Page 43

By the time the movie was over, I was already half asleep. I can barely remember the walk back to the inn or how I even got to my bed. All I remembered was sitting under the night sky with Nathan and the next thing I realized, I was waking up at the crack of dawn.

Against my better judgment I went out to the balcony and sat on one of the folded chairs. It was cold and goose bumps covered my skin but somehow the view just made it worth it.

Back home I was always on the go and I had never sat to watch the sunrise or heard the birds chirping in the morning.

Even if I wanted to, I would probably just end up watching sky scrapers, street lights and heard the sound of impatient drivers and the busy street.

It is all I have ever known but this is a welcome surprise and distraction .

“Hey,” I didn’t hear Nathan’s door open but I felt him take a seat next to me, “I didn’t think you’d be up this early.”

“I could say the same for you.”

“You’re freezing,” he disappeared into the room and returned with a plain black hoodie and handed it over to me.

“You didn’t have to,” I took it from him, “But thank you.”

“I thought I was going to have to force it on you.”

I rolled my eyes as I pulled it over my head, “I am not one to refuse something that could potentially help me.” I turned my back to him, “Can you help me pull my braids out of it?”

“You’re as stubborn as a mule Adira,” his hands brushed the back of my neck as he gathered my hair in his hands and helped me pull it out, “I’m never sure with you.”

“I take offense to being called a mule.”

“I didn’t say you were a mule, I said you were as stubborn as one. Do you need your hearing checked?”

“Do you want to be punched in the throat?” I asked and he laughed.

It wasn’t a small chuckle but rather a full blown laugh of amusement, one that came right out of his belly. His body vibrated from the sheer force of it and smile lines broke out around his eyes. That evasive dimple etched itself onto his skin and I couldn’t help but watch.

I can count on one hand the number of times I have since him laugh with such reckless abandon and it did something to me to know that I was the reason he was laughing like this. It filled me with a sick sense of pride and joy .

He wiped a stray tear out of his eye as his laughter finally settled, “I’d pay to see you actually punch someone in the throat.”

“Well it’s a good thing you’ll have a front row seat then. That way you won’t miss any of the action.”

“You really are a ray of sunshine.”

I pinched his side and he laughed again.

It was the same sound and it had the same effect on me.

I couldn’t help but laugh alongside him.

The wind carried the sounds and I’m sure if anyone saw us now they would think we were crazy.

Maybe we were, because that had to be the only plausible explanation as to why I was out here with Nathan of all people and I was having a good time.

Alas, all good things must come to an end and that came in the form of a knock on Nathan’s door. It startled us both, instantly breaking whatever spell had been cast on our little halo. Nathan stood up to answer the door and I heard the familiar southern drawl that belonged to Darius.

I allowed my curiosity get the best of me and I made my way into his room. The first thing I noticed was how neat it was. His bag was set carefully at the bottom of the open closet and his clothes were folded inside. The bed was perfectly made and his laptop sat opened on the polished wooden table.

I know that I am not messy but I felt like a slob in that moment. I barely ever make my bed and my box was still packed.

“Good morning,” Darius said with a wide smile.

He was dressed in jeans, a plaid shirt and boots and he way too bright and cheery for anyone to before 7 a.m.

“Good morning,” I tried to smile back but I’m sure it came out looking more like a grimace .

“I was on my way to work and I decided to just check in on you guys. I hope you’re enjoying the town and the people so far.”

“The town’s okay,” the people- not so much. “Thank you for checking in.”

“Well I’m glad to hear that.” If he realized that I deliberately ignored his question about the people, he didn’t show it, “There’s a bar not too far from here.

It’s a Friday and most of the town just goes there to unwind.

I figured I would invite y’all. You don’t have to come but it beats spending a Friday night in. ”

“Thanks for the invite.” To someone else, Nathan would have sounded normal but I could hear the undercurrent of annoyance in his tone, “We will think about it.”

“Well, have a good day.”

Darius left the room without another word and Nathan wasted no time in locking the door behind him. He turned to me and when I saw the glint in his eyes I shook my head and made my way back to the balcony doors.

