Page 47 of A Shot of Pretty Poison

But I ruined it.

And if he and I can’t be saved, that’s something I’ll have to live with for the rest of my life.

The one that got away was because of me.

IT’S ONLY A MATTERof time before the next text comes in. I manage to find a nice motel only a mile away from Cam’s apartment. That way, if I need him for some reason, he’s close by. It will help me feel better, and hopefully, it’ll help him accept the fact that I’m not sleeping on that stack of hay he calls a couch.

I’m putting away my things, trying to make the place feel as much like home as I can, when my phone vibrates on the bed. The unknown number that stares back at me is hardly a shock anymore.

How is it, feeling so unwelcome in your own hometown? You’re probably wishing you listened to me and stayed gone right about now.

I roll my eyes and swipe out of the message, just like Cam and Hayes told me to. I don’t think it’ll work, icing them out like this. If anything, I think it’ll just make them desperate. But they’re going through exactly what I did after I left. Eventually, they’re bound to come to the same conclusion.

There’s no escaping this.

Instead of engaging, or letting it get to me and spending the rest of the day worrying, I crash onto my bed and call Nolan. We’ve exchanged a few texts since I’ve been here, just so she knows I’m still alive after I booked it out of the house in a moment’s notice, but it’ll be nice to hear her voice.

It only rings twice before she answers.

“Oh my God,” she says, sounding shocked. “Is it true? Is she really remembering I exist while she’s off God knows where doing God knows what? Or maybe even God knowswho.”

I chuckle, shaking my head. “You’re ridiculous. I miss you.”

“I miss you, too. When are you coming home?”

The question makes me laugh because I’m not lying when I tell her that I don’t know, because I really don’t. Ican’tleave. I tried, remember? It didn’t go very well, and the idea of being knocked out behind the wheel for the second time isn’t appealing enough to try again.

“I’m not sure, babe,” I tell her. “Thankfully, the studio is letting me work over video chat, so at least I’ll still get paid. What have you been up to?”

“Oh, you know. Hard, adult life things.”

“You’ve spent the last few days by the pool, haven’t you?”

“No,” she says, then pauses. “Well, notourpool at least. I was by the pool at the spa though. They have this new masseuse who looks like he just stepped straight off a runway. Laiken, Idiedwhen I first saw him.”

I gasp in mock outrage. “You’re cheating on Pierre?”

She goes quiet for a moment, and I know something went wrong.

“Oh no, what happened?”

Her heavy sigh is enough to tell me I’m right. “We may have hooked up, and my dad may have fired him after he found out.”

“Nolan!” I laugh. “When the hell did you hook up with him?”

She hums. “Like once or twice over the last couple months.”

Damn, I’m a little impressed that I had no idea. “So, every day for the last three months then.”

Her cackle echoes in the background before she brings the phone back to her ear. “You know me so damn well. Seriously, come home. I miss my roomie.”

“I know, I know. I’m trying,” I tell her, but that’s a lie, because if it’s up to me, I don’t think I’m ever going to leave here again. “I actually need you to do me a favor.”

“Anything,” she doesn’t hesitate. “You know I’ve got you.”

I smile, even though she can’t see me. “I need you to mail me some of my clothes.”

“New clothes or the ones you already own?” She asks excitedly.

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