Page 24 of Surrender
“No,” I told Callan with a frown, my sharp reaction making him smirk. “No favors just because you’re Lucy’s friend. You’re already giving this more attention than it deserves. And I still don’t know how I plan on mentioning it to Parker.”
“Hey, Parker,” Lucy mocked in a high-pitched voice that sounded nothing like me while using her hand as a phone and holding it to her ear. “I’m buying a house, dumping your dumb, spoiled, arrogant ass, and starting a business with my bestie. Don’t call me.”
Callan smirked, and I pressed my lips together, trying not to join him.
I’d been avoiding Parker, taking just the occasional phone call from him in the evenings. It was hard to admit, but in this circumstance, absence wasn’t making my heart grow fonder. Instead, I was back with my best friend, making plans for the future and feeling optimistic about them and life.
Life without him.
It was becoming more and more obvious that we just didn’t fit. I found him at a time when I was lonely. Lucy had moved home, I was working and living like a hermit, and he was just there.Right place, right time.
But times had changed.
I knew our relationship wasn’t going to work, and I was sure he would have been feeling it, too, with how distant I’d been.
Finding time to tell him that, though, wasn’t exactly top of my list of things to do.
I held up my hands, stopping Lucy’s little performance. “Look, I’m not even sure it’s all viable yet until I see the bank.” I looked down at the time on my phone. “Shit, in like an hour.”
“And don’t forget to visit my mom,” Lucy reminded, her mom owning a salon nearby. “She’s looking for a receptionist.”
“I will, I will. Now, that’s enough of this.” I shooed them toward the front door. “I’m going to sit here and fill out these forms for the loan stuff since I don’t have time to head home and do it. But I’ll meet you at home later, and Callan, I’ll give you a call, okay?”
“Yeah, you let me know,” he agreed as we walked to the front door. “I’ll make time to do it all for you.”
“That’s very sweet, but you don’t—”
“Darcy! If the man wants to help, let him help,” Lucy insisted, jabbing me in the ribs with her elbow. “I mean, if I needed stuff done, I’d be using him for sure.”
I narrowed my eyes suspiciously, shifting between the two of them.
“Uh-huh…” I hummed, reaching for the door handle and pulling it open. “I feel like there’s something I’m missing here, but you’re both lucky that I need to do this paperwork, so…”
They both waved awkwardly before practically skipping down the path, and I shut the door behind them, flicking the lock over with a small smile and a shake of my head.
Turning, I inhaled a long, deep breath, letting the weight of the moment settle over me as I wandered through the house, glancing around at the familiar walls. This house held pieces of me—some of which I cherished, others that I’d spent years trying to forget.
And I’d tried.
Hard.
Being invited to Juilliard had been an honor, to say the least, but deep down, I knew the real reason I hadn’t told James. I didn’t want to see the disappointment in his eyes when I admitted I wasn’t going.
Because I didn’t want to leave Detroit.
I didn’t want to leave Nate.
I’d convinced myself we needed each other, and no one else could possibly understand what we were going through. But I was also a sixteen-year-old girl, falling for her brother’s best friend, and when it turned out that he didn’t see things the same way, Juilliard wasn’t just an opportunity anymore.
It became my escape.
From the pain, the rejection, the grief.
I threw myself into ballet, and my parents followed me to New York soon after. I took class after class, using exhaustion and physical pain to drown out my thoughts and emotions.
I’d never, until now, considered that this house would be anything other than a dark reminder. I thought coming back here would hurt. I thought the weight of the memories would be too much to bear.
But instead of dragging me down, they wrapped around me like a familiar embrace, and I couldn’t help but smile as I leaned against the kitchen sink, tiptoeing up so I could see out the small window and into the overgrown yard.
