chapter Ten
I gave serious consideration to not going to the wedding at all. I didn’t want to see Brett and Sweater Vest together. I knew it would rip my heart to pieces. Oh, how I longed to have my withered heart back again. Why did I ever let it bloom? Because I thought Brett was different. I trusted him. Now I realized he didn’t deserve my trust. He was just like every other guy.
I took in a deep breath. Well, the best way to get over a guy was to get another one, and knowing Sarah and Sean, their reception would be filled with some of the best looking guys from college.
This was the only wedding of the summer that I wasn’t a bridesmaid, so I would have an opportunity to wear anything I wanted. I decided on a little retail therapy. I decided to max out my credit card and get the hottest dress and shoes I could find in Vegas.
Thirty stores and five hundred dollars later, I had the perfect things to wear. I found a killer red mini dress and matching f*ck-me pumps. Even though I’d be paying off the balance for a few months, I thought it would be worth a million dollars to see the look on Brett’s face when he saw me in it and I reminded him he couldn’t have me. Then I’d go and pick up any other guy I wanted right under his nose. I realized it was mean and vindictive but that’s the mood I was in. It was the only thing that made me feel even a tiny bit better.
The wedding was a blur of Pachelbel’s Cannon, a Unity candle, pre-written vows—basically the same-old, same-old just like every other wedding I had ever been to. The only thing I was really paying attention to was Brett and Sweater Vest sitting three rows ahead of me. They weren’t sitting as close as I would have been sitting, if I was the one with Brett and that made my heart ache a bit. It made me wonder how affectionate Sweater Vest was. Brett had always been so affectionate with me. But it was something I wanted and needed. Maybe Sweater Vest didn’t need anything. Maybe that’s what Brett found so appealing about her. At quick glance, she seemed to be perfect for him in every way. She was smart. She had a terrific job. She was proper and conservative. She seemed very low maintenance. Hell, she was probably a virgin when they met. Brett was probably her first, too. I wondered how she felt about him f*cking a slut. She would probably never use the word f*ck. Maybe that’s what the little wall between them was all about. Maybe she was having a little trouble coming to terms with Brett being with me. Or I could be reading way too much into it and she just wasn’t the type to be affectionate in public. Or maybe she just wasn’t affectionate at all. Some people are like that. But why was I torturing myself even thinking about Brett and Sweater Vest? It was obviously time to get on with my life. Brett had made his decision and he hadn’t chosen me.
I hitched a ride to the reception with Paige and Molly. They both looked at me kind of funny and I knew they were wondering what happened between me and Brett. I was glad they had enough tact not to ask because I probably would have lost it.
“I’m so glad Sarah didn’t ask me to be a bridesmaid,” Molly said.
“I know, right,” Paige agreed. “Those dresses are more hideous than usual.”
The rest of the conversation centered on bridesmaid dresses and the fact that the two of them were never going to do that to their friends when they got married. Yeah, right. First of all, it should be obvious that if they continued dating guys like Vic and Casey, it would be a really long time before they could hope to get married. And second, everyone says they will never do that to their friends when they get married and they always do. Not that I blame the brides. I think its subconscious. They want to be the star of the show on their wedding day and they don’t want some bitch they went to high school with, or their step-sister, or their cousin from Denmark that their mom forced them to make a bridesmaid, to look better than them on their wedding day. And what better way to ensure that the bitch from high school, or your step-sister or your cousin from Denmark not look better than you than to make them wear a hideous dress?
The reception hall was so opulent it bordered on gaudy, which was not a surprise for Las Vegas. If I was going to do a wedding in Vegas I would definitely elope, spare everyone the expense of being in a wedding party (or even attending for that matter), and get hitched at an Elvis Chapel. Just me and my guy. Of course, I didn’t have a guy and at the rate I was going, the chances of me ever having a fiancé looked grim. I just didn’t want to be one of those over-the-hill barflies who still dressed like she was twenty when she should have stopped twenty years earlier. But when I looked into my future, that’s all I could see. Just a few weeks ago, I thought there was a chance that Brett and I would have a future together but now I could see how foolish that was. I must have been delusional to think that someone like him would ever consider getting serious, or marrying, someone like me. No, I was the girl you sowed your wild oats with before you settled down with someone like Sweater Vest. My place in the universe was now clear.
