Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 107204 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 536(@200wpm)___ 429(@250wpm)___ 357(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107204 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 536(@200wpm)___ 429(@250wpm)___ 357(@300wpm)
“Well aren’t you smitten,” an older man said as he stumbled to the bar beside me, clearly intoxicated. My body instantly tensed, as I recognized him from how Catie interacted with him the whole night.
Henry.
The scumbag.
He gave me a wicked grin and grabbed a toothpick from the bar counter. He stabbed a few olives in the mason jar and shoved them into his mouth. I was almost certain that was exactly how he stabbed Alex in the back.
“I’m Henry—”
“I know who you are,” I cut in, impatiently waiting for my drink. He smelled like bourbon and was bathed in cockiness.
He raised an eyebrow. “Do I have that big of a reputation?”
“To say the least,” I muttered, slightly turning my body away from him. He was the last person I wanted to be engaging with.
“Wow. Alex has a feisty one this time. Then again,” he leaned on the bar and allowed his arm to slightly brush with mine. “That’s kind of what I found attractive about Catie, too. So, what do you say? Are you interested in giving this old man a spin when you’re done with Alex?”
What a freaking pervert.
I snatched my arm away from him and grabbed my drink as it came out. “You’re a disgusting man, and I hope you burn in hell.”
He laughed. A sinister chuckle. “I could use the tan.”
“It’s not funny,” I spat out. “Alex looked up to you. He trusted you. So, if you get a kick out of hurting people, that’s on you. If you find it funny that someone suffered from your actions, cool. But believe me when I say this—he’s better off without you.” I glanced past Henry to see Catie standing there. I wondered how much she’d overheard.
From the way her eyes glassed over, it was enough.
I lifted my drink from the counter, and brushed past Henry, walking straight toward Catie.
“You made the wrong choice,” I told her. “You picked the wrong guy.”
As I walked past her, tears began to fall down her cheeks. It was clear that she knew I was right. I couldn’t for the life of me imagine doing what she’d done to Alex.
How did you go from luxury streets paved with gold to a dirty pot-hole of a man? How did she let Alex go only to run into the arms of a creep who was quick to hit on anything with a vagina between their legs?
When Alex found me on my way back to our table, he reached for my arm gently. “Hey. I saw you talking to Henry. You looked upset walking away. Are you okay? Did he say something—"
My eyes held his before I leaned in and cut into his words. I pressed my mouth to his, kissing him into silence. My kisses melted against his lips as I stood on my tiptoes, falling into him. I kissed him deeply, losing myself and finding him for the few seconds that our mouths interlocked. With each kiss, I wanted him to feel the truths that I wished to plant within his spirit. I wanted him to know that he was worthy of having someone stick around. He was worthy of love and of being loved. He was worth the commitment, worth the promises that love brought with him.
I kissed him for his past hurts, and he kissed me back without even knowing he was kissing my former pains, too. I never knew lips could heal until his fell against mine.
His hands wrapped around my body, and he held me so close. As the music blasted around us and others danced past in a blur, I felt as if I were floating ten feet high. I felt intoxicated, yet more sober than ever before. As I pulled back, I tenderly nuzzled his bottom lip before kissing him one last time.
“Real or fake?” he whispered against my mouth, his gaze deep and mesmerizing with a timid warmth that drew me closer.
“Real,” I replied.
Oh, so real.
After a few more hours of dancing and celebration, the beautiful couple raced through the sparklers, giggling nonstop with one another as they entered their getaway car. Across from me in the sparkler line was Alex. Laughing as he watched his best friend race toward his happily ever after. I’d never seen a person seem so utterly overjoyed for another. The love he had for Noah was so loud through the way his eyes showcased said affection.
Then he looked at me.
His eyes locked with mine across the sparklers and his lips turned into the biggest smile I’d yet to see from him.
My cheeks felt as if they would burst from joy seeing how full of life he’d been. There were a million reasons he should’ve felt off that night. He was faced with people who hurt him to his core. People who broke his heart and kicked around the shattered pieces. Yet he didn’t fall backward into the traps they’d tried to set for him. He rose and was the bigger person.