“We’re still together and both very happy, if that’s what you mean.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “Why? Because he took you on some fancy vacation?”
I’d had no choice but to tell him I was in Breckenridge when he’d texted, asking me to have dinner with him and his parents. They’d driven him and his belongings all the way from Kansas. Though I’d felt bad about missing them, I’d also been relieved. His parents couldn’t be happy about him giving up his place on the WSU baseball team to play at Harbor U instead. And, if I were them, I’d totally blame me for his poor decision.
“No, it has nothing to do with that and everything to do with Leo. Like I told you before, I’m in love with him, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.”
“It’s bullshit, Thea. How can you not see that?”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about, and I really don’t want to argue with you about this anymore.” I placed my hand on his arm and asked, beseeching, “Can’t we go back to the way things were?”
He stared at me for a few uncomfortable seconds before tearing his arm away. “I’m sorry, but that’s never going to happen. Sometimes, you can’t go back.”
“Okay, then, how do we go forward?”
Tobias redirected his attention to the room, and when he didn’t respond, I wondered if he’d even heard me. Eventually, he said, “Maybe we can move forward after I find a way to move on.”
Even as frustration swamped me, my heart ached. I didn’t want him to pine after me. I wanted him to be the happy, lovable guy he’d always been.
“Who’s the girl that’s been shooting daggers at you for the last hour?” he asked suddenly.
“What girl?”
He gestured to the other side of the room, and it only took me seconds to spot none other than Miss Delta Chi Delta herself glaring at me. I’d noticed her earlier but had managed to stay out of her way. Apparently, my presence alone was enough to flip her bitch switch.
“That’s Kelsey, Hayle’s ex-girlfriend. She hates me.”
“Perfect.”
He took a step away, but I caught his arm, stopping him. “What do you mean, perfect?”
Tobias gave me the closest thing to a cruel smile I’d ever seen from him. “Perfect for moving on.”
Then, he shook off my hand a second time and strode across the room and straight to Kelsey. He leaned down to say something into her ear, and she giggled, peering up at him with instant adoration.
When he took her hand and led her to the staircase, my stomach roiled, and I turned my head away. I couldn’t watch any longer.
What Tobias did—and with whom—wasn’t any of my business. But I never thought he’d go out of his way to hurt me like that. Guess he wasn’t my sweet puppy dog of a best friend anymore.
My gaze collided with Leo’s across the room, and his eyebrows pinched together in concern. Are you okay? he mouthed, and I nodded. Because I was okay. Tobias’s attitude stung, but I refused to let it ruin my night.
Not when I had Leo here with me and Hayle and Tristin waiting at home. If anything, my former best friend’s behavior highlighted how much my boyfriends had changed over the last few months. They would still have asshole-ish moments, no doubt. Just as I would.
But I no longer dreaded those moments.
I merely looked forward to making up.
Chapter Thirty-One
Tristin
I stared at the television screen, unseeing, and took another sip of lukewarm beer. Happy freaking New Year. Mediocre pizza, less than mediocre drinks, and a TV show I was barely watching—this was what dreams were made of. Don’t let anyone tell you differently.
The thing was, I didn’t care about this pseudo-holiday. At least, I didn’t normally. I could appreciate the acknowledgment of the passage of time or even the hope for another new beginning. But I didn’t hold any stock in the idea that you needed to start the year the way you wanted to spend the rest of it.
And, yet, I’d been restless ever since Thea and Leo walked out the front door. I hated the idea of them out there while I was stuck in here. Which made absolutely no sense.
I didn’t particularly like socializing and abhorred parties, for good reason. There was absolutely nothing enticing about the thought of stepping foot into that damned football house…except that Thea was there.