Page 43 of Meet Me in the Valley
“You love me,” he says, not as a question, but as a fact.
Fuck.
He’s pushing me—no,forcingme—outside the protective bubble I’ve wrapped around us. But that’s all it ever was. A bubble. One exhale away from bursting.
“I do,” I admit, and the second the words leave my mouth, his lips curve into that heart-shattering grin. The one that’s quickly becoming the bane of my existence.
“But not like that, Logan.”
I watch the shift in real time. The way his mouth falters, how his whole expression slowly folds inward. Like I just pulled the ground out from under him. The spark behind his eyes dims, and I want to reach for it, stuff it back in, and pretend I didn’t kill it.
The lie tastes vile on my tongue, like something spoiled, and I almost gag on it.
But it’s the safer path. The only path that won’t destroy everything we’ve built.
I need Logan. I need him to be my constant. I allowed the line to blur last night in our inebriation, but my sober mind knows better now.
“We were both off our asses last night. I was vulnerable, you know? Everything going on with my mom, and?—”
His hands fall away from my face. I reach out, instinctively. And somehow, he doesn’t move. He still lets me touch him.
“You’re my best friend, Lo,” I manage. “I’m sorry if I crossed a line.”
We stand there in the thickest silence I’ve ever known, unsure of what to say or how to exist in this new version of us. For the first time, it’s like we don’t know how to be ourselves around each other.
And I don’t even want to imagine the fallout. Losing our friendship? God, I wouldn’t survive it.
Logan barely nods, then shrugs like he’s trying to shake it off, trying to pretend I didn’t just cut him open. But I saw it. He let me see it. And it’s killing me not to throw all caution to the wind.
“I don’t want things to be weird between us. We’re okay, right?” My tone teeters on the edge of begging, and I swallow hard, pushing down the emotions clawing their way up my throat. My heart is beating so fast it feels like it’s lodged there, waiting for him to say something that won’t shatter me.
You deserve it, though. You wanted this.
He chuckles, but it’s empty. Hollow. Not his real laugh. Not the one I love.
And I hate it.
I hate that I’m the reason it sounds like that now. It offers no comfort, only guilt. I’m one dark thought away from wishinglightning would strike me where I stand, just to end this misery I’ve created.
But then he’s finding my eyes, granting me mercy with a quick flash of his crooked grin. I exhale a small, shaky sigh of relief.
“We’ll always be okay, T. Come here.” He opens his arms for me one last time.
I step forward, melting into the comfort I’ve always found there. I wrap my arms around him and hold on tight, but this time I don’t let it linger like before. Even though every part of me wants to stay right there, I know I can’t.
He accepts it, tucking a loose strand of my hair behind my ear as we pull away. My heart catches in my throat. What would happen if I took back my lie from just a minute ago and tell him to stay? I want to tell him I don’t want to go to Vegas without him. I want to tell him I’d feel better if he were with me.
But, I don’t.
“Text me when you land. And … thank you for everything. You really showed up for me when I needed you, and if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have the chance to go get my sister back. So … thank you.” I smile, willing myself not to get too emotional.
He smiles back. “You’re welcome. I’ll miss you in Austin, but don’t hesitate to call if you need me. I’m always here for you. You know that, right?” When he says it like that, with the way his eyes speak with so much honesty, it’d be hard not to believe him.
It’s why he’s my rock. My safe harbor. My best friend. At the core of it all, that’s what he is. I believe every word.
“I know. You’re the best.”
His laugh is a little lighter than before as he pulls the handle up on his suitcase. “See you when I see you, T. Good luck.”
