Page 69 of Second Shot

“At least they’re reaching out.”

“Yeah.” I nod.

He clears his throat. “So, has Gabriel reached out?”

I wince, my stomach churning. “He did at first, but, uh… I blocked him on my phone.”

“Oh.” He doesn’t look like he approves.

“I don’t know what to think, and seeing his texts was confusing me more.” I feel like a coward for blocking Gabe, but I’m not lying. Just seeing Gabe’s name on my screen had been giving me panic attacks. “Even if he didn’t do half of what Freddy says he did, he still lied to me about who he was. He kept that from me, and that hurts.”

“Of course.” He sips his drink, watching me over the rim of his glass.

“I don’t understand why he wouldn’t have just said something to me before—” I pinch the skin between my eyes. “None of it make sense. Idon’t understand why he’d do any of what he did.”

“Sure you do,” he says.

I look up confused. “What do you mean?”

“Well, if hewasn’tin cahoots with Freddy, then he probably had real feelings for you.”

I chuff. “If it wasn’t all just bullshit.” It’s still way too hard to believe he actually loves me. Regardless of his words, I can’t trust it.

He ignores me. “And if he did have real feelings for you, well, you know how scary that is. He knew who you were, and he knew that if you found out who he was, you’d be horrified. I mean, you bullied him.” Tam shrugs. “He was probably really confused about having feelings for you. Getting involved with your childhood bully is a strange thing. He was in a tough spot.”

“Or,” I say grimly, “he was playing me the entire time just to make me pay for the awful shit I did to him.”

Tam grimaces. “Yeah, that’s a very real possibility too.”

My chest feels hollow at the thought that Gabe never really cared about me. It makes me question my ability to read people. I would’ve bet my left arm that his feelings were real. That what we had was something special. I truly believedwe were falling in love. But now I can’t trust any of that.

“Everything’s such a fucking mess,” I rasp. “I’ve let the team down. I’m so embarrassed.”

“You didn’t let anyone down. You didn’t ask for this. Freddy’s the one causing all this drama. He’s a bitter jerk who’s jealous of everything you’ve accomplished. From what I’ve seen, he’s a loser. The media says he’s been fired from every job he’s had and divorced three times. He probably saw how well you and Gabe were doing and decided to tear it all down. Unlike you, he never grew out of being a bully.”

I can’t help smiling at how protective he sounds.

He notices and gives a sheepish grin. “The guy just really pisses me off.”

“You don’t say?”

He finishes off his whiskey and sets his glass on the coffee table. “So, can I crash here or should I get a hotel?”

I lift my brows. “You came here without that already planned out?”

He laughs. “I told you I was playing it by ear.”

“Hmmm.” I narrow my eyes.

“I’m happy to sleep on the couch. I wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize things with Brian.”

“Sounds pretty serious between you and your new boy toy.”

Tam sighs. “It is. I love him.”

It feels weird hearing Tam say he’s in love with another guy, but it doesn’t hurt like it might of in the past. Before I fell in love with Gabe. My love for Tam was never the same as the love I have for Gabe. What I feel for Gabe is more intense. That’s why this betrayal cuts so deep. I really saw a future with Gabe and I thought it was mutual.

“I’m glad for you, Tam.” And I mean it this time. I care enough about Tam to want him happy.

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