Landon & Shay: Part Two (L&S Duet #2)(56)

“She’s just processing a lot, Grey. Don’t be so hard on yourself.” I knew he would be regardless of what I said. “Plus, I’m always here for you and the girls. You’re my family, and I’d do anything for you. Always. But, please know that you’re her real safe haven. I’m just a temporary shelter until she finds her way home, and she will, Grey. I promise. Just keep knocking on that door of hers. She’ll let you back in soon enough.”

He leaned back in his chair and swirled the whiskey in his glass. “The other day, the girls and I were watching a movie. I made a stupid Dad joke, and Karla smirked at it for a split second.”

“See?! That’s progress. Just keep being the dorky, unfunny human that I know you to be and you’ll be back in her good graces sooner than later!”

“Thanks for everything, Landon. You’ve always been there for me through thick and thin, and that means the world to me.”

“That’s what best friends are for. How are things going with Eleanor?” I asked. His face turned a deeper shade of red and he downed his drink. “Things are good.”

“Like, good-good or good-good?”

“Good-good, I think, but I’m taking it slow. I have to, otherwise I might ruin whatever shot we have. One day at a time.”

“I’m happy for you, Grey. You deserve to be happy.”

“I could say the same about you. How are things with Shay?”

I laughed. “What things with Shay? After the whiskey party, we hadn’t spoken a word until today, when I came to get Karla. It was as awkward and uncomfortable as you could’ve imagined.”

“Well, you did stalk her and show up to her place in the pouring rain like a psychopath.”

I groaned. “Do you have to remind me of my stupid mistakes?”

“Yup. It comes with the best friend territory. I get to remind you of stupid shit.”

I would’ve cussed him out if I wasn’t so happy that he was getting back to his old self and being playful. “Whatever. All I know is that I messed things up with Shay, and I need to let it go.”

“Do you want to let it go?”

I didn’t answer him.

He leaned forward, clasped his hands together, and rested them against his desk as he looked my way. “Eleanor said she thinks Shay’s really interested in reconnecting with you, but she’s too afraid to let those walls down.”

“Yeah. I don’t even think I deserve to get those walls taken down honestly.”

“She’s just processing a lot, Landon. Don’t be so hard on yourself,” he mocked tongue-in-cheek as he gave me the same words I’d given him earlier. “Just keep knocking on her door. She’ll come around and let you in soon enough.”

Maybe that was true for his and Karla’s relationship, but it wasn’t the same for Shay and me. I wouldn’t have been surprised if she never let me in again. Truth was, I didn’t deserve to be back in her life. Not when I was the one who walked away in the first place.

This wasn’t some kind of fairy tale storybook. I wasn’t Shay’s Prince Charming, and our story probably wouldn’t end with a happily ever after.

But that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to try to win her over again, even if that meant simply becoming her friend.

“She’s working at a bakery style coffee shop called Ava’s,” Greyson mentioned. “But you didn’t hear that from me. Just say Raine told you.”

Duly noted.





22





Shay





There were three things in life I knew to be absolutely true:

One could never eat too many croissants.

Rainy days were meant for oversized sweaters and oversized books.

Landon liked his coffee with one sugar and two creamers.



I only knew the last fact because he stood right there at the counter of Ava’s, ordering his coffee with a croissant on the side. “Two creams, one sugar.”

“I think it’s funny that you work in a place with coffee, even though you said you hated the stuff the other day,” he commented. “Though, it kind of makes sense, seeing how you work around the stuff all day.”

“What are you doing here?” I asked, feeling flustered as he stood in front of me, wearing a perfectly fitted peacoat and black jeans.

“I’m crossing paths with you.” He said all this with the goofiest smile, and I wanted to smack the smile from his face, but then again, Landon looked good with a smile.

No, screw that smile.

“Who told you I worked here?”

“Greyson might’ve let it slip by mistake.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out cash to pay for his coffee. “I figured maybe we could have an easy talk during your break.”

“I don’t get a break for an hour.”

“That’s fine by me. I’ll wait.”

“Don’t bother. I don’t want to talk to you.”

“But you said if you saw me again, we’d have an easy conversation.”

“I said if we crossed paths, which means in an organic fashion. There is nothing organic about you figuring out where I work and just showing up.”

“You didn’t make the organic part clear,” he mentioned. “Besides, I’m not big on organic things. Give me the bad stuff, and I’m all over it.” He lifted his coffee cup and nodded my direction. “I’m going to sit in that back corner until you change your mind.”