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I fish my key card out of my bag and slip it into my front pocket, opting to leave the bag here. When I open the door, Kellan’s standing there with his fist raised, ready to knock.
“Oh, hey Kellan,” I greet. From within the room I hear frantic rustling.
“Hey,” he says. “How’s Faye? Adam kicked me out before I got the chance to talk to her.”
A presence appears at my back. “Hey, Kellan.”
Behind me, Faye’s running her hand over her hair, smoothing the flyaways from lying on the pillow.
“Hey,” he greets, eyes boring into hers. They stare at each other, almost longingly, and when Kellan clears his throat, realization sinks in.
“Right! Well, I’ll be off, then!”
Kellan steps aside so I can rush out of the room and give them alone time. But once I’m in the hall, I have no idea where to go to find Dean. It’s still raining, though it slowed down and looks like it’ll clear up any minute now, so that limits the number of places he can be. Maybe the lobby? It’s huge and there are tons of couches for guests to hang out on, plus a full bar.
When I get downstairs, I see lots of guests gathered in the lobby to wait out the showers. People are everywhere, talking and laughing and lounging on the couches and drinking at the bar. At the other end, I spot Dean. He’s with Dylan and Alessio on a couch. Dylan’s holding an ice pack to his face and Alessio’s clutching a beer between both hands.
Before I get there, Adam steps into my path.
“Hey,” he says.
“Hey, Adam.”
He’s lacking the usual confident coldness he wears so well.
Possibly because I yelled at him a few hours ago.
“Can we talk?” he asks, motioning to a nearby empty couch.
Why? So he can tell me what’s best for me? So he can call me boring? I’d rather speak to Dean before my confidence wavers, but I can at least hear him out.
“Sure,” I say, following him to the couch and sitting a good two feet away from him. It’s weird thinking about how Iwantto leave distance between us, when prevacation I would’ve done anything to sit beside him and talk.
He rubs the back of his neck, seeming unsure of himself. I’ve never seen this side of Adam before.
“So I, uh . . . I owe you an apology.”
I wasn’t expecting that, but I sit in silence, waiting for him to continue.
He takes a deep breath. “I’m sorry for this morning on the beach, for saying all that stuff about how you’re acting, for making you choose between me and Dean, and for just being an ass in general.”
I raise an eyebrow at him. He seems to mean it. I wonder if Faye said something to him.
“You had no right to say any of that to me.”
“I know.” He huffs out a humorless laugh. “I’ve been telling Faye she’s been acting selfishly toward you, not even realizing I was worse.”
He has been. But looking back, I wouldn’t have found the confidence I needed to stand up for myself if it wasn’t for Adam pushing me. Would I have preferred him tonotbe a huge jerk to force me to get my act together? Yeah. But it happened and we can’t turn back time, plus he’s here apologizing now, so it is what it is.
“You’re not just saying this so I’ll choose you, right?”
Another clipped, humorless laugh. “No. I realize I screwed that up.”
“You and I never would’ve worked,” I tell him with a small smile. Sixteen-year-old Lori would hyperventilate if she knew seventeen-year-old Lori would say these words to Adam Murray, but here I am, turning him down, and that’s a great indication of how far I’ve come.
He nods, a solemn look on his face, but he must recognize the truth in my words. Adam wanted me to stay the exact same.
He liked that I wassweetandquiet, didn’t rock the boat and did what I was told. Maybe because that’s so different from his ex, or maybe because that’s what he’s used to with me. Either way, Adam wanted to decide for me, while Dean . . . Dean challenges me. He’s always been about wanting me to do whatIwant, not what others expect me to do. If I’m going to be with anyone, I’m going to be with someone who encourages me to make my own decisions.
