DUMPED

by Lucy Hawkins

  “Then I think you need to let him know that.”

  “I said I’d give him space—”

  “I understand that, but you can’t leave this kind of thing too late. The longer you wait, the more he’s going to think you don’t care. Trust me. “

  Hank nodded slowly. “Okay. Okay. I’ll give it a couple of days, give him a little more time, and then I’ll ask him to come home.”

  Home at the inn, with Hank. Where he belonged.

  Twenty-Eight

  Alex

  The spoon scraped the cardboard bottom of the ice cream carton, and Alex let out a frustrated growl. They were making pints smaller and smaller these days, he swore. He turned the carton up just to make sure he’d gotten everything before setting it down on his nightstand where it joined three others.

  Pulling his blanket closer around himself, he started the next episode of Say Yes to the Dress. The bride introduced herself and launched into an impassioned monologue about how she’d met her fiancé before being fitted into her first dress. It was ugly. Shapeless and tacky, and he hated it. The bride needed him to tell her that instead of her ridiculous family all telling her how much they loved it. At least April and Cynthia had the good sense to pick dresses that looked nice. He’d been back to the inn once for the meeting with them, but that had been three days ago. Or was it four? What day was it? There was no reason to keep track anymore.

  Hank had been there. Alex hadn’t expected him not to be, but walking into the kitchen to grab coffee had been truly torturous and made him feel like he’d been kicked in the chest. Hank looked tired, like he hadn’t slept. Neither had Alex. After he’d made it back to the house, he’d curled up in a ball on his bed and refused to come out. Was hiding away from the world exactly healthy? Absolutely not. But it was what he did best when everything was going wrong.

  Grabbing his phone, he pulled up Hazel’s number for the third time in ten minutes. His finger hovered over the call button, but he didn’t press down. Even he couldn’t be that selfish, and he was the king of selfish. If he called Hazel, she would only want to come see him, and that would go directly against her doctor’s orders to stay in bed until the baby came. His mom wouldn’t be any help either. She would coo and tell him everything was okay and it wasn’t anything he couldn’t fix. And while that might have been the truth, he didn’t want empty platitudes. He wanted to know what the hell he was supposed to do in a situation like this.

  Of course, he could always try going directly to Hank and telling him how badly he’d fucked up. It would be so easy to crawl back to the inn like a dog groveling for forgiveness, but the ball was in Hank’s court. He’d left. If Hank wanted him, he’d come and get him.

  Chances were, Hank didn’t want him. He’d probably gotten tired of him. And the worst part was, Alex didn’t even blame him. He was a lot to handle at the best of times, and now he’d gone and accused Hank’s brother of stealing. Why wouldn’t Hank have taken Daniel’s side? Alex hadn’t even give him a chance, even when all the evidence said he hadn’t stolen the check. And after everything Daniel had done for them—coming on board as a chef, filling in as photographer, reconnecting with Hank.

  Alex would have to leave Redwood. The town was too small, and people would talk. Likely, they were already talking. At least this time, it wouldn’t be in all the papers.

  A tap came from his door and he rolled over. “Come in.” Please don’t be Mom. It wasn’t. Instead, Taylor walked in. “What do you want?”

  “What, I can’t come see how my big brother’s doing after his breakup?” She glanced at the empty cartons of Ben & Jerry’s and lifted an eyebrow. “Clearly not doing so hot.”

  “We didn’t break up,” Alex said. At least, he didn’t think they had. “We just…”

  “Took a break?” Taylor asked pointedly. “That’s what Ross and Rachel said on Friends, and we all know how that turned out.”

  Fuck. “I told him I needed some space. I… I did something bad.”

  “Like sleeping with Scamp Mowbray bad? Cause let me tell you, as far as bad decisions go, that one was pretty horrible.”

  She was trying to make him feel better, and normally Alex would have been impressed she was trying, but right now, he just wanted to wallow.

