Gold (All that Glitters #2)(100)

“And?” he asked.

He didn’t even look surprised. Maybe he had been expecting that. Had he known I was going to do it even before I had?

“And…I’m here.”

Eric shook his head. “It doesn’t work that way. You can’t jump ship and expect me to welcome you back with open arms.”

“I know.”

“I’m not really sure you do.” He leaned back against his dresser. “You being single doesn’t change or excuse your behavior.”

“You’re right.” She held her hands up in defeat. What she had done was bad, and she didn’t blame him for being pissed at her. “I deserve your anger, but will you let me explain?”

“If you think you have a good enough explanation for the past couple of months, then go ahead.”

Bryna took a deep breath and let everything go. She couldn’t keep holding this in and pushing him away. She couldn’t be scared anymore.

“I thought a fresh start was what I needed after Hugh.” She looked down at her feet. She hated this part. “You know, I thought he was married and that we were just having a good time. I thought we were on the same page. But we weren’t. He wasn’t married. Actually, he wanted to marry me.”

Eric sucked in air through his teeth. Their eyes met, and she nodded. Yep. Sounded as horrible out loud as it had back in Barcelona.

“He wanted to marry me, and I was playing him. I’ll never forget the look on his face. I broke his heart.”

“Jesus.”

“I was Jude,” she gasped out. “I tricked Hugh into loving me, and for what? A million dollar house, some jewelry, and a few trips?”

“That house was worth a million dollars?” Eric sputtered.

She nodded. “Yes. I sold the house and tried to return the money to him. He sent it back to me without a note. In either case, everything with Hugh wasn’t worth it. The money wasn’t worth hurting him.”

Bryna sat down on the edge of the bed and tried to judge Eric’s reactions. She knew him well, but he was guarded. He wasn’t ready to let her back in. She didn’t blame him.

“So, I stopped. I pumped the brakes and said f*ck it. I was going to leave the Queen Bee behind. Cam was an opportunity to forget all of that.”

“Because he didn’t know you,” he accused.

“You’re right. He didn’t. He thought I was someone else completely. I wanted him to think I was this other person. I wanted to fool myself into believing it. But you made me realize that I couldn’t. So, I went to dump him tonight, and I guess Pace had filled Cam in on the old Bryna.” She shuddered at the memory of him pushing her back into the couch.

“God, does everyone listen to what Pace has to say? I can’t believe anyone would believe a word that came out of his mouth.”

“I know. Trust me.”

“We’ll see about that,” he said.

“Yeah. So, then, he tried to force himself on me.”

“What?” Eric cried. He pushed himself away from the dresser in a fury.

“Yeah. When I told him no, he accused me of playing games with him.”

“Fucking prick. Just the thought makes me want to go over there and murder him.”

Bryna smiled at his reaction. Eric was pissed at her for everything that had happened, and he still wanted to pummel Cam. That was a good sign.

“I don’t think you could get away with murder.”

“He should feel lucky then.”

Bryna shrugged. She despised what Cam had tried to do, but she had already ended everything related to him in her mind. “I wasn’t trying to play games with him, but he was right. I was. I was with him—”

“I don’t need to hear this.” Eric turned and walked away.

“Not physically. We never did more than kiss.”

He looked back at her in confusion. “Really?”

“Yes.” She sighed. “I was with him, but my heart was here with you.”

“You can’t come over here and say that shit to me,” Eric said gruffly.

“Why? It’s the truth,” she spat. “You asked me why I pushed you away. At first, I thought it was Audrey. As hypocritical as it sounds, I felt like you lied to me by sleeping with her.”

“That does sound hypocritical.”

“I know. But when I came back to school and saw you, my world exploded in the middle of this transformation. I was scared and stubborn and refused to admit it.”

“Admit what?” His eyes begged for more.

“You know,” she whispered.

“No, I don’t. You think I’m going to let you off the hook without finally admitting your feelings for me?”

She narrowed her eyes. “Look, I’m trying here!”

“You’re not trying,” he cried. “I’ll tell you when you’re trying!”

“Don’t yell at me!”

“You put me through the ringer. You rejected me over and over again. You can’t walk in here and finally explain everything that happened this summer and think it’ll all be okay! It doesn’t work that way.”

“I know that! I don’t think it works that way. Fuck!” She jumped up and paced away from him. “I’m trying to talk to you.” She held her hands out in supplication.