Chapter 40
forty
MAVERICK
I wake with a start. The bed I’m in is comfortable, which is strange. Cracking my eyelids, I see the beachy bedroom and remember I fell asleep next to Jo. Her side of the bed is empty.
“Jo!” I hear Ezra yell from downstairs. I scramble out of bed, nearly fall on my face from tripping over my discarded clothes, and yank the door open. Jo plows past me and into the room.
“What the hell is going on?” I ask, rubbing my face to try to wake up more.
“I just need my phone,” Jo mumbles. I’m not awake enough for whatever is happening right now.
“Jo!” Ezra says, pushing past me to get into the room with us. He’s shirtless and sweaty. The man is muscular and covered in a light dusting of dark hair. Watching him would make my mouth water if I didn’t just look up and see the tears streaking down Jo’s face.
“What the fuck? What did you do?” I push Ezra out of my way, knocking him into the bed. I gather Jo in my arms, but she stiffens.
“Of course. I did something. I’m so fucking horrible that it’s obviously my fault she’s crying.” I turn to look at Ezra. He’s fuming, arms crossed over his broad chest and blue eyes flaming.
“It wasn’t him,” Jo says, gently extracting herself from my arms. I let her go unwillingly. She looks up at me with the saddest eyes I’ve ever seen. “I let him believe we were together so that he’d think he didn’t have a chance with you.”
I can’t do anything but blink. “What?” I ask eventually.
Jo just shrugs, shoulders hunched as she stares at the floor.
“Why?”
The silence is loud. I look at Jo, who won’t meet my eyes, and then to Ezra, who’s staring at me like I’m an idiot.
“Why?” I ask again, more forcefully. I fucking hate being in the dark, and it feels like these two have some secret I’m not in on.
“Because I wanted it to be true, Maverick!” Jo shouts, finally looking at me. Tears stream down her face, and all I see there is devastation.
“What?” I ask stupidly. I know Jo isn’t a fan of Ezra.
She never made that a secret. At least she wasn’t the last time I saw her.
Now she’s glaring at him while he looks at her with sympathy.
But her glare lacks fire, and she’s holding his gaze.
Like they share something I’m not a part of.
“Wait,” I mutter. I only latched on to the end of what she said. “You wanted it to be true?”
Ezra sighs. “You seriously can’t tell she has feelings for you?”
I don’t bother responding, keeping my eyes on Jo. “Since when? You’re my best friend. Why didn’t you tell me?” I’m hurt and confused.
“Because it didn’t matter!” Jo says, face flushing either from anger or embarrassment.
“All you talked about was how you loved Ezra and wanted to find him. What was I supposed to do, Maverick? Rip my heart out and lay it at your feet for you to stomp on? No, thank you. Suffering in silence was easier because at least I still had you.”
Jo storms past me and is out the door before I have time to process what she said and stop her.
Instead, I just stare at the open bedroom door with my mouth hanging open and try to figure out what just happened.
A warm, calloused hand on my bare shoulder stops me when I go to take a step and find Jo.
“She’s going to call Harlow. Just let her calm down before you talk to her,” Ezra says, and that horrible and sickly feeling of jealousy rears its ugly head again.
I turn to him and nod, knowing that I don’t have anything nice to say right now.
Once he’s convinced I’m going to stay where I am, he makes his way to the door.
“Oh, and Maverick?” he says, stopping in the doorway, but not turning around.
“You better know exactly how you feel about her when you do.”
With that ominous warning, he leaves.
I don’t know how I fucking feel about eggs most mornings, never mind people. I thought I knew. I thought my feelings were very simple.
I’m in love with Ezra. I love Jo as my best friend.
But I can’t honestly say either of those things is true anymore.