Page 20 of King of Rhythm
She grabs for my hand. “No, Bryce, it’s not what you’re thinking. This isn’t about you. It’s about me.”
“If it’s not about my past or my height, and it’s about you then tell me the real reason you don’t mention me to your friends and you don’t want me there, Avery,” I say quietly. “Or is it because it’s a party for this Trevor guy? You complain about him, but maybe you don’t hate him as much as you want to pretend.”
She looks stunned for a minute and then she laughs. Avery laughs in my face.
Still gasping, she shakes her head. “Bryce, there is zero worry about that. I want nothing to do with Trevor. I wouldn’t even be going to this if everyone else in the office weren’t going too.”
Avery strokes her fingers along my bunched hand. “And I have talked to Sarah about you. Remember, she’s the one who answered your text. Believe me, the party is completely a me issue. We talked about this. You need to be patient with me.”
Blowing out a breath, my shoulders slump as I gaze at the woman I adore. “I can be. Absolutely, I can be patient with you, to a point.”
I disentangle my hand from hers, pushing back in the chair. “But I don’t want a woman who’s ashamed to be with me. I’m proud to be with you. I just want someone who feels the same. How long will it take, Avery? Six months? A year? Will you ever be comfortable?”
Her lips part and as she stares at me, tears well up in her lovely eyes. She doesn’t utter a word as I stand and toss some bills down on the table to cover our food and a generous tip.
Looking down at her, my eyes lovingly trace over her features. “Goodbye, Avery.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
AVERY
I sit there in shock.
A few customers loitering around the counter waiting for their orders eye me with pity. I scrunch down in the seat, hating the attention and pissed over the fact that they’re probably smirking, thinking that my date walked out on me.
Not a new occurrence for me, and exactly what did happen.
What’s worse, is that I let him.
And why?
Why didn’t I tell him I don’t care that he’s shorter than me? Maybe I once did. Okay, yeah, Trevor’s comments about our boss’s height got to me and I don’t want to deal with his shit, but that’s not me being ashamed of Bryce, that’s me…
Oh shit.
Jumping out of my seat, I grab my purse and fly out the door, thankful that a helpful man sees me coming and holds it open. Sure, he was trying to come in, nevertheless, he stepped out of my way before I slammed into him and the door.
I spot Bryce’s SUV right as it pulls out of its parking space. Racing to him, I wave my arms over my head and scream out his name, uncaring of the people now openly gawking at me. The big black SUV comes to a screeching stop and Bryce stumbles out.
“What the hell?! Avery, don’t you ever do that again!” He yells even as his arms wrap around me, and he hauls me to his trembling body in a big bear hug.
A horn sounds behind us and Bryce lifts his head, glaring at the car blocked in by his SUV. “Don’t move,” he says, loosening his arms.
Before I can step back, he grabs my hand and marches me between two parked cars, waving at the other driver when the guy blares his horn again.
Bryce gets into his truck and pulls it to the side, letting the car around him. I stay right where I am as he then backs his SUV into an open parking spot. Only when his lights go off do I hurry over to him.
“I told you not to move,” he growls, getting out of his vehicle.
“You’re right,” I say.
His scowl intensifies. “I know I’m right-”
I grab at his shirt and press my fingers against his moving lips, stilling his words. “No. You’re right. The problem is me. And I do need to deal with it. And I’ll try. I will.”
Dropping my head, I sniff back my tears. “I’m not ashamed of you. I’m ashamed of me. I’m too tall, too plain, and I don’t stand up for myself or those I love.”
Bryce goes still, his dark eyes flashing in the dim light.
