Page 117 of The Lies I've Told
“It is quite dull around here, and I knew I wouldn’t make it without someone to keep me occupied.”
Every word cut my heart a bit deeper.
“You’re lying,” I said, my arms wrapped protectively around my chest like armor. “You said that night together, our first night, was perfect. You said—”
“I said a lot of things, Millie. I told you, I’m in the business of emotions, and I play off of others well. Didn’t I tell you to guard your heart around me?”
“But you love me,” I demanded. “We were going to make a life here together!”
“When did I ever tell you that? Did I ever say those words?”
I thought back, tried to remember a time when I’d heard him say those three little words. I’d felt them hundreds of times, in the way he’d held me, the deep devotion in his gaze… but had he ever spoken them?
“What we had, Millie was a long-term distraction. I needed someone to keep me entertained on this dreadful island, and you needed someone to help you get over how disappointing your life had become. It was mutual and it was lovely, but now, I need to get back to my life.”
“You don’t mean that,” I said, unable to stop the tears from flooding my eyes. “You’re just running. You said you wouldn’t run, Aiden.”
His throat worked up and down, and he met my gaze. “I’m sorry. The only love I have room for in my life is my career, and you nearly ruined that a few weeks ago when you distracted me. So, if you don’t mind, I’m going back to New York where I can get proper medical care that doesn’t require a three-hour journey, and then I’m going to put my life back together.”
“What about the memorial?” I asked, my mind reeling as my heart fell to pieces on the floor.
“It can be shipped back to my studio in New York. It will be a welcome change to be back in my temperature-controlled warehouse with all the equipment back in place.”
I’d thought he liked working here.
I’d thought he liked working here with me.
I’d thought a lot of things, none of which were true.
A distraction—that was what I was.
Just another damn distraction.
Was that all I was ever going to be?
I blinked several times, the shock wearing off as I tried to figure out what to say to the man who’d just broken my heart.
Because, unlike with Lorenzo, this time, it was definitely broken.
No, not broken. Utterly destroyed.
Thanks to Aiden, I now knew the difference.
“I was actually thinking of leaving, too,” I said, making his head turn back toward mine.
“Oh?”
Trying to keep my voice steady, I nodded. “Yeah, after what you said about the storefront, I started to get cold feet. I mean, I would have to be crazy to start a business on this island. It’s empty half of the year and filled with tourists intent on spending their money on junk. Who would want to buy my designs?”
For one brief moment, his face softened, but just like the nights when he’d held me and I’d seen his walls crack for a split second, it was gone again.
“You’re absolutely right. Stupid risk. You’re much better off.”
I wiped away the dried up tears from my face as I watched him walk out the door.
“Don’t give up on him, Millie. And don’t give up on your dreams. Fight for your happiness.”
I heard his suitcases roll down the old hardwood floor. There was a pause, ever so brief, and I wondered if he’d changed his mind.
