Page 112 of Where We Call Home

“Me too,” Boone muttered, exhaling a deep sigh as he leaned back on his stool. His attention dropped to his beer bottle.

“What does that mean for Aspen and the farmstand?” Mac asked, following up.

Boone shook his head. “Ellie made it pretty clear she doesn’t want to go back to all that. She wants to, what was it?— ‘move on and find something for herself.’”

We all nodded, letting the words settle. I hoped, for her sanity, she found something worth settling down for.

Conversation flowed easily between us, and it felt good to catch up with my friends. My fingers itched to text Theo, to check in on how her night was going. Aspen and Penny were coming over to watch a new reality show, something about finding love, while doing face masks and other "girl things."

I pulled my phone out, staring at the screen after Boone had rushed off to the bathroom, leaving me alone on a stool. A space separated me from Logan, who was deep in conversation with a local. My finger stopped over Theo's contact, trying to convince myself that I didn’t need to hover. I’d done enough of that. Still, the urge was there—I couldn’t help it.

“Hey, Rhodes. Long time, no see.” A familiar voice cut through the noise, sending a shockwave of tension through my body. My heart raced, a spark of recognition short-circuiting my thoughts. There was no way I was hearing this right.

I turned slowly, praying I was wrong, but my face immediately stung with the realization. The one person I didn’t want to see again, the one person who’d done so much damage, was sitting next to me.

Jess.

I swallowed hard, forcing my attention forward as I brought my beer to my lips, taking a long swig to calm the knot in my stomach.

“Hi, Jess,” I muttered, not meeting her eyes.

My ex-girlfriend—the one I’d cried over, drunk myself stupid over, nearly lost myself over—was there, casual as ever. Anger boiled inside me, simmering at first, then growing with each passing second. My body was tense, radiating fury, and I knew she could feel it. There was no way she couldn’t.

“Not to sound rude, but why are you sitting here?” I asked, my voice colder than I intended. The bar was practically empty—plenty of seats, yet she chose to sit here, knowing full well how much that simple action would hurt.

Jess scoffed, arms crossing over her chest as she leaned back. She looked bothered, as if my question had offended her.

“I didn’t want to sneak around and avoid you. This is my town, too.”

I let out a bitter laugh, shaking my head. “Your town? Rich,” I replied, taking another long pull of my beer, staring straight ahead.

I caught Mac standing on the opposite side of the bar, filling a pitcher. His eyes flicked toward me, trying to remain casual. I could see the worry in his gaze. He wouldn’t intervene—he would watch from a distance, keeping himself far from the tension brewing at this end of the bar.

“Come on, Rhodes. Are you still not over it?”

Her words hit me like a slap, though this time, I didn’t hesitate. I turned to face her, leaning forward on the bar with my elbow, my voice a low growl.

“Overit?” I spat, the words dripping with venom. “You have no idea what you did or how much it destroyed me, do you? I kept my mouth shut, let you go because I thought you needed space. But me? I went through hell, hit rock bottom after you left, and your first comment to me is asking if I’m ‘over it?’”

Her face was unreadable now, lips pressed tight as I finally let out everything I had kept inside for so long. I’d never said these words to her before—hadn’t given her the satisfaction of knowing how much she’d broken me.

And in that moment, something shifted. I realized I wasn’t affected by her anymore. The anger, the hurt—they were real, but they weren’t for her. They were for the guy I used to be, the one who had lost himself because of her.

“To answer your question,” I said, my voice steady with a sharp edge, “I am over it. But that doesn’t mean I have to be okay with you sitting next to me and acting like you deserve forgiveness.”

Jess’s jaw tightened and she didn’t flinch. “I did what I had to do, Rhodes. You weren’t going to leave with me, so I made a choice.”

“Just like I made a choice to give up a full-ride football scholarship for you,” I shot back, the words cutting through the air like glass. “Every decision I made, every single one, was foryou, Jess. And what did you do? You threw me away. Years together, gone. For what?”

We had never hashed this out, not like this. We’d never sat face to face and said all the things that burned inside us. Maybe now was the time. Maybe now was theonlytime.

“It was high school, Rhodes,” she said, her tone dismissive as she shifted in her seat to face me head-on. “It wasn’t that deep. Did you really think we’d stay in Faircloud forever once we graduated?”

“Yeah, I did. After I gave up my dream for you, I thought that would be enough to show you how serious I was about us.”

She didn’t answer. For once, Jess had no snappy comeback, no sharp retort. She just stared at me, her mouth slightly parted, utterly speechless.

“You destroyed me,” I said, my voice quieter now, but no less firm. “It’s taken me all this time to love myself again, to find myself again. You know what? Things happen for a reason. I’m healing with people who actually care about me. I hope you’re happy, Jess, because while I don’t feel for you, I respect what we had.”

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