Leighton clears her throat. "We have customers."
Walker shakes his head I don't care. "What the fuck is this?" He shows off his cell. With a text from Emma.
Emma: Kaylee said Brendon ended things.
"And?" I press my lips together. I'm not defending my decision to him. Or to anyone.
"What the fuck, Brendon?"
"Not a question."
"Is Em talking to Kay now?"
"No. Just fielding texts. She said she sent something to you. But you know that."
Fuck. My stomach drops. "No. My phone is charging in the office."
Leighton clears her throat. Nods to the short guy waiting in the lobby.
Walker ignores her. Continues staring at me like I'm the devil.
He's probably right.
But I'm finally fixing that.
"That's not an explanation." He stares back at me. "I'm not going to watch while you throw away the only person who makes you happy."
Leighton joins his glaring. "You really dumped her?"
"Yeah. And I don't see how it's your business," I say.
"You're my friend, you idiot. And she is too." She runs a hand through her short hair. "I don't get it. You pine for her for months. She follows you around like a lovesick puppy. You finally have her, and you're both happy. Then, what, you dump her because you're bored of her?"
"No." It's not even close to that.
"What reason could you possibly have for leaving Kay?" Leighton asks. "You're worse than my ex."
"No arguments there." I have no idea what Leighton's ex did to hurt her, but right now I feel like the scum of the Earth. Fuck, the way Kaylee stared at me like I tore her heart out.
"What the fuck, Brendon? Are you going to explain?" Walker asks.
"How many times are you going to ask the same question?" This isn't what I want. It's how things have to be.
"Until I get a straight answer." He shakes his head. "Why would you break up with Kaylee?"
"She shouldn't be with someone like me," I say.
"What the hell does that mean?" Leighton asks.
"God. Still with this shit? Get the fuck over yourself." Walker's voice gets angry. "Do you treat her well?"
"Of course," I say.
"You make her smile?" he asks.
"Yeah. And?" I fold my arms.
"You support her?" he asks.
"I try." I do.
"You listen when she needs that?" he asks.
"You make her come?" Leighton jumps in.
"Of course. That's a stupid fucking question," I say.
"You're a stupid fucking idiot." She slams the table. "You make her laugh. You make her feel safe. You make her come. Explain to me how she shouldn't be around you."
I... I can't.
"She lights up like a pinball machine when you're around," Walker says. "She loves you. You love her. The two of you are a million fucking times more pleasant when you're around each other. Whatever bullshit you're selling about her being better off without you—nobody is buying it but you."
Chapter Fifty-One
Kaylee
"Kay-bear." Grandma's voice is soft. Quiet. She's smiling. Her eyes are a little fuzzy.
According to Mom, she's on a lot of painkillers.
But she doesn't look like she's dying.
She just looks tired.
How can she only have weeks left?
Or less?
I swallow hard. "Hey, Grandma."
Mom squeezes my hand.
"You look terrible, Kay. Haven't you heard of under-eye concealer?" Grandma teases.
It's the same as always. Except for the circumstances.
"I just got off a plane. Give me a break." I move closer to her bed. "I'm tea deprived."
"Nothing good here," Grandma says. "But there is a Starbucks up the street." She looks to Mom. "Get us something, honey?"
Mom nods. She pulls me into a tight hug. "Take as long as you need."
Because this is it.
This might be one of a few weeks of conversations—there's no way I'm flying back to LA now. Not until...
This might be our last conversation.
Tears threaten to hit my eyes, but I swallow them down. If this is our last conversation, I want to savor it.
I want it to be about more than Grandma dying.
But I still have to say a goodbye. "I love you, Grandma. I'm... I just want you to know how much I love you. And how much I've missed our conversations. And spending summers with you. And reading you my Days of Our Lives fan fiction. I'm up to chapter five in my book. I wrote a little on the plane."
"Yeah?"
I nod. "It's been a nice distraction."
"From this?"
"Yeah, and... I don't want to talk about my problems."
"I do." She sits up a little straighter. "You know I love giving you advice, Kay-Bear."
"You mean telling me what to do?"
She laughs. It's hearty. Alive. "Tell me what happened. It's that hot friend of yours?"
I nod. "Emma realized. She freaked. She stopped talking to me. Then I... I thought we were okay, but he..."
"Oh, Kay—"
"I told him I loved him. And it scared him, I guess. I don't know. He kept saying he's not good for me. That I shouldn't love him. But that's ridiculous. He's the sweetest guy I've ever known."
Grandma squeezes my hand. "I'm sorry, baby. Some people won't get out of their own way. You can't always stop that."
"I know. But it sucks."
"That it does." She laughs. "There will be other guys."
"Is it that hopeless?"
"Maybe not." She pats my hand. "You're a catch, Kay-bear. Pretty. Smart. Sweet. He's a fool to let you go."
"He's trying to say it's for me. Because he's bad for me. Or something. I'm not sure."
"The hot ones are never smart."
I laugh. "He is. Just—"
"We've all got our baggage. After your grandfather left, I wouldn't even look at men. I'd get write ups at work for being disrespectful to my supervisors."
I smile. That sounds like Grandma.
"Once your mom was older, I tried dating, but I was still angry at the world. I wasn't ready to trust someone to be my partner. I lost a few good things because I wouldn't get out of my way. But there was nothing any of those guys could do."
"Nothing? You sure?"
She laughs. "You think he loves you?"
"He said he did, but I don't know... if he loves me then why doesn't he want to be with me?"
"I don't know, baby. I'm sorry. Sometimes it takes a while to get over past hurt. I never did. I was never brave enough to risk my heart again."
"Maybe that's it. He... his parents were awful to him before they died. Made him feel worthless. Then they died suddenly. I mean, sorry—"
"It's okay. I know I'm dying."