Page 79 of Pulled Away

Please don’t say it’s Ryan. Is that her source of discomfort? I crane my neck, trying to see around people, but the place is jam-packed. Finally, the crowd shifts enough for the booth to come into view. It takes a few seconds to make sense of what I’m seeing, but when I do, my heart drops.

I was dreading seeing Ryan, but this… This is infinitely worse. My stomach is quick to follow, dropping to somewhere in the vicinity of my toes. Everyone is there, and I mean everyone. But that’s not all. A woman is sitting next to Ryan. A woman I don’t recognize.

Now it makes sense why she was so evasive about her plans. They organized this get-together to get to know Ryan’s new girlfriend. And obviously, I couldn’t be invited.

I don’t know what hurts the most. Being lied to and excluded by my best friends, or Ryan dating. Seeing him with another woman hurts, but seeing Rose and Piper there? That doesn’t just sting or hurt, it feels like a betrayal.

I shouldn’t feel like that, right? I’m the newbie to the group. They were friends long before I came on the scene. Rose and Ryan are family, and as they say, blood is thicker than water. But I can’t help it. I do. It’s not that they’re there—okay, maybe that’s not the complete truth. I thought they were on my side. It’s more that Piper lied to me. When I asked her out, she said she had plans. Not they. She. And then she made it sound like Rose and Maya had their own plans.

If she was honest, it would have been hard, but life moves on, right? Case in point, me being here with Derick. It would take time, but I would have accepted it.

Trying to swallow past the lump in my throat, I fumble with my purse, grabbing a few notes and holding it out to Maya. “I guess if you weren’t working, you’d be there too, huh?”

“Aspen—”

“It’s okay,” I say, cutting her off. My lips are so stiff that it feels difficult to form words. “I understand.” I don’t. Not really. “This is for the beers. I think we’re going to go.”

Standing up, I turn to Derick, who’s watching me with a creased brow, my beer in his hand. “It’s a bit noisy in here. Why don’t we go find somewhere quieter?”

To my relief, he doesn’t question me and, with a nod, puts the beer down and gets up. At that moment, his presence next to me is a comfort. Making me feel not so alone.

Against my wishes, my eyes move back to the booth, my bruised heart crying out, “Enough. I can’t take much more of this torture!”

Ryan’s in the middle of saying something when his gaze meets mine. In a space of a few seconds, a myriad of emotions crosses his face, too fast for me to decipher most of them. Piper’s gaze follows his line of sight, and the laughter on her lips dies, replaced by surprise, then guilt.

“Aspen, it’s not what you think,” Maya tries again.

“It’s okay, Maya. Really. I’ll see you around, okay?”

I don’t protest when Derick grabs my hand, leading me outside. Cool, fresh air slaps me in the face, and I take a deep breath, trying to get rid of the constriction in my throat. This is only a big deal if I make it a big deal, right? I’ve been through worse. Maybe I’m overreacting. It could be as simple as them trying to spare my feelings, or avoiding the awkwardness of having two girlfriends, one an ex, one a current, together at a table.

I tell myself all this, but I can’t help the throb of my bruised heart at seeing Ryan with someone else. Or at the feeling of my friends replacing me. Of them having chosen sides and me being the casualty of this breakup. Fuck, I hope that’s not it.

A touch on my shoulder has me blinking, realizing I’ve been stupidly staring at nothing, completely zoned out, with Derick standing next to me. This poor guy. I’m sure this isn’t what he signed up for.

“I’m sorry about that,” I say. “If you want to call it a night, I understand.”

Instead of answering, his lips meet mine and they’re soft and warm. I’m so out of sorts, my emotions jumbled and all over the place, that I don’t resist. The kiss only lasts for a few seconds before he pulls back.

“What was that for?” I ask, touching my lips.

“I’m not entirely sure what happened back there, but I can see that you’re hurting. That was a reminder that you’re beautiful. It doesn’t have to mean anything.”

He grabs my hand again, giving it a quick squeeze. “So, where would you like to go? If you’re in the mood for Italian, there’s this place the next road over that makes the best prawns linguine.”

It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask for a rain check, but I know if I go home now, all I’ll do is curl into a ball and cry. How damn pathetic. And I don’t want to be pathetic.

Nodding, it’s my turn to squeeze his hand. “Lead the way.”

My bed jostling rips me from sleep, and for an infinite few seconds, panic grips me, my heart revving higher than a Formula One car hurtling at full speed

“Aspen.”

It takes a few seconds for Rose’s voice to break through the pure terror gripping me, but once it does, the hammering of my heart slowly settles back into a steady rhythm. Waking up like this? One hundred percent not recommended.

“Shit, are you trying to kill me?” Sitting up, I wipe my eyes. “What are you doing here? And how did you get a key?”

“Sorry. Kallan gave us his spare. We knocked, but you didn’t answer.”

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