Things might have changed for me, or at least I thought they had, but they obviously hadn’t for Luna. Whatever crazy shit I’d been trying to convince myself I didn’t feel for her, she really didn’t feel for me.
All she wanted was to be friends, and I didn’t know if I could be that for her any longer. If I knocked and she opened her door, invited me in? Fuck.
I didn’t know if there would be any coming back from that for me. When I’d booked our two rooms, I’d done it in an effort to preserve our friendship despite what I’d asked of her to convince her to come here.
Perhaps it had been unknowingly at the time, but it might just have saved our friendship for another reason as well. I just wasn’t sure it was one she wanted to hear, and if I went in there, I couldn’t guarantee I wouldn’t say it anyway.
So I didn’t knock. I braced both hands against her door, hung my head, and silently apologized for being a shitty friend in the days to come. Then I went back to my room. Alone.
For the rest of the nights we were on this trip, that was the way it would have to be. Unless Luna decided otherwise.
Chapter 35
Luna
Cyrus was always busy for the remainder of our time in Italy. During the day, I explored by myself and tried not to wallow in misery.
Instead, I got lost in the sights and sounds of the magical place he’d brought me to, doing my best to soak in every moment despite the fact that I’d rather have had him beside me. Before we’d boarded the plane to come here, he’d warned me that the couple of days after the gala would be rough for him.
Meeting after meeting packed his schedule, but he’d promised to spend his time in the evenings with me. It had been said jokingly at the time, with a wag of his eyebrows and insinuation in his tone.
I’d laughed but agreed.
A naughty glimmer had come into his eyes when I’d said yes, and then he’d kissed the crap out of me. A kiss that had been full of promises that had turned out to be empty.
Every night, he texted me with an excuse about why he couldn’t see me. Meetings running late or late meetings that had turned into business dinners. I didn’t buy any of it, but I couldn’t say I minded that he hadn’t gotten around to spending any more time with me.
That night after I’d walked out on him in the bar, I hadn’t heard him next door with his ex. Thank the Lord.
I also hadn’t seen either her or Landon around again. I really should send the Lord a bouquet of flowers for that, but double thank you to the big man upstairs for that one.
While I hadn’t seen any of the three people who had become the bane of my existence, that didn’t mean that they weren’t there. Cyrus and Samantha lurked in my thoughts, and the more I imagined them together, the more I understood why they had been together and why they probably were again.
They were the ultimate power couple. She was the perfect partner for a man like him, polished, beautiful, and with that upper crust accent that spoke of money.
I wondered when she’d tell Landon that she was cheating on him just like he had on her. Maybe she already had, or maybe she was doing it just as I sat there on St. Mark’s square, my hands full of pigeon feed and my soul full of sadness and regret.
The days passed in a blur, and eventually, my time in Italy came to an end. It was a bittersweet goodbye to a country I knew I wouldn’t see again.
Our flight back to New York was uneventful and mostly silent, with only a few words exchanged between us. When we landed, I texted April to pick me up. I also received a text from my bank congratulating me on paying off my loans.
Holding out my hand to Cyrus when we stepped out of the terminal and into the wave of humidity that welcomed us home, I gave him a forced smile. “It was a pleasure doing business with you. I’ll see you around, Cyrus.”
“You don’t want a ride?” he asked as he frowned at my hand but didn’t shake it.
Eventually, it got awkward and I let it drop. “No, I’m fine. Thanks.”
Thankfully, I’d let April know more or less when our plane would be landing and she pulled up as if she’d been sent by the gods themselves to save me. Honking her horn, she rolled down her window and grinned at me.
“Well, are you coming, my little Globetrotter?” she called out and slapped the side of her car. “I have margaritas and pizza ready and waiting at home.”
“Coming.” I turned back to Cyrus and gave him a little wave. “I guess this is, uh, goodbye. Thanks again for everything.”
He opened his mouth, then closed it again and pressed it into a firm line. Returning my wave, he grabbed the handle of his bag and stalked off in the direction of the long-term parking lot.
April glanced between the two of us, an unhappy expression on her face as I climbed into the car after loading my suitcase into the trunk. “What happened?”
“You were right.” I sat back against her seat with a thud and groaned as I fastened my seatbelt. “I never should have gotten involved in any of this.”
“It was that bad, huh?” She reached out to pat my leg as she merged into the traffic. “I’m sorry. Do you want to talk about it?”
“I got deluded,” I said. “I know you warned me, and I know I didn’t listen, but I really thought it was going well.”
“It did seem to be.” Her brows pulled together. “So I ask again, what happened?”
“It was worse than bad. He didn’t only want to use me to make his ex jealous. He wanted to make her jealous so he could get her back.”
April’s jaw dropped and she slammed her hand into her horn. “Move, asshole. We’re in need of margaritas here. Stat.”
When the driver in front of her didn’t move, she swerved around him only to have to slam on her brakes as we hit our first traffic jam. She puffed out a heavy breath. “I’m sorry. I did try to get us to the alcohol faster. Keep talking. I’ll do my best to make sure we get to it as soon as we can. Adi’s staying with a friend from school for the night, so I’m all yours.”
“How did you know I’d need you?” I asked, my voice quiet.
She shrugged and shook her head. “I didn’t, but I thought there might be a chance. You don’t go to a place like Venice with a man like that and not need a girlfriend to come home to.”
“You’re the best.” I turned my head to face the window, took a breath, and then broke open my heart to spill the contents all over her car. “I should have listened to you. I was such a knucklehead to believe I could keep things platonic with Cyrus. At first, it really was just attraction. He was also a nice person, or at least I thought he was. I’ve since learned differently.”
“When did you end up realizing it was more than that?” Sympathy colored her tone, and I was grateful that at the very least, she hadn’t said she’d told me so. Even if she had. A true friend.
I shook my head against the fabric of her seat. “I’m not sure the exact moment, but it was somewhere after realizing I was jealous that he cared enough about his ex to make her jealous and the moment I realized there was more to it for him than that.”
She hesitated. “He really got back together with her in front of you?”