Chapter 12
Alex
“You’re breaking up with me?”
I knew this would go down this way. All day I tried to devise the best way to end this. It would’ve been much simpler to do on land. Yet there was no way I could explain why I didn’t want to have sex with her. It was our last night on the ship, and I’d barely touched her beyond holding her hand or a kiss on the cheek the whole trip. But I needed to rip the band-aid off once and for all.
Avoiding deep and meaningful conversations with Ainsley until we made it back to our stateroom for the evening wasn’t tricky. I decided to take her to dinner, hoping it would soften the blow. She had an excuse to wear another outlandish outfit and spend the entire evening waxing on about her favorite subject. Her .
“Ainsley, this just isn’t working anymore. This was never supposed to be serious. You were okay with casual when we first started going out. But now we spend every waking breath together. I’m just not ready for all of this.”
“We can go back to casual. I thought you liked spending time with me, that’s all.”
“Ainsley, you’re a nice girl. But you like the party scene and dressing up to go out with your friends. I’m the total opposite. I’m stonewashed jeans, and you’re Chanel.”
“Chanel is so last decade,” she huffs.
“See. You’re making my point. I don’t know one designer from the other.”
“Well, it’s only because I study fashion in college. Of course, you wouldn’t know them. I could teach you.”
“I don’t want to know them. That’s the point. You deserve to be with someone who enjoys giving you opportunities to get dressed up. Show you off. This cruise was a one-off. I would’ve never done this for the two of us. It was merely because the Palmers invited us to celebrate Tuesday’s birthday.” I wince as I complete the sentence. I can’t take any chances she’ll put two and two together and discover my feelings for the youngest Palmer are why we’re breaking up.
Ainsley was a fun time. Until she wasn’t. I hate that it ever came to this. I should never have taken it beyond friends with benefits. I admit her looks and the need to focus on someone other than my best friend’s off-limits little sister allowed this to morph into more than I wanted. But this girl is not only shallow but spiteful. She has no problem causing drama if it gets her more attention. And I can’t allow Tuesday to fall victim to her.
Picking up the pillow from my side of the bed, I head over to the narrow couch and plop down.
“What are you doing?”
“I don’t expect you to want to sleep in the same bed after I called it quits with you.”
Ainsley slinks in my direction, dropping her hands on my chest. “Awe, come on. One more night, for old times’ sake?”
“No,” I blurt.
“Are you for real?”
“Ainsley. There’s no sense pretending. I don’t want to send any mixed signals. We’re done.”
“Well, I hope you aren’t sniffing around Tuesday. That frigid bitch could never give you what I can.”
“Don’t you dare talk about my friend that way, Ainsley.”
She spins on her tall, pointy heel and stomps toward the door. “On that note, I’ll end my vacation having a little fun. Now that I’m no longer tied down.”
“Fine. Just don’t bring ’em back here. I’m not into the group thing.”
She hurls a sweatshirt hanging from a hook by the door at me before flinging the door wide and storming out.
In her absence, I seize the opportunity and pack up my things. I plan to disembark the minute the ship docks and we’re allowed off. Hopefully, I can hop on an earlier flight on standby if a seat opens. I’ll even cough up my savings to upgrade Ainsley’s ticket so she can fly business class on a later flight to avoid the Palmers altogether. I really should’ve waited until we were home for this break-up. Holy shit, the lengths I’ll go to in order to avoid having to sleep with her again.
Yet Ainsley is just one piece of this messy puzzle. I’ll never believe that kiss was a mistake. But Ricky will never approve of me dating his sister. And do I want to risk giving up the Palmers if a relationship with Tuesday didn’t work out? They mean a lot to me. I’m the youngest of four kids and the only boy. I’m constantly treated like a child when I’m with my family. I love them, but I feel at home with the Palmers. Heck, I’ve spent the last few Christmas dinners with them.
Moving forward with Tuesday is going to take a lot of careful consideration. I’m not the relationship type. My focus has been on my fire career and my friends. I’ve only ever dated casually until one of them says they want more. But I know there’d be nothing cavalier about dating Tuesday. I can safely say I’d turn into a possessive beast if I ever saw another man’s hands on her.
Yet, staying away is getting more and more difficult.
After that kiss, she’s all I can think about. How do I move on from this?