Page 68 of The Seascape Between Us

I tensed, not sure how to answer. I should have known the inevitabletalkwas coming. After pancakes for breakfast, Jett had made an excuse and taken off from the apartment, leaving me and Brody to clean up on our own. Neither one of us had said much at the time, which had been a relief. But the reprieve had been short-lived apparently.

“I won’t stay long,” I told him. I needed time to figure out where I was going. The truth was, without the hotel, I had nowhere to go. It was nice that Brody and Jett let me sleep on their couch, but it wasn’t a long-term solution. Now, without the Seascape and without Grey, I felt weightless, untethered, like I didn’t belong anywhere.

Maybe I should have felt free. After all, this was the first time since I was nineteen that I wasn’t responsible for anyone or anything. Instead, I felt like I was adrift.

“Youknowyou can stay here for as long as you need to,” he told me seriously. “Imeant, what were you planning for today? Are you going to talk to Grey?”

Sharp pain flared in my chest just hearing his name. Walking away from him yesterday nearly broke me. I knew it was the right thing to do, but god, I missed him already. It was his touch, the smell of his skin, the sound of his voice that I missed. I squeezed my eyes closed.

“Soon,” I said, but I didn’t think I could handle it today.

“You know you’re being a stubborn ass, right?”

I sighed and shot him a baleful look. “You might have said something once or twice, but this is the best thing for both of us.”

Grey and I didn’t have a future together. Not really. I thought of all the things that he’d accomplished, his big shiny life that I just didn’t fit into. He had more money than God— billions. He ran his own company. Designed buildings. What the hell would I bring to the relationship, me and my high school diploma and failed hotel?

“I would like to remind you of what you told me when I almost let Jett go. You said on more than one occasion that I deserved to be happy. Well, I’m going to return that favor.Youdeserve to be happy too, and I think Grey can do that for you.”

Of course, Grey could make me happy. That was never in doubt. The real question was, couldIbe enough to make Grey happy? Maybe for now, but not in the long run. It was better for the both of us to end it before we got any more invested.

“What are you really going to do about the hotel?” Brody leaned closer, resting his elbows on his knees, his expression serious.

“We’re selling it.” My chest squeezed. “The damage is too much to reopen. There’s no point investing more money or time.”

Brody eyed me skeptically, clearly not buying into what I was saying. “What will you do if you sell the hotel?”

The truth was I didn’t have a clue. Without it, there was nothing left for me here. Both my mother and Ramona were long gone, and while I still had Brody, he was starting a new life with Jett.

Besides, I wasn’t sure I could stay here, in The Square, and see the hotel every day, the evidence of my failure, of how badly I’d screwed up. And the possibility of bumping into Grey, maybe even seeing him with someone else, left me hollow.

It would be better if I moved on, started over. I wouldn’t say that to Brody now. He’d just argue with me anyway. But soon, very soon, I would leave The Square behind.

“Before you make any decisions,” Brody said. “You should talk to Grey. You owe him that much at least.”

He was right. I did need to speak to Grey. There were probably documents I would have to sign to turn the hotel over to him to sell. I wouldn’t let Grey buy me out. He’d already invested too much time and money into that sinking ship. I would sign over the hotel and then move on with my life. A clean break.

I’d need to get my truck back first, even if the idea of seeing Grey again felt like pouring salt into an open wound. Just thinking about it sent a sharp zing of pain shooting through my skull like when a tongue probed a rotten tooth.

“I should text him—”

“You shouldtalkto him… in person.” Brody jabbed a finger at me to drive home the point.

“I don’t even know where he is right now.”

“The Seascape.” Brody gripped my elbow and pulled me up off the couch. “Come on. I’ll walk down with you.”

I frowned. “Why are you being so weird? Why do you want me to talk to him so badly?”

“Because I think you’re making a huge mistake, and I’m hoping he can talk some sense into you. If you won’t listen to me, maybe you’ll listen to him.”

This conversation was not going to go the way that Brody hoped, but I appreciated him trying. He was a good friend.

Brody and I left his apartment and walked down to the Seascape. It was another beautiful summer day. The warm air smelled of the sea and the sand, and I felt my resolve waver.

Did I really want to leave this place that had been my home since I was five years old? I didn’t. Not even a little bit. But I had nothing left, no one. There was no future for me here, not anymore.

We drew closer to the hotel, and my pace slowed. People were milling around the Seascape. A half dozen residents I recognized from The Square were in the parking lot, brushing the sand out into the road and cleaning up the crap that had come in with the flood waters and high winds. The front doors were open, and I could hear saws, hammering, and the low hum of appliances running.

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