Chapter Fifteen
Jonah
I saw them together at a coffee shop three weeks after the party.
They were laughing about something, Axel's arm around her shoulders, Lindor's hand on his chest. They looked... happy. Comfortable. Like they'd been together for years instead of weeks.
I should have walked away. Should have left them alone.
Instead, I walked over.
"Lindor."
She looked up, and her smile faded. "Jonah."
"Can we talk?"
"No."
"Please. Just five minutes."
Axel stood. "She said no."
"I'm not talking to you."
"And she's not talking to you. So walk away."
Lindor put her hand on Axel's arm. "It's okay. I'll handle this." She looked at me. "You have two minutes. Say what you need to say."
I sat down across from her, ignoring Axel's glare. "I'm sorry. For everything. For hiding our relationship, for bringing Chelsea to the party, for hurting you. I was wrong, and I know that now."
"Okay."
"Okay? That's it?"
"What do you want me to say, Jonah? That I forgive you? That I'll take you back? Because that's not going to happen."
"Why not? We were good together."
"No, we weren't. We were convenient. You liked having someone you could control, and I liked feeling wanted. But that's not love. That's not even close to love."
"I do love you."
"No, you don't. You love the idea of me. But you don't actually know me. You never bothered to learn." She glanced at Axel, her expression softening. "He knows me. He sees me. And he's not afraid to show the world that he's with me."
"I was going to go public—"
"When, Jonah? Soon? It was always soon. It doesn't matter anymore though. I've moved on. I'm happy. And I need you to respect that and leave me alone."
"You're really choosing him over me?"
"I'm choosing myself. Axel is just a bonus." She stood. "Goodbye, Jonah. I hope you find someone who makes you happy. But it's not going to be me."
She walked away, Axel's arm around her waist, and I sat there watching them go.
And for the first time, I understood.
I'd lost her. Really, truly lost her.
And it was my own damn fault.