  “There was a… a misunderstanding.” That was putting it mildly, but he didn’t want to go dragging Daniel’s name through the mud, especially when he hadn’t done anything wrong. “I made a mistake, and then instead of fixing the mistake, I made it worse, because that’s what I always do. I make things worse until they can’t be made better again, and then I run away.”

  He wrapped his arms around himself, his breathing ragged. Fucking up was all he was good for. He’d dated Grant and ruined the life he had in Manhattan, and now that he finally felt at home somewhere, he’d ruined that, too. The only thing was, there was nowhere else to run.

  “You didn’t exactly do a very good job if this is what you consider running. You know he could walk to our house if he was determined to see you, right?”

  “Then why hasn’t he? Not walked, necessarily, it’s still a little far for that, but why hasn’t he at least come and tried to see what’s going on?”

  Ten miles. That was all that separated them, and Hank couldn’t be bothered to close that distance.

  “Have you asked him to?” Taylor asked.

  “No.”

  She rolled her eyes and pulled a face. “Seriously, Alex? You want to know why he hasn’t tried to talk to you when you haven’t asked him to? What do you think he is, a mind reader?”

  “No! The ball’s in his court—”

  “What could possibly make you think that? Let me guess, was it the part where you told him you needed a break? Maybe it was coming back here. Or the fact that you haven’t talked to him since then.” Taylor rolled her eyes. “He isn’t one of your city boys who’s used to these kinds of games. Passive aggression isn’t going to work on him.”

  “So, what am I supposed to do?” Alex asked. He had to be desperate if he was asking Taylor for advice.

  “Are you stupid, or are you just not listening to anything I’m saying?” she asked, clearly annoyed. “You need to figure out what you want. ‘Cause right now, I don’t think you know.”

  “I…” He closed his mouth.

  Taylor’s expression eased into something that, on anyone else, would have been almost gentle. “You always acted like you were so much better than us. Even as a kid, all you talked about was how you were going to make it big one day. You were going to move to New York City and be the best wedding planner in the country. Celebrities would come to you, and your name would be in every magazine, and you’d have this whirlwind romance with a hot city boy.”

  He’d had that. Every single part of it. He’d moved to the city and made a name for himself in the wedding industry, and even planned weddings for a couple of B-list celebrities. And, of course, everyone knew of his romance. All of that felt like a different life. One he could look back on as an observer. But it had been his, once upon a time.

  “Is that… I mean, do you still want all those things?” Taylor asked.

  “I don’t know,” he said, staring at his hands. “I thought I did, but I’m happy here. Hank is… He’s perfect. He’s everything I’ve ever wanted in a guy—gentle and supportive. He pushes me to do better, and he’s so encouraging. I would never have gone back into wedding planning if not for him.”

  The life he had at the inn wasn’t the glamorous one he’d always dreamed of. There were no upscale parties or dinners at Michelin star restaurants. Instead, there was coffee in the morning, showing prospective clients around the grounds of The Lakeside, going to bed every night beside the man he loved. It was a quiet life. A domestic one. A perfect one.

  “I want him,” he said. His vision blurred and he blinked, sending hot tears cascading down his cheeks. “I love him.”

  “Then you have to tell him, in no uncertain terms. ‘Cause no offense, but you’re
terrible at communicating. Like, really bad at it.”

  Alex snorted. “And you aren’t?”

  “Hey, now,” Taylor said, mock-offended. “We are not talking about me right now.”

  He nodded and rested his head on her shoulder. “I know. I’ll tell him, I promise. Tomorrow. Right now, I need a walk and probably some coffee.”

  “Take a shower first. You smell like body odor and sadness.”

  Alex walked back up the path toward his mom’s house, hot cup of coffee in his hand. The girl behind the counter at the doughnut shop hadn’t understood how he could ask for a large black coffee, and he hadn’t even tried to explain. She didn’t need to understand. He just needed to feel slightly less dead.

