Unable to deal with the possibility that Seb was telling the truth, Cole turned to Matt with a glare.
“What about you? Are you going to tell me nothing happened with you and Bri, too?”
“I’m going to tell you the truth. Something you’ve never given me the chance to do.” Matt pinned him with a determined, sad stare, and a flutter of panic stared in Cole’s chest.
“Nothing happened between me and Bri, and that is the truth. Yes, Bri and I have always teased each other, and maybe flirted a little back and forth, but I know she’s never been interested in me like that. We are friends, and that’s all we’ve ever been. That morning you saw us…” Matt took a deep breath before continuing. “That night was the worst night of my life. I had finally worked up the courage to tell Stacie that I loved her, and instead of saying it back, she broke up with me. She told me things were moving too fast, and she wasn’t ready for anything serious. She said that she didn’t feel that way about me, and probably never would, so it’d be best for both of us if we just ended it. I was devastated.” Matt’s eyes glazed over as he got caught up in the memory.
“I’ve never been in love before, and I didn’t know how to deal with that rejection. And I didn’t deal with it. I kind of lost it, in fact. I started drinking, and didn’t stop until they kicked me out. I ran into Bri on my way home. She saw what a mess I was and took me home. She stayed with me, and helped talk me down. I was so freaking wrecked, I was in danger of doing something really stupid. She made sure I was okay. And yes, she stayed the night, but she stayed on the couch. Mainly just to keep me from escaping and running back to Stacie.” A small smile lifted his lips and he shook his head. “We didn’t really even sleep. We spent most of the night talking, mainly about you and how much she hoped you two would be able to get past your misunderstanding. And yes, the next morning she gave me a hug goodbye and a kiss on the cheek. She promised we’d both be okay, that we’d make it through this, and then she left. That is all that happened.”
“But,” Cole swallowed thickly. “I know how you are with girls. You sleeping with Bri to forget your broken heart doesn’t sound too far-fetched. I’m supposed to believe that you didn’t?”
“Things are different now,” Matt sighed. “Yes, in the past, me breaking up with Stacie wouldn’t even have phased me. I’d move on to the next girl, no problem. But, I’ve changed. I saw what you and Bri had, and I realized that that was worth more than hundreds of meaningless hookups. I wanted that, that love and contentment you two had. I thought I’d found it with Stacie, but I was wrong.” He dropped his eyes and cleared his throat.
Looking back and forth between Seb and Matt, Cole felt his stomach bottom out. He could see it on their faces. They fully believed that what they were saying was true. They weren’t trying to lie to avoid blame. They weren’t trying to cover up what they’d done. They were telling the truth. He never would have believed it if he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, but…
“Are you guys serious?” Cole asked. “Are you telling me the truth? Because if you are messing with me, I swear to God, I’ll…”
“Cole,” Seb broke in firmly. He sat next to Cole, put a hand on his shoulder, and looked him right in the eye. “You are like a brother to me. You are my brother. I would never lie to you about something this important. Bri is innocent. She didn’t do anything wrong. She didn’t betray or abuse your trust.”
Matt walked over to stand behind Seb.
“It’s true, Cole. I’m sorry this whole thing got so screwed up. She loves you, and anyone who’s seen you together knows how much she does. All Seb and I want is for you and Bri to work this out. You need each other. You have to find a way past this.”
Cole sat, staring blankly, as reality crashed into him. Bri had tried to explain, tried to tell him, but his anger and pride had refused to listen. He had been so sure she was guilty, that she had been lying to cover up what she’d done, that he hadn’t even let himself consider the possibility that she had been telling the truth. But now, the past few months came rushing back to him, and he saw everything in a new light. A new light that cast a dark, damning shadow on everything he’d done and said to her.
Nausea roiled in his stomach, and he broke out in a cold sweat.
No. No, no, no, no, no.
This wasn’t happening, this couldn’t be happening. His breathing hitched, and panic began building in his veins. He had been so ruthless, so cruel and vindictive. He had been a heartless, selfish bastard, just like she’d said earlier. The things he’d done… The things he’d said… This couldn’t be all his fault…
He rushed to the bathroom, where his stomach heaved up everything in it, and then kept heaving for minutes afterward. When it finally relented, he slumped back against the bathroom wall. Dread and self-loathing flared up, and he was unable to focus on anything but the pain in his heart and the bottomless pit in his stomach. He was vaguely aware of Seb and Matt speaking to him from the bathroom doorway, but he was being sucked into the black hole of his despair and fear, and couldn’t acknowledge anything else.
One thought kept spinning though his head. Bri would never forgive him for this. He had lost the only thing that had ever meant anything to him, and it was all his fault.
Oh God, what had he done?
After rushing out of the art show, Bri had walked aimlessly around campus. She knew that Claire was waiting for her back home, but she couldn’t bring herself to face anyone right now. She hadn’t even bothered to let Daymon know she was leaving. She felt bad about waking out on him, but it was probably better that Daymon stay away from her from now on anyway. She wasn’t someone worth pursuing. She didn’t have even a scrap of a heart left to offer anyone, not anymore.
