Chapter 11 Well, Hello, Mr. Fighter Pilot
Well, Hello, Mr. Fighter Pilot
Hayvin
Days later, that ridiculous showdown with Alek keeps looping in my mind like a broken record.
I replay it from every possible angle, searching for hidden clues I might have missed.
But I always get stuck on the image of him standing there with Jerica.
Especially if what he told me before I walked away was actually true.
Everything circles back to Alek. I know that much.
As for Jerica, she’s still a mystery to me.
I have no idea what she thinks of me or what she really knows about my history with Alek.
We only crossed paths twice while Alek and I were together, so she’s definitely aware we were a thing.
Beyond that, her side of the story is a complete blank.
I always assumed that if she was as much his best friend as David, she’d try to make friends with me.
That’s what Charlie did. It was only about three months into mine and Alek’s relationship when she finally marched up to me and told me we needed to talk.
I was leery at first. I had met Charlie, Keaton, and Amelia a few times because Charlie was one of Alek’s best friends.
He was straight up with me about their previous relationship as soon as we got together, but reassured me it was over and done with.
I believed him because Charlie was the only person who mattered to Keaton.
She loves him deeply, but I know, from their stories, it wasn’t without a lot of bleak agony.
I looked for signs of a romantic relationship between Charlie and Alek for a few months, but only found a deep mutual respect and a strong friendship.
They’ve never looked at each other as if they’ve been intimate.
They’ve never told each other they loved one another, though I know they care, and they’ve never made me or Keaton feel excluded from their friendship.
I made an effort with Jerica. I wanted to be her friend, hoping it would ease the discomfort I felt with the relationship between her and the guy I was dating.
But she never really let me in. She wasn’t rude, just distant.
Only offering polite smiles and empty small talk.
It was nothing like the easy connections I’d had with everyone else.
I sigh, running my hand through my hair and tossing my pencil down on my notepad.
Or maybe I was the one who couldn’t open up. I honestly don’t know anymore. Still, I can’t shake the feeling that she should have put in more effort. If I had a guy best friend who found someone serious, I’d go out of my way to welcome her. My friends’ happiness has always been my own.
I glare at the blank page that should be brimming with lyrics, frustration tightening its grip on me. With a low growl, I rip the scribbled sheet from my notebook, crumple it, and hurl it at the fireplace.
I haven’t been able to write a damn thing since I finished Not Your Just Because, and it’s driving me up the wall.
The other night, I got a generous offer for it and, after wrestling with my heart, finally decided to let it go.
Now I’m desperate for something new to fill that void, but inspiration refuses to show up.
“Thank god,” I mutter when my doorbell rings.
I leap from my chair and rush to the living room. As long as it isn’t Alek, I honestly don’t care who’s at the door. Whoever it is, they’re rescuing me from my own spiraling thoughts.
Next time, I should probably check who’s there first. If I had, maybe I wouldn’t have staggered back, floored by the jolt of surprise that hit me when I opened the door.
“Tan?” I gasp, staring incredulously at the handsome man in front of me.
It’s been years since I last saw him, and he’s transformed.
My gaze sweeps over him. He’s fully grown now.
His dirty blond hair and beard are both in that in-between stage, proof he’s been on leave far longer than his sister guessed.
His striking denim blue eyes are shadowed with secrets, the kind that leave scars no one else will ever see.
“Hey there, love bug,” he says, aiming that charming fucking smile at me that caught my ass back in our younger days.
A faint tingle stirs inside me, but it’s nothing like before, and nowhere near the sparks Alek used to ignite.
“Well, hello, mister fighter pilot,” I say with a smile, opening my door wider in invitation.
Is inviting an ex I once loved into my home a terrible idea?
Of course. Does it bother me? Not in the slightest. I only answer to myself now, and I’m not crossing any lines.
The attraction is still there, sure—I felt it spark the second I opened the door—but after all these years, it’s faded to a faint ember.
Nothing that would even tempt me if I were still in a relationship.
I can’t resist letting my eyes roam over him, noticing the new tattoos and the muscle he’s built since I last saw him.
He strolls past, tracing his finger down my nose in that old, familiar way. I close my eyes, swept back to a time when everything felt simpler.
