Page 139 of Beneath the Stands (Sugarlake 2)

I’m thinking about that very thing while Lee and I eat fast food she picked up on her way over. My phone vibrates across the kitchen table, and I glance down to see who it is, then reach out to silence it.

“You avoidin’ someone?” she asks, taking a bite of her burger.

“Mind your business much?” I snark back, smiling.

She grins. “It’s my sisterly duty to be nosy. I’ve got a lotta years to make up for.” Her eyes widen. “There’s a boatload of annoyin’ left in me, just dyin’ to break free.”

“Now that I believe.” I crunch up my foil wrapper, tossing it into the trash can. “It was Kim Bakerson.”

Her nose scrunches. “The realtor?”

“The one and only.” I nod.

“You two datin’ or you lookin’ for a place?”

I smirk. “I am definitely not dating Kim. I have her looking around to see if there’s anything I’d be interested in. But…” I sigh, leaning back. “I don’t know. Do you think maybe I should stay here? Make sure Pops has someone looking out for him?”

She scoffs. “No, I definitely do not think that. I know what it’s like to spend every moment worryin’ about Daddy. It’ll suck the soul right outta ya. Don’t fall into the codependency traits I’ve been learnin’ how to overcome, Eli. It’s a vicious cycle.”

I grimace, picking at the napkin on the table. “You don’t think I owe it to him?”

She shakes her head. “You’re here. You’re doin’ everything you can. But you deserve to have a life you enjoy. Livin’ life for others ain’t no way to live.” She pops a fry in her mouth. “What’s your happy place?”

“My happy place?”

“Yeah... you know… it doesn’t need to be an

actual place. Just somethin’ that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.”

I pick up my Coke and take a sip, thinking about what she asked. My happy place. I’ve never had too many moments of pure, unadulterated joy, not even when I went first in the draft. Everything’s been tainted by the pressures of success or the sting of loneliness. The only time I’ve felt happy just existing was in Florida.

With Becca.

Which is maybe why it hurt so bad when she left. Why I’ve held on to so much anger. It wasn’t because I hated her, it was that no one else could compare. No one else lit me up in all the ways she did.

“Becca,” I mutter, setting my Coke back down.

Lee leans in, her brows shooting to her hairline. “Did you just say Becca?”

I nod once, my jaw tensing.

A knowing smile sprouts across her face, her blue eyes twinkling. “You two are really somethin’ else.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You both are walkin’ around town, tryin’ like heck to be happy alone, when you could just get over it and be happy together.”

I narrow my eyes. “Just get over it? Like that.” I snap my fingers.

She shrugs. “Pretty much.”

“Lee, she left. Without a word.” My chest caves in with the sudden ache. “She made me love her and then she left me.”

Lee crosses her arms. “And?”

My eyes widen. “And what?”

“We all make mistakes, Eli. Sometimes they’re disastrous, life changin’ mistakes.” She reaches across the table and grabs my hand. “But eventually, we have to let go of the grudges that stunt our growth and keep us bitter.”

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