Page 46 of Break Me Like a Promise (Oak Valley)

Cara Griffin was the last thing they needed, interrupting their night. And yet, here she was. She popped up behind Dragan, sliding a manicured hand across his shoulders but keeping her eyes trained on Colton. Her four inseparable girl friends were close behind, everyone pairing up with a guy while Cara made her way to Colton at the other end of the pool table. They all had drinks in hand, but given their slightly smudged eyeliner and ruddy cheeks, the girls were clearly already a couple in.

“Oh hey, Colt,” Cara said, sidling up to him with a coy smile.

He pressed his lips together and mustered a smile back, but alarm bells were ringing. After the time he’d spent with Ruby, despite their somewhat casual agreement, he knew he was playing with fire.

“So what are you boys up to?” Cara looked around, smiling sweetly at everyone. They’d all gone to school together and were civil, if not somewhat friendly. And the guys were happy to have the attention from pretty girls like Cara and her friends.

“Just hanging out. What about you guys?” Dean asked.

“Same,” Juniper Cruz said, smiling across the table at him. They had been in almost all the same classes throughout high school and always had a slight flirtation.

Cara turned to Colton, talking softly so the other couldn’t hear over their own convos and the din of the bar.

“Maybe we could do something… after?” She batted her wide, blue eyes at him. It was the most straightforward she’d ever been, and there was no mistaking what she was implying.

Before, he’d been able to play off her advances. They were never propositions, they seemed harmless enough. But here she was wanting a check he wasn’t willing to cash. His mind flitted to the Rubenesque red-head, the way her laugh warmed him from the inside out. How he’d dreamed of their future over ten years ago and had caught himself doing it again.

Colton faced Cara straight on.

“Nah, I’m good. Actually, Cara, I think I should just set the record straight. Thanks for asking, but I’m not interested. If I was, I would’ve let you know. Friends is all we can be.” Cara’s mouth dropped before she quickly schooled herself, but Colton still caught the fire in her eyes has he crossed his arms and turned back to the table.

“You’re loss.” She turned on her heel, the ends of her pin straight hair lightly whipping Colton’s shoulder. The girls saw her attitude from a mile away and said their goodbyes to the guys. Juniper was the last to leave, giving Dean a little arm squeeze.

He looked hurt when he turned to Colton. “What was that about?”

Colton shrugged. “I just… I had enough?”

“I don’t get it.” Caleb mumbled, taking a long drink from his glass.

“Don’t get what?” If Caleb wanted to go at it, Colton was in the mood. He was sick of dancing around people, sick of not getting what he wanted at the expense of other people’s bullshit.

“You know what.”

Colton stalked around the table until he was chest to chest with Caleb. “Say it. If you’re my friend, you’ll stop acting like a little shit and actually tell me what you mean instead of hiding behind your little wallowing pity party.”

Caleb squared his shoulders, jaw set as he met Colton’s stare.

“Why are you so fucking stuck on this one girl? It’s been TEN YEARS since you broke up. She wasn’t good for you then, she’s not good for you now. You can barely look at anyone else even when they’re right in front of you. What the fuck is it about her? Can’t you see what I see?”

“Well, Caleb, you seem to be the only one who sees whatever bullshit you’re talking about.” Colton looked around at the other guys, awkwardly shuffling their feet and sipping their drinks. “That’s what I thought. So tell me, Caleb, why isn’t she good for me? Then and now.” Colton widened his stance, daring his friend to have the confidence he’d need for this conversation.

He shrugged. “I— Well… She’s just so… soft. In high school, she kept to herself and allowed you to just… follow. And now, she’s doing the same thing. Colt, you haven’t even told her about the interview because you’re scared to lose her.”

“And if you’d ever experienced a love like ours, you’d know why.” Colton couldn’t bite his tongue before the flames licked out. “Have you ever considered that she gave me a safe space in high school? You know my dad. You know my dreams. Did you ever think that maybe, just maybe, she allowed me to fully be myself and pushed me to do more, be more, than what everyone else wanted for me? No, you didn’t. Because for some reason, your weird ass locked onto the fact that my life became football and Ruby, which was far different from how we all used to hang out by the river and go for hikes, occasionally spoke pot and sneak drinks from our houses. And you hated that, didn’t you? Didn’t you?” He tried to keep his voice from yelling, but some of the bar patrons nearby awkwardly looked their way. Caleb kept his jaw set, cheeks red.

“So you know what, Caleb? Think what you want. Nothing’s stopped you, and you haven’t bothered to actually ask me anything or include Ruby in anything. Everyone else has. When you date someone for four years and plan to marry them, they become a pretty fixed piece of your life. And just because you didn’t want that, doesn’t mean it didn’t happen for me. And I’m sick and tired of your bullshit, your attitude.”

Colton took a deep, shaky breath, steeling himself for what was to come. “And, quite frankly, if you can’t find a way to accept or work through that, I don’t know if this will work. Friends support each other, and at the very least bother to understand a situation before questioning it. You can’t seem to do either. I’ve supported you when you wanted to go into metal work and design architectural sculptures. I’ve supported you in your string of one-night-stands. I’ve even sucked it up through your attitude towards the only woman I’ve ever loved. And I’m done.”

Colton downed the rest of his top-shelf tequila, the burn slicing his throat. Making him feel something other than the anger pounding through his veins.

“I’ll catch you guys later,” he threw over his shoulder as he walked away.

It was past time he put his foot down with Caleb, and it had come out in a long stream. Everything he had quietly sat on the sidelines for came pouring out, and Colton was riled up. He wanted to scorch everything else he’d spent years letting slide.

But first, he wanted to find a way to show Ruby that — no matter what happened between them or with San Francisco — she was his everything, and he needed her to know that.

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