No, she was just a hollow shell of herself now. She reached up and put a hand over her heart, trying to stop the pain that was pounding there. The traitorous organ continued to beat like she hadn’t just been ripped into pieces by the only man she’d ever loved, and she had the strongest desire to rip it from her chest and be done: done with the confusion and vulnerability, done with the pain, done with life.
Collapsing onto a bench, she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to stop the buildup of tears from releasing.
She had given Cole what he’d asked for, every last, little piece of her. And he’d trampled those precious pieces to dust under his feet.
Thinking about him just threatened more tears, and she refused to cry over him anymore. His sorry ass wasn’t worth it. Her one consolation was that at least Cole would be leaving Duke. He’d be drafted somewhere far away, and she wouldn’t have to see him ever again. She would get over him, and move on with her life, and this time, she’d be more careful. She wouldn’t waste her time on someone as selfish and undeserving as he again.
A buzzing from her purse had her pulling out her phone. Hesitantly, she checked the caller ID, and was relieved to see who it was. Shaking her head to clear it, she forced some happiness into her voice as she answered.
“Layla! Hi, what’s up?”
“Bri, you are never going to guess what just happened!” Layla’s excitement was barely held in check, and Bri felt herself smiling at Layla’s contagious enthusiasm.
“Are you going to keep me hanging here, or are you going to tell me?”
“Devon proposed! We’re getting married!” Layla squealed excitedly.
Bri froze, shock and something like jealousy preventing her from responding.
“Well, aren’t you happy for me?” The hitch in Layla’s voice brought her back.
“Yes, of course I’m happy for you. This is amazing.” She forced herself to match Layla’s exuberance.
But as Layla gave her the details about how Devon had proposed, Bri’s chest felt like it was caving in on itself. Not that she wasn’t happy for her best friend, she was. Layla and Devon deserved every happiness. But she couldn’t help but feel jealous that Layla was so blissfully happy, while she was so completely miserable. It just didn’t seem fair tha
t Layla was getting her happily ever after, and Bri never would.
“We’re planning the wedding for next summer, after school gets out, so do not make any plans. I’m going to be doing a lot of planning this summer. I want to get as many details covered as possible, before I head back to school. Could you help me? I don’t think I can do this alone.” The plea in Layla’s voice actually drew a small chuckle from Bri.
“Of course, I’ll help you. You can consider me your personal assistant, there at your disposal whenever you need me.”
“Thanks, Bri. There is so much to do, I don’t how I’ll get it all done. I just hope Cole won’t get too upset if I monopolize all your time,” Layla teased.
Bri’s heart clenched, and she couldn’t breathe. She still hadn’t told Layla about the breakup, or any of the events that led to it. She felt bad, but at first she’d hoped that they’d work through it and get back together. Then, she just couldn’t bring herself to talk about it. Layla had no idea.
“Yeah,” she managed as much lightness as she could. “I don’t think that will be a problem.”
“Okay, there is one other question I have for you. Devon and I talked about it, and we want you and Cole to be in the wedding. So, will you be my Maid of Honor?”
“Wow,” she was taken aback. “Of course, Lay, I’d love to. But isn’t there someone more, I don’t know, important you should choose? A relative or something?”
“Don’t worry, there will be plenty of relatives in the wedding party. But you and Cole were the ones who rescued Devon and me from disaster. So, in our book, that makes you more important than the relatives. So, you will be my Maid of Honor, and Cole will be Dev’s Best Man. But only if you want to.” The uncertainty in Layla’s voice snapped Bri into action. This was Layla’s wedding. Whatever Layla wanted, she would get. No matter how uncomfortable it made Bri.
“Layla, I would be honored,” she replied genuinely.
“That’s my girl. I knew you wouldn’t let me down.” Bri could hear the smile in Layla’s voice. “Well, clear out your summer. You and I have things to do. The first being, getting all caught up on that steamy love life of yours.”
“Yeah, well, I have quite a story for you,” Bri forced herself to laugh. Oh, Layla was going to get an earful alright.
“I can’t wait. See you soon. Love you, girl.”
“Love you, too, Lay.”
As Bri hung up the phone, a depressed sigh escaped her. It looked like she wasn’t going to be able to avoid Cole forever, after all. She had a year to get herself pulled back together, to get to the point where she could face him again without crumbling to pieces. She had some serious work to do. She wasn’t going to spend the rest of her life hiding from him. She refused to let him dictate, directly or indirectly, what she did or how she felt.
She would face him again. And when that day came, he was going to regret everything he’d thrown away.
The End
Other books by Jennifer Preston
Beautiful Mess (Beautiful Mess #1)
Look for the final installment of the Beautiful Mess Series
Coming in 2015!
About the Author
Jennifer Preston was born in California, grew up in Utah, and now lives outside Denver, Colorado with her husband, three rambunctious kids, and a very excitable dog. She is an obsessive reader who never goes anywhere without her trusty e-reader (best invention ever!). In those rare moments when she’s not being a mom, reading, or writing, she enjoys running, shopping, sleeping in, and singing along (loudly and badly) with the radio as she drives.
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Certified Disaster (Beautiful Mess Book 2) Page 27