I did a quick scan of the massive hall. The church had been packed with people and I figured there were easily 500 guests, by far the biggest wedding I had attended. But that meant lots of guys to choose from. And Sean was friends with lots of good looking guys. His roommate played basketball, so they always had plenty of jocks around. I knew I’d have my pick of hunks tonight. Maybe a few rounds in bed with a gorgeous jock was exactly what I needed to get over Brett.
The first stop I wanted to make was the open bar. Even though I had been serious about giving up drinking, I suddenly craved the high I’d get from taking those first few sips and then the wonderfully numb feeling that followed.
The bartender, who looked about my age, gave me a huge grin when I approached. “Hey, Beautiful. What can I get you?”
Game on. I gave him a sly little grin in return. “So, what’s good?” There was definitely and implied besides you in my tone.
“Depends what you like and what kind of mood you’re in.”
I looked at the array of bottles on the counter and then fixed my gaze on the bartender’s stunning blue eyes. “I like what I see.”
“I like what I see, too,” he said as he checked me out. “And what kind of mood are you in?”
I raised an eyebrow. He gave me a sly grin. He took a small glass, added a few ice cubes and then filled it with Southern Comfort. “I think you’ll like this. It’s smooth with just a little edge to it. Just like you.”
“Thanks.” I grabbed the glass. “I’ll be back for more later.”
“I look forward to it.” I could see him grin as I turned and walked away.
I didn’t take more than two steps before a hand grabbed my forearm. It was Brett.
“What do you think you’re doing?” I spat as I tried to tear my arm from his. He tightened his grip on me.
“What are you drinking” he asked. His tone wasn’t angry though. He sounded more concerned. That made me angry. He had no right to have any feelings for me anymore. Especially concern. Or pity.
“Why do you care?” I snapped back.
“I still care about you,” Brett said softly.
“Well, don’t.” My voice was harsh but I didn’t care.
Brett gulped. “Please don’t be like this.”
I glared into his now wet eyes. “Like what, Brett?”
He didn’t respond verbally. He just looked at the ground.
“How would you like me to be? Do you want me to be prim and proper and not show any emotion like Sweater Vest? Is that what you want? Too bad. I’m going to say whatever the hell I want and I’m going to do whatever the hell I want and you don’t have the right to say a word about it. Got it? You made your decision. You chose Sweater Vest. Go worry about what she’s saying and doing.”
Brett finally let go of my arm but he still didn’t walk away like I wanted him to. It would take a verbal slap in the face to get him to leave and I fully intended to give him one.
“You told me you weren’t that guy. You were right, Brett. You aren’t that guy. You’re a million times worse. You made me believe that what was going on between us was something special. What a joke. You just wanted to f*ck me like every other guy in this room, it just took you a little longer to get to the finish line. But the outcome was the same, wasn’t it? You got a piece. You got to tap that. Now you’re one of the cool guys. You get to high five all the jocks because you’ve f*cked Anna. Well, good for you. I didn’t think you were going to f*ck me and dump me just like everyone else but that
’s exactly what you did.” When he looked up, I saw one lone tear drop slide down his face. Mission accomplished. Always one to hit a man when he’s down, especially one I wanted to hurt as badly as he hurt me, I finished it off with, “You are that guy, Brett. Face it.”
I had never seen someone look so hurt in my entire life. The pain in his eyes made what little was left of my broken heart completely shatter. I hadn’t just verbally slapped him; I had beat him to a bloody pulp.
Brett looked as if he might say something but then Sweater Vest came running over to stake her claim on her man. She grabbed his elbow in a gesture that was clearly meant for me to know that Brett was hers again.
“What’s going on?” she said cheerfully, clearly clueless of the tension that still filled the air between us.
Brett quickly swiped the tear from his cheek.
Sweater Vest looked up a Brett and batted her puppy dog eyes. “Did I interrupt something?” she said so coyly I wanted to spit on her.
“You didn’t interrupt a thing,” I taunted . “I was just going to get shit-faced and pick up a random guy to f*ck all night. See ya.”
When I turned away, I was now the one with a stray tear falling down my cheek. It wasn’t like me to cry in situations like this. Not that I had ever been in a situation like this before. I had never loved anyone as much as I loved Brett. I had never actually loved anyone but Brett. And he didn’t love me back.
