CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
BLAIR
M y heart slams against my chest, and my stomach drops with a rush of adrenaline. Shay is still standing there, just as unsure as me. But we need to break the silence. Someone needs to say something. Anything.
“Um, hi…” I manage to squeak out, but it sounds pathetic even to my own ears.
My mom stares at me for a moment, then bounces her eyes between me and Shay like she’s trying to put together what she just saw. Her lips press together in a hard line before she crosses her arms and finally speaks.
“Blair… What is going on?”
“I—” My voice cracks, and I scramble to try and form a coherent sentence. “We weren’t doing anything. It’s just—” I cut myself off because it sounds so ridiculous. How do I explain this? How do I explain us?
Shay steps forward, holding his hands up. “We—uh. We didn’t mean for this to happen. It just…” He trails off, clearly struggling with words like me. “It’s not what it looks like.”
My mom raises an eyebrow, her arms still crossed, not saying anything for a few seconds as she continues to assess the two of us. The silence stretches on until Henry clears his throat beside her.
“I didn’t expect to walk in on this,” he says, his tone flat, but the disappointment is clear. “There are some lines you just do not cross.”
I feel my throat closing up as I struggle to try and find words, but nothing comes. How do I make them understand that this— us —isn’t some impulsive mistake or reckless decision? We’re not acting on some whim.
Shay stands straighter, his jaw set, but I can tell he’s just as rattled as me. “I understand this looks bad, but we’re not… we’re not doing anything wrong. We’re just trying to figure things out.”
“Figure things out? She’s going to be your sister, Shay!” Henry booms. “Do you know what this could mean for my reputation? We’ve had this discussion over and over before. Ever since your mom died?—”
“Don’t even try to make this about Mom! This isn’t about her!” Shay snaps back, and I jump.
“This is. We had an agreement, Shay. Or have you forgotten? I’ve let your fighting slide, considering it was more legal than other things I was worried about you getting involved with, but this?
” Henry shakes his head. “This I can’t let slide.
You were supposed to stay in line for three more years.
Three years! Then you could cash out your savings, and I would stop paying you to be good. ”
“Yeah,” Shay chuckles. “Because paying me to mind my manners so your reputation wasn’t hurt seemed so much easier than fucking talking to me! Right, Dad?”
Wetness hits my cheeks, and it isn’t until I reach up to touch them that I realize I’m crying.
“Boys,” my mom tries to interject, but Shay cuts her off promptly.
“Sylvia, as much as I would love to sit here and argue with you too, it’s clear you’ve both made up your minds already. It doesn’t matter if Blair and I have actual feelings or anything else, so save your breath.”
Shay turns on his heel to leave, and neither my mom nor his dad try to stop him. I feel my heart sink to the soles of my feet, but then instinct takes over, and I’m chasing after him. The heavy door slams behind me as I follow him outside and shout to his back.
“Shay!”
But he doesn’t stop.
“Shay, please! Please talk to me!” I beg, not even trying to hide the hiccups in my pleas.
Finally, he turns around, shaking his head. “I can’t do this, Blair. I’m not sitting around here like some kind of secret.”
I open my mouth to say something, anything, but the words don’t come. What can I say? What’s left to say? How am I supposed to fix this?
He runs his hands up his face, then pushes them into his hair and tugs with a groan. “This is insane. They don’t even care to understand us. It’s like we’re just… wrong to them.”
I step forward and reach for his arm. “Don’t do this, Don’t leave. They’re just upset. They didn’t mean it like that. They just?—”
He pulls away from me, and his face contorts in anger. “They don’t get it. They don’t get us. They just see their own fucking version of everything, and I’m not going to stand here and let them make me feel like some kind of villain because I’m with you.”
I wince at the venom in his voice, the hurt that’s laced with anger. And I get it. I get why he’s upset. But I don’t know how to fix it. I don’t know how to fix any of this.
“I can’t—I just can’t. I can’t stay in this house pretending everything is alright when it isn’t.”
I sniffle. “Then what about us?”
Shay pushes out a deep breath, then moves toward me. He grabs my arm and pulls me to him slowly. My head goes to his chest, and he wraps his arms around me tightly. The thrum of his heartbeat is blaring and erratic, but somehow, it’s calming to me.
“We’ll be fine, Dollface,” he whispers, kissing the top of my head gently. “I just need to stay away for a few days. Maybe that will make them realize this isn’t what they think—that this is real.”
I nod and snake my arms around his waist. I know him leaving is probably best so everyone has a chance to cool off, but I feel I’ve just gotten him, really got him, and I don’t want to let him go.
“What about me?” I reply, tipping my face up to his.
“You stay here. Don’t try to rationalize with them. We’ll come up with a plan after the wedding and go from there. Let’s not try and ruin their big day and piss them off further.”
Nodding, I try and glance away, but he grips my chin between his pointer and thumb. “Hey, don’t worry. We’ll work this out, okay?”
“I don’t want you to leave, though.”
Finally, he smiles. “Distance makes the heart grow fonder or whatever the fuck they say.”
I roll my eyes and push him away. “When will you come back?”
Shay shrugs. “I’ll pop up at the wedding in a few days. Let’s just keep our distance till then. I’ll stay with Austin.”
“Promise you’ll be back, though?”
He pulls me into him again. “I promise, Dollface.”
I close my eyes as he leans down and presses his lips to mine. Suddenly, everything feels right again. As much as I want to keep him with me and never let him go, though, I know he’s right.
Breaking our kiss, he backs away from me, not turning around until he makes it to his Jeep. I wait until he’s inside and peeling out of the driveway before I turn on my heel and head back for the door.