Page 66 of Fragile Heart

CHAPTER25

Hudson

I didwhat’s best for her.

I did what’s best for her.

These are the words I keep repeating while I know Quinn is in my bedroom packing her stuff.

The things I said to her. . . I know there’s no coming back from that. I’ve said some of those words to women before, but they meant nothing to me. Saying them to someone I care about, someone I think I love, is unredeemable. It makes my stomach lurch just thinking about the look on her face, a look I caused. I jump off my pool lounger and empty my stomach in the bushes on the side of my yard.

Fuck.

I sit back on my haunches and look up to the sky. How did I go from having the best day of my life to the absolute worst in the course of an hour? I’ve hit rock bottom before with my drinking, but this. . . this feels worse, knowing I hurt the one person in my life who actually gives a fuck about me.

My fingers twitch, letting me know how badly I want a drink. It would numb me to this awful heartbreak. If only I had some alcohol in this fucking house.

I stand and slowly walk back to the pool lounger, remembering how Quinn looked in her red bikini. I lay on it, hoping to soak up any last scent of Quinn on it. Because God knows I’ll never see her again after this.

I don’t know how long I stay here, but I know it’s long enough that Quinn is gone. I can feel the emptiness.

I hear the back door slide open, and my heart races, thinking it might be Quinn. I can’t explain the disappointment I feel when I see Max standing there.

“What’s up, bro?” he asks casually, like it’s normal for him to be at my house this time of night.

I turn my face back to the sky. “What the fuck are you doing here, Max?”

“Just checking in. Making sure you’re good.”

“I’m fan-fucking-tastic. You can go now.”

“No can do. Sounds like you had a rough night, and despite whatever you did to your girl, she cared enough to call me and make sure you didn’t do anything rash.” Quinn called him? After everything I said to her, she still called someone to check on me? I don’t deserve that woman. The world doesn’t deserve that woman.

“I’m fine.”

“Mm-hmm. Well, you’re too big of an asset to me, so I’m going to just be in here watching TV. Don’t do anything stupid.”

I sigh. I’m an asset to him. That’s all. Nothing I didn’t know, but still.

He turns to go back inside but looks over his shoulder and says, “I’m here if you need to talk, Hudson. I hope you know that.”

I don’t say anything. I don’t want to talk, but I appreciate it nonetheless. I hear the door slide shut and see the glow from the TV shortly after. It seems I’ve got myself a babysitter for the night.

The next thing I know, I’m being shaken awake with the sun in my eyes.

“Hudson. You gotta get up, man. You have to get to the airport.” Max’s voice fills my head, and I groan. The last thing I want to do is go back where everything reminds me of Quinn. But I have a contract to fulfill. So, I peel myself off the lounger, feeling hungover even though I didn’t have a drop of alcohol last night.

I walk into my bedroom, and flashbacks hit me from the night before. My stomach drops all over again. I see the cash I basically threw at Quinn still sitting on the bed and cringe at the thought. I wanted her to have the money for her flight, but I’m sure Quinn felt completely degraded by it. I still wish she would’ve taken it, though.

I throw some shit in my bag and get out of this room as fast as possible. A car is waiting for me in the driveway with Max standing beside it.

“You sure you’re ok, man?” he asks, looking me up and down. I can only imagine how ragged I look right now. I didn’t even bother changing out of the clothes I wore to dinner.

“No. But I’m not going to do anything stupid.”

“Alright,” he says slowly, probably not believing me. I can’t blame him. I don’t know if I would believe me either. “Call me if you need me, ok? I’m just a flight away.” I grunt in response before getting in the backseat and shutting the door after me.

The flight back to Georgia is fine.

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