I remembered I had a drink in my hand. I took a big swig. It was actually difficult to swallow. I almost had to spit it out. I realized I didn’t want the drink, I was just doing it to hurt Brett. I knew drinking would be as bad, if not worse, than picking up some guy. When I turned around, I could see that Brett was still staring at me. Even though Sweater Vest was doing her best to get his attention, his eyes were on me. I made a show of guzzling down the rest of the drink I didn’t want. I couldn’t make out his facial expression but I could see him shaking his head. Then he grabbed Sweater Vest by the elbow and practically dragged her over to a table far from the activity that was growing around the bar and appetizers table.
The reception hall was packed. I scanned the crowd for the best looking guy I could find. I certainly had a lot to choose from at this wedding. Some of the hottest guys I had gone to school with were in attendance. I finally set my sights on Jay Donner. He was a 6’2” and perfectly proportioned. He liked the outdoors and always seemed to have a slight tan. He had sun-kissed blond hair and killer ocean blue eyes. When we were in college, he was unavailable. He was still dating his high school sweetheart. Everyone thought they were going to get married but then she dumped him for a tattoo artist. I heard he was playing to field and having quite a lot of rebound action. He seemed like the perfect candidate. We could rebound with each other.
The only unfortunate thing was that he was standing really close to the table that Brett had chosen to sit at with Sweater Vest. Jay was talking to Vic and Casey. As much as I wanted Brett to see me picking up another guy, I wasn’t sure how much I wanted him to hear when I was in pick-up mode. Not that he hadn’t heard some of the same lines when I picked him up at Hannah and Brandon’s wedding. With everything that had happened since then, it seemed like an eternity ago.
I made my way over to Jay. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw Vic and Casey leave and head in the direction of the bar. I arrived just before Jay headed in another direction.
“Jay,” I said as I touched his upper arm. “How are you, good looking?”
A smile formed in the corner of his mouth. “Much better with you here.”
“Bring a date?” I asked casually.
He shook his head. “Nah, I’m flying solo tonight.”
“That’s sad.” I carefully placed my hand on chest. He sucked in some air as I touched him. Even through a shirt and suit vest, I could feel his muscles were rock hard.
When Jay looked down at me, I could feel myself get caught up in the waves of his ocean blue eyes. Oh, my. Because he had been off-limits for so long, I had never really taken a good look at him. He was stunning. A total package. It made me wonder what in the world that tattoo artist could have possibly had that Jay didn’t.
“I heard you were dating some geeky guy.” His tone wasn’t malicious or condescending like nearly every other guy, who questioned my relationship with Brett. It sounded more like an attempt to gauge if I was available.
I gave a small, and what I hoped would appear to be a dismissive, shrug. “That didn’t work out.” I was trying to maintain a neutral tone.
Jay’s gaze now had some heat to it. “His loss.”
I nodded.
We looked at each other for a few moments. When God created Jay, he was certainly as close to perfection as he could get. He was a flawless specimen of the human male.
“Can I buy you a drink?” He was still staring into my eyes.
I grinned. “It’s an open bar.”
“Good line, though, right? I made you smile. I heard a few rumors that making you smile isn’t easy to do.”
My first thought was about Brett and how much he managed to make me smile. I glanced over at his table and his eyes were fixed on me and Jay. Sweater Vest had her arms crossed over her chest and she looked like she was fuming.
I turned my attention back to Jay. “We can get drinks over there.” I pointed to the bar with the flirty bartender.
I was surprised when Jay grabbed my hand and entwined his fingers with mine. It was an act that felt almost too intimate for just having spoken a few words to each other. No guy I had ever hooked up with held my hand that way. Brett was the only guy, who ever held my hand that way. Holding hands that way was something that guys did with their girlfriends, not with one-night stands.
The huge room suddenly felt like it was closing in on me. My heart began to race. Was I panicking? Why? I had been with more guys than I could ever count. Why was I suddenly nervous about being with Jay? He was gorgeous and seemed more than willing, what was the problem?
I could hear a tiny voice in the corner of my mind say: the problem is that he’s not Brett.
That tiny voice had to go. Quickly. Brett wasn’t coming back and I had to get over him and get on with my life. The best way to get rid of the tiny voice was to drown it in alcohol. Tonight, liquid courage was going to become my best friend again.
As we approached the bar, the flirty bar tendered looked at me, gave Jay the once-over then looked back at me with a sly grin.