  There was a car in his driveway, and Alex’s heart lurched. Hank? No, Hank drove a truck, and Daniel’s was a Civic—not a BMW, and certainly not a convertible. He quickened his pace, the gravel crunching under his shoes. The rocking chair on the porch moved in the corner of his eye and he turned.

  Definitely not Hank.

  Grant.

  He froze in the driveway, his fingers tightening on the plastic cup. “What the hell are you doing on my front porch?” he heard himself ask.

  “You wouldn’t answer my emails, and my calls wouldn’t go through.”

  That was probably because Alex had blocked his number as soon as he’d gotten back to Redwood.

  “So, you thought the best thing to do was surprise me at my mother’s house?”

  “I had to talk to you. Please. Just hear me out.”

  How many times had he heard that one before? Grant was always asking him to hear him out, whether he’d missed a date or been rude to one of Alex’s friends. If he never that phrase again, it would be too soon.

  But Grant was like a bulldog. Once he got his teeth in something, he wouldn’t let it go until he wanted to. Fighting him was useless. The best thing to do was wait him out.

  He climbed up the steps to the porch, sitting stiffly in the other rocking chair. “Okay. Talk,” he said coldly.

  “Aren’t you even going to look at me?”

  Alex kept his gaze trained on the floorboards. “I remember what you look like.”

  Grant went silent for a moment before sighing. “I was stupid to let you go. I hurt you in ways I can’t even imagine, and for that, I am so, so sorry.”

  How many times had he rehearsed this speech? It definitely didn’t sound like he was just saying what was in his heart.

  “I treated you horribly while we were together, and I can never take that back. But I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me.”

  Alex rolled his eyes. “You know that saying, forgive and forget? Yeah, I’m not gonna forgive you, but I was perfectly happy to forget you ever existed.”

  “Really? So all that time we were together, the anniversaries we shared, that trip to the Maldives, you’re just going to forget that ever happened?” Grant tsked. “You’re many things, Alex, but you’re not cruel. I can’t believe you would just want to forget how good we were together.”

  “Let’s just say I have no reason to think of it fondly,” Alex said. “I mean, can you even imagine how humiliating it was, standing there in the middle of our wedding venue and realizing you were never going to be there? After all the work I put into it.”

  “We put into it,” Grant chided. “I put just as much in as you did. And I realize now I made the biggest mistake of my life. I want you back in my life, Alex. I want to marry you. This time, it’ll be perfect—none of that frilly pink we decorated with the first time. And we’ll find you a better suit.”

  “Oh my God, do you even hear yourself? You’re literally incapable of talking to me without pointing out things you don’t like about me. Did it ever occur to you, during the three hours it took to drive up here, that I might not want you back?” A year’s worth of anger flooded through his veins. “You were a terrible boyfriend. You cheated on me over and over again, and you didn’t even say you were sorry. Hell, you didn’t even outright tell me. I had to find out from our friends!”

  “I already said I hurt you—”

  “And you expect that to magically make everything okay? You’re delusional or stupid, I don’t know which.”

  Ten months ago, he would have been overjoyed to hear Grant say he wanted him back. He’d have gone in a heartbeat. But now, all he wanted was for Grant to leave. He grabbed his coffee cup, wishing it were full so he could throw the contents in Grant’s face, and stormed inside, locking every bolt on the door.

  Twenty-Nine

  Hank

  He couldn’t wait anymore. It had been almost a week—five days, but who was counting—and the hollow ache had become unbearable. Finding Rhiannon in room six, he practically threw the phone and schedule book at her.

  “I need you to man the desk for a bit,” he said, already turning to head downstairs.

  “Where are you going to be?”

  “Out!”

  “Take all the time you need,” she called back after a beat. “Maybe you’ll be less grumpy when you get back.”

  That was the plan. The need to talk to Alex had all but consumed him. He’d given Alex time to cool off, time to figure things out, but that time was up. They needed to sit down and figure out where they went from here, and Hank wasn’t going down without a fight. He’d wooed Alex once, and he could do it again.

