The Happy Ever After Playlist - Abby Jimenez Page 0,119
of things that aren’t good for you. You know this. Brandon’s stuff, your shitty car, your dilapidated house? You don’t exactly have a history of making rational, sensible life choices. You’re sentimental to a fault. You’ve always been that way and I bet Jason knew that.”
My chin started to shake.
“Maybe he knew you wouldn’t take his logical reasoning for whatever it was, and he needed to do something extra. Because let’s be honest, what he did was really fucking extra.”
I leaned over the sink and snatched a paper towel out of the dispenser. “So what’s your theory, then?” I asked, blowing my nose.
“I don’t know. But my gut tells me that dude fell on a sword. If Zane is saying he’s all fucked up and she thinks you should see him…I don’t know. Even Josh is giving him the benefit of the doubt, and you know Josh.”
I sniffled. “Really?”
“Yeah. You know what he said that really got me?” She crossed her arms. “When I came back from visiting you in Ely and I told him how in love Jason’s parents were, he said he could tell that’s what Jason came from. That Jason was a guy, just like him, who grew up in a small town seeing two parents ridiculously in love with each other. Guys like Josh and Jason don’t do shit like this. It’s not how they were raised. It’s not in their DNA. They mate for life. They fall in love and they worship the ground that woman walks on. They don’t cheat and they don’t fucking leave. If Jason left, he had a reason.”
I mopped at my nose. “Maybe the fame finally changed him.”
She scoffed. “Do you really believe that? Come on.”
No, I didn’t believe that. I didn’t know what to believe.
“So what are we doing?” she asked. “Going to see him? Beating the shit out of that piñata? Double-dating? What?”
Jason didn’t want to be with me. He didn’t want to see me.
But it didn’t change the fact that I wanted to see him.
I was almost angrier with myself about this than I was at him for breaking me in half. But I did. I wanted to see him.
Not up close. Not one-on-one. But in a crowd, where he wouldn’t know I was there?
When I’d seen him for the last time, I hadn’t known it was going to be the last time. It happened so fast and I was so in shock.
Maybe seeing him again, on my terms, would give me closure—even though I knew I was fooling myself. If anything, it would probably thrust me back to week one and I’d be over at Kristen’s bawling my eyes out by tonight, beating a piñata with a baseball bat.
But I had to go. If Zane’s letter hadn’t stirred up my shit, I would have held strong today. I would have dug in and tried to have fun with Adrian, had a few too many drinks with Kristen, and gotten through the night. But now all I wanted was to be where I knew Jason was. Barring me being so far away it was impossible to make it, I was going to end up there. It became true the second I’d read what Zane wrote.
I sniffled. “I want to see him.”
She shrugged. “Okay. The heart wants what the heart wants. Let’s go.” She marched out of the bathroom.
“What about Adrian?” I whispered, following her.
“He’ll be fine. I’ll tell Josh to take him to a strip club or something.” She walked up to the table and tapped her husband’s shoulder. “Give me the keys.”
He dug in his pocket and handed them to her. “What’s up?”
“Sloan doesn’t feel well. I’m taking her to a Jaxon Waters concert. You guys can get an Uber. I love you.” She gave him a swift peck on the cheek, hooked my arm in hers, and turned for the exit.
I waved lamely at Adrian as Kristen dragged me through the restaurant. “I had a really good time,” I called. “It was nice meeting you.”
He looked amused and gave me a wink.
We hopped in the car. “If we’re creeping on him we need to have disguises,” Kristen said, putting the car in reverse and backing out of the parking space. “There’s a party supply store a block down. We’ll go there first.”
Five minutes later she was handing me a pair of 1980s glasses from a Halloween clearance shelf.
I shook my head. “I am not wearing that.”
“His crew knows you, right?” she said, putting a hand