What If You & Me (Say Everything #2) - Roni Loren Page 0,105

he’d learned was her defense mode. “I deserve someone who’s willing to risk a broken heart to be with me. Who’s willing to gamble that things may not go perfectly. Someone who doesn’t require a guarantee.”

He opened his mouth to respond, but she beat him to it.

“That’s what being open to love looks like,” she said. “I was willing to risk all of that for you. I was willing to face down whatever demons I had to because it meant I got to be with you.”

The confession tore him open, the past tense in her words hitting home. He wanted to reach for her, to take it all back, but he forced himself to keep his hands at his sides.

Something closed off in her expression. “You’re so concerned that you’re my practice guy, but maybe you weren’t my practice at all. Maybe I was yours. You tried things out and realized you’d rather be alone.”

He stepped forward, shaking his head. “No, that’s not—”

She lifted a hand, halting him. “Please, don’t. You said what you needed to say. I’m hearing you. This is done. Got it.” She made a quiet sound of disbelief in the back of her throat and gave him a sad-eyed look. “But you know, what I told my friends on movie night was right. Love isn’t romantic. It’s a goddamned horror show. Just when you start to trust that it can be good, it punches you in the face again. I should’ve known better.”

His stomach twisted, hating that he was causing her any pain. “I’m so sorry, Andi.”

She shook her head and hiked her purse up higher on her shoulder. “I know you are. I wish that made it better.” She nodded toward the building. “I’m going home. Tell my friends I wasn’t feeling well.”

“You don’t have to—”

“No, I really do.” She gave him one last look, her mascara making streaks along her cheeks. “Goodbye, Hill.”

With that, she turned and walked away. Hill leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes, knowing he’d done the right thing, but his heart breaking into a thousand pieces anyway. I was willing to risk all of that for you. Her words were going to haunt him.

He waited until he saw Andi pull out of the parking lot, and then he steeled himself to go back inside. He would make sure to pay back Eliza, and he would tell her friends to go find Andi, that she’d left upset. He didn’t want her alone tonight.

Hill schooled his face into a blank expression and headed back into the party room. Karaoke had started. Some dude he didn’t know was singing a country song he hated. He saw Andi’s friends gathered on the far side of the room, flipping through a binder of karaoke choices. He took a breath and turned to head that way.

But before he’d taken three steps, Christina stepped into his path. “Hey.”

Hill instantly halted, narrowly avoiding knocking her drink out of her hand. “Hey.”

“I’m glad you’re still here,” she said, pushing up on her toes to get closer to his ear. “I just got here and thought I’d missed you.”

“I was outside, getting some air,” he said against her ear, trying not to shout. “Can we catch up in a second? I need to—”

“Where’s Andi?” she asked, cutting him off.

“She left. Wasn’t feeling good.”

When he leaned away from her ear, he found Christina’s expression pinched with concern. She jerked a thumb toward the left. “We need to talk. Come next door with me for a second.”

“I’m supposed to let Andi’s friends know where she is.” He glanced their way again, but they hadn’t noticed him yet.

Christina grabbed his elbow. “In a minute. This is important.”

Hill sighed. He didn’t have the energy for another conversation. He wanted to go home and forget this night ever happened. But Christina looked like she wasn’t about to be put off. He nodded and followed her back into the room where the auction had taken place.

When the door shut behind them, the off-key singing blessedly turned to a dull throb. Christina let go of his elbow when they were a few steps away from the door and turned to him. “I tried to call you earlier.”

He frowned. “My phone’s been on silent since I got here a few hours ago. Ramsey’s orders for the auction. What’s going on?”

Christina was in a black, dressy jumpsuit thing, and after setting her drink on a nearby table, she put her hand into some hidden pocket and