“No,” I said and he laughed, “I’m serious, the answer is no.”

“I didn’t even ask anything.”

“You don’t need to,” I called out as I made my way back, “My answer is already no.”

Even though I slammed the door to the balcony, his laughter still followed.

After that exchange, Nathan ordered in breakfast for us both. We ate together and when we were done, he retreated to his room to get work done. Apparently, I was the only one on vacation while he got to do his work .

I spent the majority of my day on social media.

Twitter was still reeling from the after math of Couture Week and so far, I hadn’t seen a single negative review about myself.

Maybe I wasn’t checking hard enough but every single statement and every single article had nothing but good things to say about my dress.

I saw a few comments of people asking about my interaction with that horrible photographer but so far, no one had said anything about it and he hadn’t released any pictures up Marissa’s skirt so I took that as a win.

By noon, I was bored out of my mind. I haven’t been home doing nothing in a very long time and I don’t know how to do it. I would have gone to bother Nathan but I wasn’t sure where we stood after everything that had been happening and I didn’t want to over step my boundaries.

My mind drifted to the lake I saw from the balcony and I decided to check it out.

When I went down, Bea wasn’t at the counter and there was no one in the waiting room. I assumed they had all gone out for work so I made my way out the back and hoped I was going the right way and wouldn’t get lost.

I found the flower garden and I knew I was on the right track.

Soon, I found the lake and I have to admit, it is a lot more beautiful up close.

The water was clear and undisturbed and the entire atmosphere was just serene.

I let out a deep breath and sat cross legged on the floor ignoring the grass that tickled my thighs and shin.

Perhaps wearing shorts was not the best idea.

I sat there in silence for a few minutes and when I heard footsteps approaching, I thought it was Nathan so I didn’t even turn back as I spoke.

“It’s pretty isn’t it?” I asked

“You can see why I stayed.” My smile fell as the voice registered. I squared my shoulders and kept my eyes fixed on the water hoping he would leave, “I came to see you and Bea said that she saw you go out here.”

“How did you know where I was staying?”

“You’re the only new people we’ve had in a while. People are bound to talk.” He paused before adding, “That, and I stayed here the first time I came.”

Joseph took a seat next to me and as immature as it was, I scooted to the side so that he wouldn’t be touching me at all. He let out a deep sigh but didn’t otherwise acknowledge my actions. Instead he ran his fingers through the soft grass.

“We need to talk.” He said finally after a beat of silence.

“We have nothing to talk about.”

“Great, then you can listen.” He cleared his throat, “I had no idea that you would come here and I never meant for you to find out like that.”

“How exactly did you plan for me to find out? I know you weren’t going to call me. If my memory serves me right, you screened my calls. Were you going to post it on social media and hope that I saw it? Oh wait, you blocked me there too.”

“Adira, don’t do this. I don’t want to fight with you.”

I hated how he spoke as if I was being unreasonable when I was being anything but, “You were the one who said we needed to talk so let’s talk.”

“I never meant to hurt you with any of that. I just wanted to put the past behind me. ”

“Are you fucking kidding me right now?” I whirled on him, “We were engaged and you cheated on me Joseph. She’s six months pregnant and I’m sure it wasn’t a one time thing that got her knocked up. You didn’t even have the decency to tell me.”

“I didn’t plan to cheat; she just-,”

I cut him off, “Of course you wouldn’t take responsibility. Are you going to throw her under the bus now?”

He let out a groan as he ran his hands through his hair in frustration. “This is my problem with you, you never listen. I love her and I won’t apologize for that.”

“I’m not asking you to do that. Although it would have been nice if you apologized for being a cheating asshole and lying to the entire world about it.”

“You could handle the backlash. They don’t know her like they know you. They’re vultures and they would have torn her apart. I saw what they were saying about you and I knew she would never be able to handle that.”

“You ruined my life, Joseph!” At this point I didn’t care who heard us or if our voices were carried by the wind. I was pissed off. “I was egged and flour bombed and called a home wrecked for days because of you. I could have lost everything because of your actions. Do you realize that?”

“Well maybe if you lost something you would have cared.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Your work has always been the most important thing to you.”