“So, more of the same?” I knew he was referring to the drink. If only he knew how much more there was to that line. Jay was going to be more of the same, probably the first of another endless string of drunken one-night stands.
I nodded. “Better make it a double.”
“Two are always better than one.” This time the double-meaning was not subtle at all. He was looking at me like he wanted to take me right on the bar with Jay watching.
When I glanced up at Jay, he gave me a huge smile. He didn’t seem to be picking up on anything between the bartender and me. It made me wonder if he was a little on the dull side.
The bartender handed me the drink and winked at me. When I looked at Jay, he was still oblivious. It made me wonder if it was possible for a guy to be the stereo-typical “dumb blond.”
“And what are you having?” the bartender asked Jay. You mean besides me, I thought.
“A beer,” Jay replied.
“Bud?” the bartender suggested.
Jay shrugged. “Sure, why not.”
The bar tender poured Jay a glass of beer from the tap. “Thanks, Man,” Jay said as he placed a few dollars in the tip jar.
“Have fun,” the bartender said eyeing me.
“I always do,” I said and the bartender gave me a sly grin in return.
***
Jay had only taken a few sips of his beer by the time I downed my drink. It didn’t even taste good. I just wanted to feel something different than what I was feeling and I knew alcohol well enough to know exactly how good she could make me feel. We were quickly getting reacquainted with each other and I was managing to drown out that little voice that kept nagging me with: what about Brett? I wanted to scream: Brett’s living happily ever after with Sweater Vest, so shut the f*ck up, Little Voice!
Jay picked a table with a terrific view of Brett and Sweater Vest. Great! I noticed that Brett was still gawking at me and Jay. Sweater Vest was now talking to a girl, who had sat down next to her. I vaguely recognized her from school. She was another one of the brainy bunch that they hung out with.
I noticed right away that Jay wasn’t a master of conversation. I decided to break the ice. “So, where are you working?”
“I started a business with a couple of guys from school. We do pest control.”
“You don’t drive around in those little cars with the bug antennas, do you?”
He shook his head. “No, that’s another company. And we don’t actually do the pest control. We hire guys to do that. We run the business.”
I nodded. Where do you go with a conversation about killing bugs?
There were a few moments of awkward silence. I found it odd that he didn’t ask me where I was working. It didn’t seem to occur to him. I wouldn’t call Jay intellectually curious.
I tried with another topic. “So, what kind of music do you listen to?”
“Country.”
My least favorite. I’d rather listen to cats wailing. “No rock music?”
He shook his head. “Nah.”
Okay, then. This was going to be a long night. When I glanced in Brett’s direction, I noticed he was still staring at us. That made me angry. He didn’t want to be with me but he clearly didn’t want me to be with anyone else. F*ck that.
I placed a hand on Jay’s thigh and I could see him gulp. Then a small grin formed in the corner of his mouth. I thought I heard him whisper, “Higher.”
I moved my hand up his thigh a bit.
“Higher,” he whispered again. Seriously? Did he think I was going to give him a hand job under the table at a wedding?
He got close to my ear. “Come on, Babe,” he whispered. “It would be so hot.” Then he kissed me. I didn’t feel a thing. It was like kissing the wall. When he gave me a little tongue, I felt like I might gag.
I never let lack of feeling bother me before, why now? Because he wasn’t Brett. When I kissed Brett, I felt electricity through my entire body. Brett made me feel all kinds of wonderful things. When I kissed Jay, I felt nothing. I heaved a sigh. If I ever hoped to spend the night with Jay, I’d need to spend a little more time with my friend, Southern Comfort.
“I need to go to the ladies room,” I said to Jay. “Would you mind getting me another drink while I’m gone?”
“Sure, Babe, no problem.”
As I hurried toward the bathroom, I snuck a peek at Brett and I saw that he was rising from his seat. Shit, was he following me?
I tried to quicken my pace but it was nearly impossible in my f*ck-me pumps. Brett caught up to me right outside the ladies room door. He grabbed my elbow and turned me to face him.
“You don’t have to do this,” he said.
“Do what?” I snapped.
“Hook up with some guy just to hurt me.”
I let out a single laugh. “Don’t flatter yourself. Jay is the best looking guy in the place. Why wouldn’t I hook up with him?”
