Page 19 of Sweet Hate (If You Dare #1)

HAVEN

“ W ait, wait, WAIT a minute—so Axel just stopped texting you when you moved?” Kim’s jaw practically sits on the diner table.

“Close your mouth, Kim, you’ll catch flies.” Mia pushes Kim’s mouth closed with a finger without missing a beat.

Breakfast with the girls is the perfect distraction. I might be totally stalling, but to say I’m nervous about seeing Axel would be an understatement.

“Uhhhh hellooooo Pink Lady. Wanna clue a sister in already?”

I laugh. Kim’s dramatic reactions are somehow helping me fill them both in on the whole sordid story.

“Yep, that’s exactly it. I texted him for weeks, then tried occasionally after that, but he gave me nothing! When we said goodbye before I left for the airport, we were both upset, but I had zero idea that he literally meant goodbye, see you never!”

“Girl, why didn’t you tell us any of this? I’d have quite happily hit him in the balls, with a goddamned shovel,” Kim practically shouts.

“Jesus Kim, can we not tell the whole town please?” I kick her under the table. Last thing I need is everyone knowing my business.

She looks contrite, an expression that’s totally alien on her face, and mimes zipping her lips shut, motioning me to continue.

“I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to believe it myself at first. I made up every excuse under the sun.

Maybe he fell asleep, or he lost his phone, or he got hit by a bus—any and all wild, crazy thoughts—until I asked Grams about him, and she mentioned seeing him around with some girl.

Once I heard that, I realized he was ghosting me on purpose, and then I just felt freakin’ humiliated.

” Kim and Mia share a concerned glance waiting for me to continue.

I hate having to relive these memories, they still hurt.

Especially now, seeing him again every day.

And now, I feel bad even saying anything given our brief text truce, but if anyone can help me make sense of it all it’s these two.

“Last thing I wanted to do was tell you guys and keep thinking about him. It was all I could do to hold my shit together enough for training. It was just easier to pretend everything was normal, until eventually it just…was. But I’m fine now, you guys; you don’t need to worry. I got over it.”

Mia knew most of this already, but we’d agreed to pretend she didn’t. I love Kim dearly, but she can be a bit of a loose cannon, and when all this kicked off, I just didn’t want to risk her confronting him over it and blowing up their entire friend group.

Kim’s face is now bright red, and alarmingly, she’s grasping her knife in a vise-like grip.

“Easy there, Rambo” I slide a hand over her knife-wielding one and push it down to the table.

“That’s not the point. What a tiny, limp-dicked toad of a man to do that to you.”

Mmm, his cock was far from tiny, but it’s probably not the time to throw that out there.

“We all tried to rally around him, knowing he was naturally hit hardest, but Jesus, he was a total dick back then. After a while, we just gave him a wide berth because that’s what he wanted.

It didn’t seem like we were going to get normal happy-go-lucky Axel back anytime soon, especially with everything else that happened. ”

What else happened?

Before I can ask Kim, Mia slaps the table with a laugh making us both jump.

“What do you mean back then ? When Haven and I ran into him at Jett’s the other night, if looks could kill, our boy Lucas would be dead and buried right now for breathing the same air as Haven. Hell knows how Lucas will put up with working with him.”

Kim throws her head back, laughing. “Lucas can handle himself against Axel. It’s fine.”

I wish she’d not reminded me of the other night. The image of that blonde wrapping her hand around his bicep and him grinning up at her like she’d hung the moon pops back into my mind. Shaking my head, I refocus on the girls.

It’s now or never.

“So that’s not all.”

Both heads snap up to look at me, waiting for the next installment in this ridiculous situation. I proceed to fill them in on everything, from the fire to the Alfredo sauce—Kim laughed so hard she almost peed herself—to the multiple weird hot and cold interactions since.

Watching their faces, I can barely contain a giggle at the expressions they are pulling as they read the messages from Axel.

Mia looks up at me first, disbelief written all over her face.

“So let me get this straight— he texts you and then ghosts you again?”

“Well, only temporarily this time, I guess. He apologized yesterday. ”

“Not the point. And nothing since?”

“You’re holding the phone, girl. Nope, nothing.”

Kim grabs her own phone and furiously scrolls.

“HA! But we know he’s creeped on the group chat. I can tell he read my last message, which means he’s also read all of yours and seen your hot as fuck photos.”

Why does that send a spark through me? I should not be sparking. When will I learn?

That’s it—tonight I’m making time for a little vibe party. Maybe if I take the edge off, I’ll stop sparking like a live wire around him.

“We can work with that.” Mia looks between us with a mischievous look on her face.

“If he’s checking the group chat, he’s doing it for a reason.

We all know he barely bothers with it. Plus, look at our girl today—she’s hot with a capital H.

It would be a shame for him not to see it.

Let’s get some bubbly to celebrate and take some selfies to send to the chat. ”

“Oh my God, Mia, don’t be ridiculous!! And it’s ten thirty in the morning. No one wants bubbles this early.”

“Champagne breakfast, darling. You should know better. Besides, that fucker needs to see what he’s missing by not pulling his head out of his ass.”

“Want to bet on who replies first?” Kim makes a show of pulling out her purse.

“Well, we all know Axel won’t be replying.”

“But he will see them, and that’s all that matters, Havey.” Mia winks at me before sliding a dollar across the table. “My money’s on Lucas.”