in my life.
She shivers, and I pull her into a hug. “So, you’re not going to fight for me?” she chokes out.
I stroke her back while we’re hugging. “Have you changed your mind?”
She lifts her shoulders, then lowers them slowly. Now, I know this was my father. He talked to her and when I said she had responded to my text, he got nervous and used her dream against me. But it doesn’t change anything. I know my dad will take away her sponsorships in a snap.
“You’re the right girl at the wrong time. I’m doing what’s best for you and one day, it will be our time. I can’t take away your dream.”
She pushes against my chest and this time, she wipes away a lone tear streaking down my cheek. “But you did take away my dream. You took everything. You should have fought, and I should have too. We could have had all of this. That was my dream.”
We will. One day.
“Lettie… concentrate on the Olympics, and I’ll concentrate on basketball. When this part is over, I want to be the man you deserve. What changed your mind? All the obstacles are still there—the time constraints, focusing on our sports. I just can’t… I think about you all the time and as you said, it’s not healthy.”
Folding her lips over her teeth, her jaw tightens, “To use your words, when you’re ready, I may have moved on.”
It feels like I’ve just been hit by a semi-truck, but regardless of how much pain it causes, I will not destroy her goals, just like she wouldn’t crush mine. I was there when she first got on a horse, and I’ll be there when she walks into the Olympic Arena. Believe me, I want to be a selfish bastard, but this is Lettie, my best friend since we were six, and we made a pact by the pond.
You’ll be an Olympian, and I’ll be in the NBA. And we’ll be there cheering each other on.
I nod in understanding. She spins to leave, but I pull her back into my chest and plant an open-lipped kiss against her peach-colored lips. “A little something to remember.”
Then for the second time, she walks away from me, and I don’t beg her to stay. I know she can’t.
Chapter Forty-Three
LETTIE
Dane Greathouse has more billboards, commercials, and guest appearances on television and radio than ever before. He’s living up to the hype of being a first-round draft pick again, which I’m happy about—I am. But the straighter his head becomes, the more my foundation crumbles. I can’t live without Dane Greathouse.
I sent Dane a morning text last week that went unanswered.
Me: Morning. Come over
Me: Afternoon. I need you.
Me: Night. Please I need you inside me.
When he kissed me at Hagan and Adalee’s wedding, it felt as if tiny fireworks were exploding in rapid succession over my lips—a goodbye kiss. It may never be the right time for us. There will always be the next goal he needs to achieve, and I won’t stand in his way or be the reason he quits or fails.
Although I was the one who had suggested breaking it off with Dane, I admit I’m a mess now that Dane believes it’s the best thing too. I keep hearing him say, “Right girl, wrong time.”
