Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 114467 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 572(@200wpm)___ 458(@250wpm)___ 382(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 114467 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 572(@200wpm)___ 458(@250wpm)___ 382(@300wpm)
“Will you give me a ride?” I ask him, and he just nods his head at me. I hug Jeffrey and Becky goodbye and then walk to the door to get my purse and see the small box on the top. I leave it on the counter instead of making a scene with everyone watching. “Thank you for inviting me,” I tell Viktor and walk over to him and give him a hug. It’s actually the first time I’ve hugged him. I don’t know what I expect, but I’m not expecting to be taken into his arms into a big bear hug. He hugs me with both arms, pulling me close to him. One hand going to his back while I hold my purse in the other dangling next to me.
“Thank you, Zoe,” he whispers. “For everything.”
I don’t say anything to him. I can’t because the lump in my throat stops everything and anything from coming out. Instead, I do the only thing I can. I smile and nod, then turn and walk out the door. Zara walks next to me on one side and Karrie on the other side. Both of them are there to hold me up, regardless of what they know. The men are oblivious to what just happened, and even if they asked me, I couldn’t answer.
Chapter Twenty-One
Viktor
“Thank you for coming.” I hug Becky and ignore the way my head feels like it’s going to explode. Having everyone here was everything. Knowing I could count on these people means everything. The pull of wanting to go to Zoe and just grab her face and kiss the ever-loving shit out of her was more than I thought it would be.
She was off the minute her sister walked inside the place, or maybe a touch before that. I can’t pinpoint it, but I knew there was a shift, and I didn’t like it. She was usually the one cracking jokes, and tonight, her smile didn’t make it all the way to her eyes. “You take care,” Jeffrey says, grabbing Becky’s hand and ushering her out.
I close the door after them and look around. The chairs are still out as everyone left them. The caterer left the kitchen just as he found it. I walk to the table and push in the chairs and pick up the last of the straws and glasses, bringing them into the kitchen and putting them in the sink. My eyes landing on the little white box on the counter with the blue bow. I walk over and pick it up, turning it in my hand.
I pull the satin bow, and it falls to the floor and I pull off the cover. My heart stops when I see that it’s another key chain. This time, it’s a circle with the words.
I believe in you
05-01-19
I grab it out of the box and that, too, falls to the floor, and I don’t notice or care. My finger runs over the words. I believe in you. Four words that push me over the edge. Four words and I know I have to build a wall around my heart, if not for her than for me. She deserves better than me. She deserves someone who doesn’t have a cloud over his head the whole time. She deserves to have perfect, and that isn’t me. I grab my phone and send her a text.
Me: Thank you for the key chain.
I wait for her to answer me, but she doesn’t. I don’t know if I’m happy or sad when she doesn’t.
I’m in the middle of packing my bag the next day for a six-day road trip when my phone finally buzzes.
Zoe: Glad you like it.
I sit down, and my hand itches to reply to her. I rub my finger over her name on my phone, and then I put it down gently, walking away from it. Six days away is going to help; it’s going to be a good time. I make sure the days are spent either on the ice or in the gym. I spend extra time on the ice each day by myself or with a few other people. I get my head in the zone, washing away everything that is going on.
The nights are still a mess. The hours that I do sleep are filled with Zoe in them—her smile, her laugh, her glare, even her rolling her eyes. It’s the only time I let myself go, the only time I let my guard down, and she sneaks in.
“Good news,” Evan tells me halfway through the road trip. “I spoke with Candace, and she says she can take you on.”
“Great,” I tell him. “I tried to venture onto Facebook two days ago, and I swear there just were so many red notifications that I closed out of it.”