Brett’s gaze bored into me. “Because you don’t have feelings for him.”
“What makes you think that?”
Brett grabbed my other elbow. He was now gripping both of my arms, as if for emphasis. “I saw the way you looked after he kissed you. You didn’t feel a thing.”
I let out another laugh.
He continued. “I know what you look like when you’re turned on. Jay didn’t make you look like that. Not even close.”
“And just how do I look when I’m turned on?” I taunted.
Before I could stop him, Brett kissed me like I had never been kissed before. There was so much fire and passion in his kiss, it completely took my breath away.
“That’s what you look like when you’re turned on,” he said.
I stepped back from him, still in a haze from the kiss. Brett and I stared at each other for a long minute. Then I said, “What about Becca? How do you feel when you kiss her?”
Before he could respond, I heard her voice behind me.
“Brett,” she said as she took her place next to him and grabbed his elbow. “What’s going on?” She gave me an icy glare.
“What is going on, Brett?” I said coldly.
He gulped. He looked from me to Sweater Vest then back to me. I gave him another few seconds to respond and when he didn’t say anything and didn’t make any move to remove himself from Sweater Vest’s grasp, I figured his choice was made – again. I was still the loser.
“Well, there’s a gorgeous guy waiting for me and he’s horny as hell and ready to rock and roll, so if you’ll excuse me…” I turned and left Brett and Sweater Vest standing there. I didn’t turn back to check but I was pretty sure they were both gaping at me.
“The bartender remembered your drink,” Jay said as I sat back down at the table with him.
“I bet he did,” I muttered under my breath.
“He asked me if I thought you’d like a double.”
“And what did you say?”
“Yeah, sure, why not?”
“Did he tell you what time his shift ended?” I added because I was in a foul mood and couldn’t help myself.
Jay looked at me with a puzzled expression. “Why would he tell me that?”
I wanted so badly to tell him that the double was more than just a drink but I held my tongue. Jay couldn’t help it that he was so clueless. “Never mind,” I said instead. “Let’s dance.”
The DJ started playing and a few people were floating towards the dance floor. I grabbed the drink that Jay had gotten me and downed it one big gulp. Then I grabbed Jay and pulled him on the dance floor.
The DJ played some hard-hitting rock. The alcohol was starting to hit me and as I moved to the music, I felt myself getting lost in the beat. I could feel Jay behind me. He grabbed my waist and started pushing himself against me. We were both moving like we were having sex on the dance floor. I might have been embarrassed if I hadn’t downed the equivalent of five drinks on an empty stomach.
I closed my eyes and tried to lose myself in the beat of the music and the feeling of Jay touching me and moving his body with mine. His desire for me was more than evident. The more our bodies moved together on the dance floor, the more evident his desire became. Yet all I could think about was Brett. I wanted it to be Brett’s hands touching me. I wanted it to be Brett’s body pressed against me. I wanted Brett to want me but he wanted Becca.
When the song ended, and the DJ said he was taking a five minute break, Jay and I stopped moving. I suddenly felt awkward with his hands on my hips and his body so close to mine. I took a few steps away from his and he released his hold on me.
When I glanced over toward Brett and Sweater Vest, I could see he was headed in my direction and she was following close on his heels. I was definitely not in the mood for another confrontation.
Brett grabbed my elbow. “Can I talk to you for a minute?” he asked as he tried to pull me from the dance floor.
“Dude, what’s up?’ Jay said. He was trying to be casual but I could hear some strain in his voice.
Brett didn’t respond to Jay verbally. He just glared at him. That made me angry because Jay wasn’t doing anything wrong.
I ripped my elbow from Brett’s grasp. “I have nothing to say to you,” I spat.
Now it was Sweater Vest, who grabbed Brett’s elbow. “I’m getting tired. I want to go back to the hotel.”
Brett looked at me. Then he looked at Jay. Then he looked back at me. “You don’t have to do this,” he reminded me. He looked miserable and I could feel what was left of my little heart breaking. Misery of Brett’s own making, I reminded myself but it didn’t make me feel any better.
“Let’s go,” Sweater Vest whined as she pulled on his elbow. Brett nodded but he didn’t take his eyes from mine.
“You’d better go,” I mocked. “You don’t want to keep Becca waiting.”
She glared at me until Brett allowed her to pull him away.
“What was that all about?” Jay asked. His tone wasn’t angry, he seemed confused and even a bit concerned.
