Page 57 of Endless Southern Love

Ana and I laugh and turn toward the next booth, only to stop when Lemon comes near us, looking absolutely amazing in her Magnolia Grove tracksuit. Hell, she looks amazing in everything she wears, and even more when she isn’t wearing anything.

Lemon smiles at us and looks from me to Ana and back to me. Suddenly, I feel securitized. Should I have stayed home? Does she think I can’t commit to her because of Ana?

“Ana, the decorations came out better than we envisioned.”

Ana looks around while I look stumped.

“They did. Great call on the wall of balloons instead of the arch. People are taking photos in front of it. It’s perfect.”

“Wade, thank you for donating again this year.”

I groan. I have a bad feeling about this auction. “Of course.”

“He didn’t want to,” Ana says.

“But I made him,” Goldie adds.

“Well, whoever gets landscaping services from Jenkins Landscaping will be very lucky. Have fun. I’ll see you later.”

Lemon is gone before I can say anything. My heart sinks to the ground. I fear that whatever we have is over.

Ana keeps Goldie overnight, which makes sulking even easier for me. I drop them off at my parents and then walk back to my house. Ana could’ve driven me home, but I need the time to clear my head. I need to accept that things are over between Lemon and me. I don’t blame her. She had trouble with Goldie to start and now Ana, I’d avoid me too.

When I get home, I realize it’s too lonely and getting a dog makes sense. Then I wouldn’t be by myself, and I’d have someone to comfort me right now. I keep the lights off and head into the kitchen, grab a beer from the fridge, and head to the back porch.

I sit back in the chair, rest my feet on the railing and drink my sorrows away. I was a fool to think Lemon and I could exist in this world together, the way I live. It’s not fair to her and I should probably tell her to move on. Her moving on though means she’ll probably move away, which might be best for us. I’m not sure I can live in a town where I see her every day, and I wouldn’t expect her to stay here and see me every day. Especially now.

After emptying the first bottle, I head back into the kitchen and grab my second, pop the top, and take a long swig from the bottle. A knock on the door catches me off guard. I flip the porch light on and open the door to find Lemon standing there.

“Hey,” I say on the other side of the screen door.

“Can I come in?”

I push the screen door open with my finger, thankful it wasn’t latched and step aside. Once she crosses the threshold, I close the front door, encasing us in the darkness.

“Want something to drink?” I ask, standing behind her.

“Sure.”

I head into the kitchen and open the refrigerator. She follows once the light tells her where to go. I twist the top off one and hand it to her, and then finish mine and grab another one. I’m going to need to be drunk when she tells me we’re on a break again. “I’ll turn some lights on.”

“No need.”

“Yeah, it’ll be easier to just end things with the lights off. This way we can’t see each other’s faces.”

“Wade . . .”

“No, I get it, Lemon. Honestly, I’d be the same way. I’m not sure I could stomach knowing you had a child with someone else. I’m sorry I fucked up. I’m sorry I didn’t fucking wait before sleeping with someone else. I should’ve known.”

“How would you know?”

I scoff. “You’re right. How would I know because we were perfect. Everything we had was perfect and we had these plans, and then you want this break . . .” I turn away and cover my eyes as best I can while holding the bottle of beer.

“Wade,” she says my name softly while tugging at my hands. “I’m not here to end things.”

“What? But earlier?—”

“Earlier, I was at work, and despite living here, I like to keep my personal life personal. No one needs to know we’re trying to work through things. What they need to see is we’re cordial. That Ana and I are friendly. Appearances matter.”

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