Page 53 of Vendetta

It hadn’t been what I had expected him to say, but I guess it was still better than him screaming at me or telling me to get fucked.

“Oh,” I looked down, not quite sure how to respond. “Well, I guess things might not have ended much better for her after all if she had ridden with us that night. I guess there are a lot of things that night I wish had gone differently.” I nervously messed with my hands in my hoodie pocket, the slight breeze blowing some of the fountain’s mist our way as the sound of the rushing water filled the silence.

“What road did the accident happen on?” he asked, this conversation once again taking a different turn than expected. And then it hit me why he was asking.

I didn’t respond, letting my eyes tell him what he needed to know. He nodded his head in understanding, a brief flash of pity shining there. There was a reason that I never took the winding back roads through the woods. It hadn’t been a lie when I said that accidents happen on that road all the time. Those sharp turns are unforgiving, especially when coupled with drunk drivers leaving New Year’s Eve parties.

I contemplated staying to see if he would say anything else, or turning to walk away and leave it at that. I looked down at my sneakers, unable to meet his eyes as he continued to assess me. Stands of my loose hair fluttered across my face as the breeze swept through once more.

“I’m sorry about your mom, Landry.

I kept my head down to shield the grief etched in my eyes.

“And I saw what you did to those girls the night of the bonfire.”

My eyes snapped up at that. He had seen the videos? Of course he had, they had been posted practically all over the internet by now. Thankfully, the video of me and Cashton had somehow disappeared in the meantime.

“Olivia told me what happened that night. How you tried to stop them. And I do appreciate that.”

A small blossom of hope bloomed inside my chest. Does that mean he could possibly forgive me? If he knew that none of it had been intentional?

“But,” he continued, and my heart dropped at his next words. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look at you and not be reminded of that night.”

I could see the conflict and pain etched into his features.

“When I see you, I remember the videos from that night. Of you, living your best life with your awful friends, while they bullied my baby sister before leaving her to die at our doorstep. Of how excited she had been any time you had given her even the slightest sliver of attention, because she so badly wanted to have a place in your perfect little world. And how to you, she was nothing more than invisible. I don’t blame you for her death, Landry. I apologize for everything I did. And you might be a different person now, but I honestly don’t care to find out. Because you will always be one of the people that hurt my little sister, and I don’t think I can ever see past that. I’m sorry.”

My stomach sank to the ground, shoulders slumping as I dropped my gaze to try to hide the stinging behind my eyes. That small blossom of hope was obliterated, and everything hurt. Nodding my head in understanding, I turned to walk away.

In a way, it almost hurt worse than if he’d decided to scream at me and rip me apart, because that would have meant that he might still cool down over time and change his mind. But he had already calmed down, his decision final. It wasn’t a judgement made in the heat of the moment.

I couldn’t help but think about everything that I was losing. All of my friends that I had been so thankful to have, all ripped away in the blink of an eye. I cursed myself for not having taken more time to appreciate all of those amazing times before they turned into nothing more than memories.

But most of all, it was the man I was losing. Not that he had ever been mine to begin with. But there had been something there, a burning chemistry that I knew he had felt too. I guess whatever it was hadn’t been strong enough to convince him to let go of the past.

CHAPTER 28

LANDRY

“Oh my gosh, it’s beautiful,” Bexley sighed, reaching her free hand to lightly brush over the lilac tulle, a wine glass in the other. Our dresses for the winter ball had arrived a few days ago, having stayed in their garment bags in my closet since we had decided to skip the dance.

The event was tonight, and I had convinced Bexley to indulge in some late morning mimosas with me so we could hopefully get drunk enough to stop thinking about the fact that we would be missing our first ever big Ivybrook Ball, an event that only occurred once a year. A few drinks in, I hadn’t been able to stop myself from grabbing the gorgeous gowns and hanging them up, needing to admire the stunning pieces at least once since we wouldn’t be getting to wear them tonight.

I watched her eyes roam over the dress, one that I had decided to surprise her with. It was a corset top with little strapsthat tied over her shoulders with little bows, and a staircase of tulle layers that flowed down to the ground.

“You have to try it on!” I encouraged, “I flew them in from Paris, after all. Completely custom and made specifically for us. It would be unfair to the dresses to never even get tried on. A downright crime if you ask me.”

I took another sip of my own drink, running back to the kitchen for a refill and finding that the champagne had run out. Thank goodness we had a fully stocked wine fridge, deciding on a bottle of rosé and topping off my glass before running back to her bedroom where Bexley continued to admire her gown.

“Just try it on! What could it hurt?”

She thought about it for a moment longer, taking a sip of her own drink as she considered it.

“Okay fine, but you have to try yours on too!”

“Deal!”

I placed my glass on her dresser, pulling my baggy t-shirt over my head and ripping off my sweatpants until I stood fully nude in the center of her room. She grabbed her dress, heading to her en-suite bathroom to change as I reached for my own.

---