The Stopover (The Miles High Club, #1)(24)

“Yes . . . I do. Make it a double,” she snaps angrily.

I stand at the bar as I look over at the table, and Aaron has his hand over his mouth in uncontrollable giggles. I drop my head to hide my goofy smile.

This is hilarious . . . because it’s not happening to me.

“Hey.” I smile as Robbie opens his front door.

“Hey, you.” He smiles as he wraps me in his arms. “This is a surprise.”

“I know. I was missing you, so I flew home this morning for the night.”

“Come in.” He drags me into his converted garage.

I couldn’t sleep last night. I was worried about my feelings, and I can’t stop thinking about stupid Jameson Miles. I got up and went straight to the airport and caught the flight out. I look around Robbie’s tiny studio apartment and at the empty pizza boxes and dirty glasses lying around. “What have you been doing?” I ask.

“Nothing much.” He smiles; he lies on the bed and taps it beside him. I lie down, and he slides his hand up my top as he looks down at me.

“Did you go to any job interviews this week?” I ask.

“Nah, nothing suited me.”

I frown. “Any job is a good job . . . isn’t it?” I ask hopefully.

“I’m waiting for the right one.” He kisses me softly.

I stare up at him as I feel his erection grow up against my leg. “Robbie, come back to New York with me. There are so many jobs there, and it would be a fresh start for you. We could discover the city together.”

He snatches his hand away from my breast and pulls away from me. “Don’t start your fucking shit. I told you I’m not moving to New York.”

I sit up in a rush. “What’s stopping you? You have no job here. What’s holding you back? Explain it to me.”

“I like living here. I don’t pay rent, and my mother cooks all my food. I have a good deal here. Why would I leave?”

“You’re twenty-five, Robbie.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he snaps.

“Don’t you want to support yourself and experience something different?”

“No. I like it here.”

“You need to grow up,” I snap, and we both stand up.

“And you need to come back to fucking earth. The world doesn’t revolve around you.”

“I want to live in New York.” I take his hand as I try to get through to him. “You should see New York, Robbie. You would love it there. It has this vibe like I’ve never felt anywhere else.”

“New York is your dream, Emily, not mine. I’m never moving there.”

Oh hell. We are worlds apart. “How are we supposed to be together from different sides of the country?” I ask softly.

He shrugs. “You should have thought of that before you applied for this stupid job.”

“It’s not a stupid job.” I plead, “Don’t you want to support me in my dream? Are you going to come and visit me at all?”

“I told you—I don’t like cities.”

“So what you’re saying is, if I don’t fly back to California, I won’t see you at all.”

He shrugs and sits down and picks up his PlayStation remote.

“Are you serious?” I snap as I begin to see red. “I flew all the way home to discuss our future, and you’re going to play fucking Fortnite.”

He rolls his eyes and starts the game. “Quit your nagging.”

“Quit my nagging,” I snap. “I don’t want to live in your fucking parents’ garage, Robbie.”

“Don’t, then.”

“What is wrong with you?” I cry in outrage. “Why do you want to waste away here? You’re twenty-five, Robbie. You need to grow up.”

He rolls his eyes. “If you flew all the way back here to be a bitch, you needn’t have bothered.”

Steam shoots from my ears. “If I walk out that door, Robbie, we are over,” I say.

His eyes rise to meet mine.

“I mean it,” I whisper. “I want you in my life, but I won’t sacrifice my happiness because you are too fucking lazy to get off your ass and make a future for yourself.”

He clenches his jaw and goes back to his game. He begins to play.

I watch him through tears as I hear my angry heartbeat in my ears. “Robbie, please,” I whisper. “Come with me.”

He keeps his eyes on the screen as he begins to shoot people in his game. “Close the door on your way out.” He puts his headphones on to block me out.

I get a lump in my throat as I finally see our relationship for what it really is.

A sham.

I take a long look around his room as he plays his game, and I know that this is it.

The defining moment where I decide what I’m worth. What I want from life.

I can’t save him . . . if he doesn’t want to be saved.

What I want is someone who wants to grow with me, and I don’t even know what growth I want. But I can’t be stagnant here in his parents’ garage any longer.

I don’t even know who he is anymore . . . but this isn’t me.

The woman I want to be lives in New York and has the job of her dreams.

Sadness overwhelms me. I know what I have to do.