Page 59 of A Constant Reminder

Chapter 36 – Tyler

The day after the gala, Sam had tutoring appointments scattered throughout the day, so I gave her some space. She’d been using our house rather than going anywhere. I think she worried Gabe might scare off some of her customers, which was understandable. He was a little unnerving to be around.

I did some work on my app in the office while she utilized the dining room.

One of the students who showed up was Ted…the same guy who had taken Sam on a date a few months earlier and had kissed her.

I could have been that jealous boyfriend hanging out in the kitchen listening to every word they exchanged, but I wasn’t.

Sam was in love with me, so I really didn’t care if some other guy drooled over her. She was mine, and I trusted her enough to believe she wasn’t going anywhere.

That afternoon, the doorbell rang yet again, but I knew Sam was in the middle of a session, so I got up to answer it.

Opening the door caused my blood to boil. There stood Andrew with his hands in his pockets looking nervous as hell.

Immediately, I tried slamming the door in his face, but he held up his hand stopping it. “Please talk to me, or at least listen while I talk.”

“Fuck you.” I tried to close the door again.

“Please!” Andrew pleaded. His voice was growing in volume, and I really didn’t want to disturb Sam.

“Five minutes,” I muttered stepping onto the porch and taking a seat on the swing that sat there. “Talk.”

He leaned up against the stone railing with his arms crossed. “Look Ty, I know I’m the last person on Earth you wanted to see again…”

I interrupted, “Yet here you are.”

“Because I miss my best friend. I tried to do this over the phone or in writing, so you wouldn’t have to see my ugly mug, but you’ve been ignoring my every attempt.”

“Can you blame me?”

“No. And there’s no excuse for what I did. It was a shitty thing to do. But I heard you forgave Mer. Why can’t you do the same for me? After all, we both fucked up.”

My jaw clenched in anger. “First of all, I didn’t forgive Marisol. We tried reconnecting, but it didn’t work. Some things you just can’t get over.”

I neglected to bring up the fact that my feelings for Sam were the main reason I couldn’t be with Marisol. I didn’t think those details would help prove my point.

“Come on, man. We used to be so close. Can’t you just give me a chance to show you I’m not a total asshole?”

Carefully, I considered his words. Of course, I had missed him. We used to be best friends, but I also could still feel the sting of his betrayal. The pain of it still burned white hot in my gut.

I stood up from the swing and looked him square in the eye.

“No.”

And without another word, I walked back in the house, locking the door behind me and leaving my past on the other side.

A few hours later, Sam had finished her appointments and made her way into the office.

“How was your day, sweets?” She asked while sitting on the corner of the desk.

“Okay, I guess. Got a lot done on the app.”

“That’s awesome,” she said with a genuine smile.

I’d been debating on whether or not tell her that Andrew dropped by, but I couldn’t think of a good enough reason not to.

“Andrew came by this afternoon.”

---