Before I could respond, the water works started and I began to sob uncontrollably.
“Are you okay?” Jay asked.
“No,” I managed to get out between sobs. “I’m not okay.”
“Can I get you another drink? Jay was trying to help but failing miserably.
I just cried harder. “I’m going back to the hotel.”
“Do you need a ride?”
I shook my head. “I don’t want to ruin your evening. I’ll just grab a cab.”
“Okay,” Jay said but he didn’t sound like he agreed with the plan. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay?”
I nodded. “I’ll be fine,” I lied. I was anything but.
***
I couldn’t get to my room fast enough. I knew my eyes were already red and swollen from crying but I felt like I wasn’t even close to being cried out. The first thing I did when I got inside was to grab the tissue box from the bathroom and take it to the bed with me. I blew my nose then put my head down on the pillow and inundated the poor flat thing with tears.
In between heaving sobs, I thought I heard a soft knock on the door. At first, I thought it was my imagination but then the knocking continued. I rushed over to answer it hoping it would be Brett.
I heaved a heavy sigh of disappointment when I saw it was Jay. He had his hands in his pockets and looked forlorn. “I just came by to make sure you were okay.”
He was nervously kicking at something on the floor.
“Thanks,” I said.
He looked up at me. I was sure I looked like a complete wreck. Swollen eyes. Red nose. Hair askew. The whole nine.
“You’re not okay, are you?”
I shook my head.
“It’s that guy, isn’t it? The one on the dance floor. I saw him follow you to the bathroom.” Maybe Jay had a little more on the ball than I initially gave him credit for.
“His name is Brett,” I said even though I wasn’t sure why.
“I know what it’s like to love somebody, who wants somebody else.” Jay apparently had a lot more going on upstairs than I thought.
“Is it that obvious?” I asked.
He nodded.
We stood there for an awkward moment just looking at each other. Then Jay said, “I just want you to know that you’re exceptionally cool and totally hot.”
We both laughed. “You know what I mean,” Jay continued. “If I had someone like you, I’d never let you go.”
“Thanks.” I gave Jay a kiss on the cheek.
“If you ever just wanna hang out or something, let me know.”
“I will,” I said, even though I knew I never would.
***
I yawned as I dragged my suitcase onto the elevator. I breathed a small sigh of relief as the elevator door started to close. I wanted to avoid contact with any other human being, if possible, because I looked like total dog shit. There wasn’t enough concealer on the planet Earth to cover the redness and swelling under my eyes and my nose had been blown so much there were actual blisters forming under my nostrils.
I would have no such luck. A hand stopped the doors from closing just at the last minute. Because the universe has a perverse sense of humor, of course, it was Brett, who stepped into the elevator.
I must have known somewhere deep inside we’d run into each other. I felt like we both had homing devises that connected us on some deep unconscious level. And knowing that we’d see each other one last time, I did what any girl would do. I wore his Pearl Jam shirt. The one, he’d sort of given me the first time we were together.
He took in a breath when he saw me. “You look so good in my shirt.” He seemed to say it without thinking. When our eyes met, his looked full of sadness and regret.
“Where’s your friend?” Brett asked.
“I don’t have any friends,” I said coldly.
I knew he wanted to ask if I’d slept with Jay but he couldn’t find the right words to do it. I let him stew for a few seconds before I said, “I was alone last night.”
He let out a breath.
“But you weren’t,” I added. “Where’s Becca?”
Brett averted my gaze and looked down at his sneakers. “She had to make a few phone calls. She’s meeting me downstairs. We’re going to share a cab to the airport.”
“That’s nice.” There was acid in my tone.
“I never meant to hurt you. I still love you.”
We met each other’s gaze again. All the feelings we ever had for each other were bubbling up to the surface. I thought Brett might kiss me but the elevator door opened on the fourth floor and we both looked out. No one got on and the door closed again.
“You made your choice, Brett. If you’re going to be with Becca, you have to give me up. You can’t have both of us.”
He rubbed his forehead. “I know,” he said but he sounded lost.
When our eyes met for the last time, he placed his hand on my cheek and held it there. I inhaled his scent and enjoyed his touch for the few seconds we still had together.
“Be good,” he whispered.
“I always am.”
When the elevator door opened to the lobby, Becca was waiting for him.