Page 33 of Always Us

“Last Friday. After I went to the hospital and they kicked me out, I knew Harper and I were done. I knew there was no chance of us ever getting back together.”

It’s a lie. Sean would never give up that easily. He was definitely threatened.

He continues. “So I called up my old boss from that place I worked at last summer.”

“The one who offered you a job last September?”

“Yeah. I wanted to see if he had any openings. I met with him at his restaurant in LA on Friday. He gave me a tour of the kitchen, introduced me to the staff, and offered me a job on the spot. So I took it. I told him I’d need an advance on my pay in order to get an apartment. He agreed to it, so I’m moving there next week. I leave Thursday morning.”

“Is this really what you want?”

“This job could actually turn into something, so yeah, it’s good. And I’ll get paid a lot more.”

“But you don’t know anyone in LA.”

“Doesn’t matter. I’ll meet people. And you and Garret will come and see me, right?”

“Yes. Absolutely. And you can come up here. We don’t have a guest room but we’ll get you a place to stay.”

“Jade, I hope we can still be friends even though I’m not with Harper anymore.”

“Of course we will.”

“You say that now, but things change when people break up. People pick sides.”

“Sean, I’m not going to do that. And neither is Garret.”

“I need to start packing. I still have some of Harper’s stuff here. What do you think I should do with it?”

“Put it in a box and take it to Moorhurst. Just leave it with Jasmine. She’s the RA on Harper’s floor. Tell her to give it to Harper when she gets back later this week.”

“Okay, thanks. I’ll talk to you soon.”

I hang up and check on Garret. He’s still asleep. I hope he sleeps the rest of the day. He really needs the rest.

I go back in the living room and call Harper. She left me several messages while I was on the plane.

“Jade, how’s Garret?” she asks as soon as she picks up.

“He’s okay. We’re back home now and he’s sleeping.” I almost start to tell her I talked to Sean, but then remember I can’t talk about him anymore.

“Tell him I’m sorry. I know his grandfather was mean to you guys, but still, it’s hard when something like this happens to your family.”

“The doctor said Holton probably won’t make it through the night.”

“Really? I thought maybe he’d get better.”

“It doesn’t sound like it.”

“Well, tell Garret I’m really sorry and I’m thinking about him.”

“I will. So when are you flying back to Connecticut?”

“On Wednesday, as long as I get the okay from the doctor.”

“Sean is leav—” Shit. I wasn’t supposed to say that. This is really hard. I’m so used to talking about Sean with her.

“Sean is what?”

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