Page 74 of Pieces of Me

“I forgive you,” she says quietly. “I just wanted you to know how I felt, and why I was hurting.”

“Well, I’m sorry. Again. I don’t even know why I did it, Jamie, I—”

“Because we we’re just kids, Holden. And we’re human, and we make mistakes.” Her gaze switches, focusing on something in the distance. “Sometimes, I think that the people we were at that time in our lives aren’t the ones either of us deserved. And that doesn’t make what we had less real or less life-changing.” Her eyes meet mine again. “But it’s been five years now, and we’ve both grown up.”

“And growth is good?” I ask.

“I don’t know,” she murmurs, then gently nudges my side with hers. “Goodnight, Holden.”

I watch her get up and start for the pool house. And I wish I’d come here with a plan because it feels like I’m losing her all over again, and I don’t know how to fix it. Fixus. “Just so you know…” I call out, and she stills, her back to me. “I didn’t sleep with Brianna that night. My head was a mess, and I just…couldn’t. So I let her take my bed, and I slept on the couch.” For seconds, Jamie just stands there, unspeaking, unmoving. When she finally takes a step, I ask, “It doesn’t change anything, does it?”

She makes it to the door, fingers on the handle, before turning to me. “You should talk to Dean.”

“What?”

Jamie shrugs. “He misses you.”

“I...” I heave out a sigh.

“Besides, maybe he’s not as bad as you make him out to be. He keptyoursecret all this time.”

32

Holden

Dean is staring at my bare chest, and it’s making me uncomfortable.Obviously.

Standing in a dress shirt and suit pants, he looks… like a loser. He also looks just as surprised as Jamie did the first time she saw my tattoo, and to be fair, I highly doubt he was expectingmeto be the one opening the door. I crack a smile. “She didn’t tell you about it, huh?”

Dean’s gaze lifts to mine. “She also didn’t tell me you were in town.”

“I just got in yesterday. She didn’t know I was coming.”

“You probably should’ve told her,” he says, stepping into the house as if he owns the place. He doesn’t. I do. Well, half of it, anyway. “That girl hates surprises.”

“No, she doesn’t,” I scoff, closing the door behind him.

He moves through the entryway and toward the kitchen. “Yes, she does.”

“Maybeyoujust sucked at giving them to her.”

Over his shoulder, he says, “You’re still competitive, huh?”

“And you’re still a little bitch.”

He draws out a sigh. “And you’re still as immature as you were five years ago.”

I roll my eyes, following him through the kitchen and out the back door. His arrival had woken me, so I have no idea what time it is, but the sun’s already beating down. We walk side by side, our steps rushed as if it makes a fucking difference who gets to the pool house first. I wait until we’re poolside to ask, “Do you have the time?”

Fucker checks his watch. “Just after nine.”

“Cool.” I match him step for step. “Do you know what the weather’s like today?”

His steps falter as he side-eyes me. “I don’t know, bro. Let me check.” He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone. As soon as it’s within reaching distance, I snatch it out of his hand and push him into the pool. I am, after all,immature.

I watch him come to the surface, his stupid tie caught around his neck. “What the fuck?!”

The pool house door slides open, and Jamie appears in a thin tank and sleep shorts, squinting against the harsh sunlight. She notices me first and then Dean in the pool. “Jesus, Holden!”

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