Where We Left Off - Romeo Alexander Page 0,40

had allowed himself to spiral into a dark place. Last anyone knew, his father had ended up in prison and wasn’t getting out for several years after an armed robbery had turned bloody.

“It’s not the same,” Nathaniel told him.

“A shitty parent is a shitty parent. It doesn’t matter if they were abusive, got themselves thrown in prison because they’re an idiot, or because they don’t care if you’re alive or dead so long as you make sure they look good. Shitty is shitty,” Tyler insisted.

Nathaniel stood up, brushing Tyler’s hand off. “The point is, I have a duty to uphold to my family, and I agreed to do it. My father is doing what he feels is best to preserve the family name.”

Tyler stared at him. “You mean his name. He doesn’t give a shit about you, just himself. All the name means to him is how it can make him look good.”

“It reflects on me as well,” Nathaniel told him.

“Only if you let it,” Tyler retorted.

Nathaniel took a deep breath, trying to keep himself calm. “Look. I understand this is difficult and that it’s difficult to understand.”

Tyler’s eyes flashed dangerously as he looked up. “Why? Because I’m too poor to understand?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“Then tell me what you’re saying.”

Nathaniel watched him, sorting through his options. He knew it was better that Tyler wasn’t involved with him anymore. There was never going to be any longevity to what they were, to what they might have had. In the end, Nathaniel would have been forced to walk away, and Tyler deserved better than that.

The problem was, he would never let it go. Tyler was a stubborn man, and despite all the sweetness and loyalty, he could be like a dog with a bone when he refused to let something go. As much as it pained him to think it, if there was only one way to make Tyler let go, then Nathaniel would have to go with it.

Nathaniel set his features to neutral. “Perhaps there is something to what you said. Maybe coming from a different background truly does mean that you can’t grasp what’s at stake here.”

Tyler stood up slowly. “I understand a lot here, Nate, and I understand that you’re giving in to that absolute bastard because you think you have to. And you don’t.”

Nathaniel pulled out his phone, tapping on it. “The fact of the matter is, there was never going to be anything more between us than what might have happened tonight. Even you have to understand that.”

Tyler’s face shuttered. “You don’t...Nate, c’mon, you can’t mean that. There’s always been more than that.”

Nathaniel shook his head. “No, there wasn’t. There is only what you thought was going to happen, and I’m not responsible for what you told yourself.”

God save him, the wounded expression on Tyler’s face ripped at Nathaniel’s heart. The last thing he ever wanted was to hurt the other man, but if that’s what it took, then he would do it. Tyler deserved better than to be wrapped up in the eventual disaster that was Nathaniel’s life.

“We’re worlds apart, Tyler, and always have been. This would have ended only one way. I’m sorry you couldn’t see that,” Nathaniel said, voice firm.

Hard, his voice was hard. It was sharp at the edges and bore a chill. His father would be so proud.

Tyler reached out, trying to take Nathaniel’s hand. “Don’t do this, Nate. Don’t let him win.”

“There isn’t a him winning or losing. There is only reality,” Nathaniel said.

Relief flooded through him as the app alerted him to a car just around the corner. The sooner he was done with this, the sooner he could retreat and not have to stare at the wounded expression on Tyler’s face.

Tyler’s eyes darted to the car pulling up to the curb, lips thinning. “Please don’t do this, Nate. Not like this, not again.”

Nathaniel waited until the car had stopped, grabbing the handle of the back door. “It is what it is, Tyler. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry it didn’t turn out the way you envisioned, but you have to accept this. We are what we are, and there is no place for you in my life, not in the long term. There never was.”

It was the final crushing blow that he needed, and he felt like his chest was going to rip in half as Tyler’s expression crumbled. Yanking the door open, Nathaniel pulled himself into the car without looking back. To look back meant to see everything