Page 121 of Return to Us
“So you can drive?”
I nod. “I can.”
“That’s great.” He leans in, kissing me. “That is good news. I’m glad that you got cleared.”
Relief like I can’t express fills me. He’s taking it so well. I smile, feeling like telling him the rest is the right thing. “He said I could fly too. That I’m free to go back to normal, and . . .”
Grayson shoves the covers off and gets to his feet. “You’re allowed to fly? So, you can what . . . leave?”
I sit up, pulling the blanket around me. “Yes . . . but—I—”
“Great. You thought this was what I wanted to hear? That tonight you’d let me know you’re leaving?” He pushes his legs through his pants with angry movements.
“I didn’t say that. I just said I’m cleared to fly not that—”
“But that’s what you’ve wanted from the day you got here. To leave. You’ve never hidden it. Now it’s right there for you to go.”
The shift in his mood is so abrupt I’m momentarily stunned. “Grayson, I didn’t say I wanted to leave.”
“You didn’t say you wanted to stay.”
“You didn’t let me get there!” I get to my feet, moving toward him.
“When? When did you go to the doctor and get this clearance?”
I release a heavy breath. “A few weeks ago.”
“So you’ve been lying to me.”
“No, I just . . . I wasn’t ready to tell you. I worried you’d react badly, which clearly I was right.” I pull the blanket tighter around me, wishing it was a shield that could stop his words from piercing my heart.
“Because good news like this was better left unsaid? No, it’s because you were planning your next move, trying to find the perfect time to let me know that you’re leaving again.”
I shake my head. “You’re wrong. I was trying to decide how to. You. No. Leave.” I let the tears fall. Hating that, for the first time in weeks, I’m stuttering. I wipe them away and try again, but he cuts me off.
“I’m glad we found out now.” He runs his fingers through his hair, looking out at the vista.
“Found what out?”
“All of it. That my father has been fucking Amelia’s mother, that you’re cleared to go, it makes it all so much easier to end things now without any complications.”
I take a step back, my chest aching as his words settle around us. “End things? You want to end things?”
He turns, his eyes filled with anger and disappointment. “It’s not going to work. It’s clear that things are too complicated for us. What a fucking joke this all was, right? Who finds love like this twice? You and I both knew this wasn’t going to last, and now we can at least admit it.”
“We did? When did we decide this because I wasn’t there for it?” I ask, not really knowing what the hell is going on.
“Sorry, I guess I did. It’s a good thing we didn’t tell Amelia. She doesn’t need another woman in her life who was going to just leave. I think she’s had enough pain, and I’ve seen enough of the signs to know what this is.”
Tears prick as the anger rises. “I never said I was leaving, Grayson. I was telling you that I’m cleared and I want to stay.”
“I don’t want you to stay! I’m telling you to fucking leave!”
“What are you talking about? I love you!”
He laughs. “Right. You love freedom. You love to travel. You are just like everyone else I’ve loved, you love to leave.”
My lip trembles as I stare at him. He’s angry—I get it. It’s why I didn’t want to say anything, but this is ridiculous. “You’re hurting me because you’re in pain.”
