Page 35 of Trust Fund Baby

I would’ve smiled or made a joke to brush him off, but something was telling me now was my chance to come clean.

“I know her.”

James slowed to a jog, glancing at me as if deciding whether to hit me or grill me. “You know her?”

“Yeah, but not in the way you think,” I said, breathing heavily, wishing I’d told him to fuck off earlier when he pulled me away from the pool to go for a run. “I knew her when we were kids. Grew up together in Connecticut. Our families ran in the same circle.”

James’s brows drew together as he tried to put all the pieces together. “How can that be possible? Roxie doesn’t come from money.”

I gave a humorless laugh, slowing my pace until we were just walking along the shoreline. “Not anymore. But she used to.”

James arched a brow, sweat already glistening at his hairline. “What does that mean? Used to?”

“It means she was one of us. Trust fund. Summer house on the coast. Private school. Grandfather with an ego the size of Manhattan and a bank account to match.” I shook my head. “And then she wasn’t.”

James stayed quiet, but his expression sharpened with focus.

“She got cut off the summer before college,” I added. “No warning. No backup. Just gone. Her entire safety net disappeared. And the worst part?” I paused, jaw working. “It was my fault.”

James blinked like he wasn’t sure he had heard me correctly. “You? What the hell did you do?”

I glanced at the horizon, letting the salt fill my lungs before answering. “I thought she betrayed me. Saw her kissing someone else at a party. We were supposed to talk that night, and instead I walked in on her wrapped around some guy like I hadn’t meant a damn thing. Or so I thought.”

“You two were together?”

“No,” I said, then sighed. “Not officially. But it was heading there. We were inseparable. Best friends since we were kids. She was it for me and she didn’t even know it.”

James whistled under his breath. “And you just … what, lost it?”

I nodded once. “Went straight to her grandfather. Told him she wasn’t planning on going to Harvard, which was one of the stipulations he put in place for her to acquire her trust fund at eighteen. That she wanted to go to art school instead. I was there when he took it away from her.”

“Jesus, Sebastian,” James muttered, dragging a hand down his face.

“Yeah. I know.”

The ocean crashed near our feet, cold and foamy, dragging the sand back with it like it was erasing every step we’d taken. If only it were that easy to get rid of the past.

“I hadn’t seen her since the day her grandfather cut her off,” I said quietly. “Not until we walked into McGuire’s. Last night was the first time we really talked about it.”

James looked over at me. “And now?”

I shrugged. “Now I’m trying not to fuck it up more than I already have. I asked her if there’s a chance, we could just … be friends again.”

James gave me a long look. “And is that really what you want?”

I didn’t answer right away. Because yeah, I wanted her as a friend. But that wasn’t all I wanted. Not even close. But asking for more? That wasn’t on the table. Not unless she put it there.

“It’s all I can ask for.”

Quiet stretched between the two of us for a beat. Then James said, “Well, I hope you meant that. Because Hallie would kill you if you broke Roxie’s heart. And if you hurt Hallie because you hurt Roxie, then we’ll have a problem, and I don’t want to have a problem with you, Seb.”

I gave a dry laugh. “Trust me. Roxie would get there first.”

We stood there a while longer, side by side, the sun climbing higher above the water. Whatever came next, I knew one thing for sure—if Roxie gave me even a sliver of trust back, I was going to hold onto it like my life depended on it.

James nudged me with his shoulder as we turned back to the house, sand crunching beneath our shoes. “I’m a bit pissed you didn’t tell me, but at least you’re finally acting like a human being about something.”

“Oh, don’t get all emotional on me now,” I said, rolling my eyes. “You already dragged me out of bed at an hour that should be illegal. That’s more than enough bonding for one morning.”