Page 43 of After All This Time

Seriously, what the hell was my mother thinking? Why would she have the guy I’ve hated since I was a kid stay with me in our house? Does she not recall our War of Words?

Noah’s the last person I’d want to be stuck at home with.

Honestly, he’s the last person I’d want to be stuck anywhere with.

BELLA

ME

meet me at kailani’s?

BELLA

Be there in 10

Should I ask why we’re meeting there?

ME

nope

BELLA

We’ll talk when I get there

Walking out the door, I head to my car and slip into the driver’s seat.

I pull my hair up into a ponytail. I feel like I’ve been transported back into the 1980s with Tame Impala blasting through the speakers.

Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath before I back out of my parking spot.

The drive there is a mix of me jamming out, internally freaking out about running into Violet, and not wanting to go home because I’ll have to deal with Noah.

When I pull in front of Kailani’s, I head inside and find a table.

Bella walks in, heading straight for me. “How the hell did you get here so fast?”

“I was at Just One More Chapter because I needed to escape my house.”

“You look like shit,” she says, sitting down on the seat across from me.

I huff. “Thank you for that.”

“I’m sorry. What’s going on? Why did you want to meet me here?”

“I ran into Violet Prescott,” I blurt out.

She extends her neck out slightly. “You what?”

“I saw Violet at the bookstore,” I repeat.

She takes a moment to process. “How did that go?”

“It was strange and she looked the same. She was getting a book for Sage.”

“I think we need to take Sage’s computer away from her, so she can go out and get things herself.”

I laugh with my mouth closed. “We really do.” I exhale. “Violet’s been in contact with Noah for the past six years and Grayson has no idea.”

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