Austin by S.L. Scott

Author:S.L. Scott [Scott, S. L.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

“SO… I’M FREE tonight. Want to grab dinner?” Jacqueline asks while walking out of the conference room.

Looking at my watch, I stall before answering, “Um, I can’t. My apologies. I have dinner plans already.”

“A rain check then?”

“Yes, a rain check.”

“I’ll see you next week.”

“Next week. Thank you,” I reply. Jacqueline detours back down the hall and I go to the bank of elevators. Dylan is standing there, his back to me. I stop, anger instantly filling my chest. He doesn’t see me, which gives me a few seconds to play out fifty different scenarios of kicking his ass. He turns back, ending those fantasies. “Austin?”

The doors open and we both step in. I see how nervous he is and he should be. As soon as the doors close, he’s trapped. His eyes are wide. “I’m sorry.”

“You’re sorry? You’re fucking sorry?” He nods, smart enough not to talk. “You fucked her up and then came back to do it again. You just couldn’t handle the fact that she’s moved on. Let me ask you, Dylan. Was it worth it?”

“I don’t know anymore. All I know is that my life is shit without her in it.”

“But that’s about you. Did you ever put her first?”

He pauses and looks up. Shaking his head, he replies, “No. That’s why I’m sorry.”

“I loved her in spite of the damage you did to her. I made her happy.”

The dark circles and bags under his eyes show he’s breaking. Slowly, he’s falling apart. This should make me happy. He says, “When I met her, she was the most beautiful girl I’d ever seen. She was amazing and she loved me… I destroyed that. I’m sorry. If I could take it back, I would.” He’s a wreck. “I’ve made so many mistakes, the biggest of them all was leaving her.”

“If you loved her, you would have let her be happy, whether it was with you or not.” The doors slide open. We stand there looking at each other.

Finally, the stalemate is broken when he walks off and I follow after. Stopping in the middle of the lobby, he turns back to me and says, “I won’t bother her again. She’s better without me.” He reaches out his hand and we shake. “Take care of her. She should have someone good, someone who can love her the way she deserves.”

Without any other words, he leaves, but I catch him before he walks through the door. “Hey Dylan, I’m sorry too.”

“For what?”

“I’m not really sure. I just thought I should say it.”

A slight smile shows. “I always knew you were the better man.” He pushes the door wide open and leaves.

I’m left seeing what life looks like without Jules. There’s no doubt how much he loves her. She’s already left that kind of mark on my heart as well. Pushing down my ego and the pain I’ve been holding against her, I move to a quieter section of the lobby and call her.

One ring.

Two rings.

Three rings.

Voicemail. ‘This is Jules Weston, please leave a message and I’ll call you back.

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