Luckily, I open my eyes just in time to catch the way his jeans hug him, because missing that would be a tragedy.
“I can feel your eyes on my ass, love bug,” he teases.
Shit.
Heat pulses beneath my skin as my cheeks burn. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
I slam the door shut and hurry after him.
His laugh is still deep and resonant, just like I remember, but it no longer sends shivers through me the way it once did.
It’s still charming, and before Alek, it would have felt like a gentle caress.
Now it’s just a wave of warmth, heavy with memories and tinged with the bittersweet ache of what we lost.
Who knows where Titan and I would have ended up had we stayed together?
“We’d be together. That’s all that would matter, Hayvin,” he whispers.
My eyes jerk to him and find him staring at me with a sad smile. “I said that out loud.”
He chuckles. “You didn’t exactly whisper it.”
I exhale sharply and shake my head, stunned that the thought even crossed my mind.
Alek has scrambled my brain so much that I’m actually imagining what life would have been like with my childhood ex.
A path I closed off and buried years before Alek ever entered the picture.
I made my peace with my relationship with Titan long ago.
I grab two mugs from the cabinet and line them up beside my Keurig. The ritual is automatic: pop in a K-cup, check the water, slide a mug into place. As the machine hums to life, the rich scent of Colombian roast unfurls through the kitchen, warm and bittersweet.
When his cup is ready, I swap it out for mine, adding just the right touch of sugar, as he likes it. With both mugs in hand, I set them on the table, sliding his toward him before settling into the chair at his side.
“Tell me what life has been like for you since I saw you last, Tan. Anyone special?” I ask before lifting my cup to my mouth and taking a careful sip.
A shadow flickers in his eyes, one I doubt he intends for me to notice. It spills out, coiling around my throat, squeezing until every breath feels like a struggle.
He blinks, and I blow out a silent breath when they’re back to normal.
I press my palm to my chest, massaging the ache that’s settled there like an old, unwelcome friend.
What the hell happened to the beautiful, vibrant guy I used to know?
If I didn’t know for a fact that I saw what I did, I’d question it when he aims that stupid, charming smile that got me when I was younger.
There’s a certain immunity from it now that I’m a lot older and stupidly in love with some other idiot.
“Now, love bug, you know damn well you’re the only one special in my life,” he teases with a wink.
“Used to be,” I sing-song, taking another drink.
“The one and only,” he says seriously, holding my eyes.
I sigh, setting my coffee on the table. “What are you doing here, Titan? I haven’t seen or heard from you in a while, and now you pop in for a surprise visit?”
“Saw Leigh.”
I roll my eyes. “And of course, she told you.”
Titan shakes his head, causing strings of blond hair to fall into his eyes.
He reaches up to brush it away as he stares at me over the rim of his cup.
“Naw, not everything. Just told me you and him aren’t together anymore.
You know she wouldn’t have even told me that much if I hadn’t asked about you.
” He lifts an eyebrow. “Gonna fill me in?”
“Didn’t plan on it,” I mutter, taking another sip of my coffee to stall.
Titan reaches over and gently pushes the cup away from my face when I try to hide behind it. “Don’t do that. Don’t hide from me. You know I hate that shit.”
His face wavers through the blur of my tears. I let out a shaky breath and lean back, as if putting space between us could shield me from the weight of this conversation.
Why did I let him in again?
“Stubborn ass,” he growls.
I shoot him a glare when his smirk widens, catching the shiver I failed to hide.
That growl used to be my undoing. Now, thankfully, it barely grazes me.
Mostly.
But then I wonder...maybe Titan could offer a guy’s perspective on whatever is going on in Alek’s head. Not that it changes anything. The past is already written.
Still…
“Have you ever had a female friend that you liked more than in a platonic way?” I ask.
He arches a brow, shooting me a look so pointed I can’t help but grimace.
“Right. Let me see if I can reword it.”
“How about you just get straight to the shit, babe? Stop pussy footing around it and lay facts to me.”
I let out a sigh. “Alright, here’s the deal. I’m not sure how much you know about Alek or his friends, but let’s just say you know nothing for now. Alek’s been tight with David and his twin sister, Jerica, since they were kids. And Jerica...well, she’s gorgeous. No denying it.”
“Oh, hell,” he mutters, already seeing where this story is heading.