Page 53 of Hard Rock Muse

16

My toe jiggled up and down. I crossed and uncrossed my legs. I suppressed a sigh and blew on my steaming hot coffee to cool it down.

Maybe he wasn’t coming.

After spending most of the day puttering around my apartment with Julian — making breakfast, doing the dishes, working a bit on our song — I decided I couldn’t put it off any longer.

I needed to talk with Seth.

I’d held a grudge against him for so long. I’d thought the worst of him for years. I’d thought he was the villain of the story, the reason Julian had left me.

It turned out my own stubbornness had been the cause all along.

The cafe door jingled. I looked up. Seth walked through the door. His auburn hair was combed away from his face. His green eyes locked on mine. Those eyes turned wary before he plastered on a smile and made his way over.

“Hey, Ever,” he said brightly, taking a seat. “What’s up? Julian said you wanted to talk to me?”

I fidgeted in my chair, shifting my weight from hip to hip.

“It’s Everly now,” I told him.

“You never used to use your full name,” Seth said.

“Things are different,” I said. “That’s sort of why I wanted to talk.”

Seth leaned forward expectantly, waiting. The moment drew out between us. The silence stretched. My hands clenched around my coffee cup.

“I’m sorry,” I blurted out.

Seth cocked his head, surprised. “For what?”

“For a lot of things,” I said. “For some stuff you don’t even know about.”

“Shouldn’t I be the one saying sorry?” he said. “I’m the one who broke up the band. I’m surprised you’re not scratching my eyes out.”

“Not gonna lie, I used to think about it,” I said.

We shared a small smile.

“But that’s the reason we’re here.” I inhaled deeply. “I blamed you for a lot of things for a long time. I thought everything that went down was your fault.”

“I’m the one who left,” he reminded me.

“I’m the one who didn’t listen,” I said. “I should have believed it when you and Julian told me you didn’t trust Keith.”

“That slimy asshole,” Seth muttered under his breath. He shook his head and met my eyes. “You should be mad at me. I convinced Julian to leave.”

“Julian told me he thought I’d come to my senses if he left.”

“That was my fault,” Seth said, shame-faced. “I gave him the idea. I was a dumbass back then. I didn’t realize how awful that was. How immature.”

“We were all dumbasses,” I said.

“I guess we were.”

“There’s one more thing,” I looked down into my coffee cup, face flaming. “This is so embarrassing to admit.” I took a deep breath. “I thought Julian left me for you. I thought he was in love with you.”

Seth blinked, taken aback. He stared at me. Then he let out a choked snort. Then a muffled chuckle. Then he couldn’t contain it anymore and threw his head back, laughing out loud.