  The nine-point-seven miles to Alex’s house were spent trying to figure out what he was going to say. It was all well and good to go barging over, but unless he had a compelling argument, more than likely, Alex was going to tell him to fuck off. Silently, he ticked off the reasons Alex should take him back.

  He loved Alex.

  They worked well together, and he didn’t want to ruin the business they had.

  He trusted Alex, no matter how much it seemed he didn’t.

  Alex made him want to be a better person.

  Daniel liked him, and Daniel didn’t like anyone.

  He would never betray Alex the way Grant had.

  Turning into the drive, he spotted another car and frowned. He’d never seen it around town, so it wasn’t someone local. Maybe one of Alex’s friends from Manhattan? But in the nine months he’d known Alex, he’d never met a single friend of his from Manhattan. In fact, he suspected everyone but Hazel had taken Grant’s side in the breakup. How hard must that have been for him, to lose his fiancé and friend base in the same day?

  He threw the truck in park and opened the door. The car in question was gorgeous—a sleek, silver BMW convertible with a tan leather interior. During his football days, he’d always dreamed of splurging on a fancy car, but he’d never found the right one. Now, he could never even hope to afford something as nice as that.

  “Can I help you?”

  Hank jolted at the voice that came from the porch. A blond man sat in one of the rocking chairs looking anything but hospitable. His suit was tailored, Hank could tell even from the driveway, and he had the physique of a man who worked out in a gym. He’d probably never done a day’s worth of manual labor before in his life.

  “I’m looking for Alex,” he said, walking up to the porch. “You wouldn’t happen to know if he’s home, would you?”

  The other man eyed him warily. “Why do you ask?”

  Who the hell did he think he was? “Because I need to talk to him, that’s why.”

  “I don’t think you do.” His voice was smooth, almost triumphant, though Hank couldn’t figure out for the life of him what he’d won. “I’m Alex’s fiancé, see.”

  Oh. That was… unexpected. Hank had never seen pictures of Grant. Sure, he’d wondered what he looked like, but part of him didn’t want to know. Now he understood why. Grant was gorgeous. The kind of beautiful that inspired Greek sculptors to create statues and Renaissance artists to decorate chapel ceilings. He would look good on Alex’s arm when they went out to dinner, and Hank was sure that if he ever smiled, people would describe it as like looking into the sun. A
lex would never feel ashamed to be seen with him.

  “I didn’t know you two had gotten back together,” he said, once he found his voice.

  “It’s all been very sudden, but we’re quite happy together,” Grant said smoothly. “Alex realized what a mistake he’d made, running away like he did. He’s decided to move back to my penthouse in Manhattan. His little wedding business out here is cute, but it’s hardly big enough for someone like him, don’t you think?”

  Hank couldn’t even argue. Alex had always been too big for this town. Too smart, too skilled, too… bright. Everything else in Redwood looked dull in comparison. Of course he deserved the best, and it was so very clear Hank couldn’t give him that. Grant could. He could give Alex all the contacts, the financial backing, all the support he needed to make it big. To realize his dreams.

  “Right.” The word scraped against the back of his throat. “I’m just… I’m gonna go. Don’t tell him I was here.”

  He managed to make it back to the truck, a loud ringing filling his head as though someone had boxed his ears. It was better this way, he told himself. At least he hadn’t made a fool of himself and told Alex he loved him. He liked to think Alex would have at least let him down gently. Now, it didn’t matter.

  The nine-point-five miles back seemed to stretch on for much longer than that. At some point, the road blurred in front of him, and Hank wiped his eyes. Ten years. Ten years he’d waited for his chance to be with Alex, and it turned out, he was too late. He’d just been a bit of fun while Alex tried to figure out what he was feeling for Grant.

  By some miracle, he made it to the inn without hitting anything, although he might have missed a stop sign or two. Whatever the cost of the ticket, it would certainly hurt less than this. He stumbled up the steps, the world around fading away until it was just him, and the ringing in his ears and the pain lodged in his chest like a shard of glass.