“Since when did you become a Heath Dillinger fan?” I asked, surprised that she was sticking up for him.

She smiled wistfully. “Since I saw how happy he made you.” She paused and thought for a moment, taking her time to choose her words carefully. “Watching you two together is crazy beautiful. The way you look at one another. The way he acts around you and the way you light up when he’s around. It’s obvious you’re crazy about each other.”

“I am. I mean, I was.” I frowned. “I’m not sure anymore.”

Her smile was closed-lipped and she looked thoughtful. “I don’t think Heath knew what hit him when you came along. He’s always been a no-strings attached kind of guy. But then you came along and turned his world upside down. Anyone can see he is insanely in love with you.”

“Insane is right.” I frowned.

“I think it scared the hell out of him.”

“What are you saying?”

She hesitated, looking for the right words. “He made a mistake, Harlow. A huge, vile, massive mistake. But maybe – “

My eyes widened and I couldn’t hide my disbelief. “Are you saying I should forgive him?”

“He’s human. He let a stupid chain of events get the better of him. But you,” she paused. “You can make it right again. And you should. Because what you have is too precious to throw away because of a bump in the road.”

“I can’t believe you think I should forgive him. Seriously?”

“I think you should think about what you have before you throw it away,” she replied calmly.

“He already threw it away when he stuck his dick in that thing on the plane,” I protested.

She nodded. “Granted, it was a fucked up thing to do. But you said it yourself; he thought you had gone back to Colton. So he got himself smashed to cope. And we all know why he doesn’t usually drink alcohol; because he does dumbass shit when he’s drunk.” She sighed. “I think he was out of his mind over the thought of you being back with Colton. He wasn’t interested in that girl on the plane. He was just trying to make himself feel better.”

“And that’s his excuse?” I exclaimed feeling a little pissed at my cousin for making excuses for him.

“Not an excuse. A reason, perhaps? Listen, I’m just being your voice of wisdom here. I don’t want you to make a mistake. What you guys have is a once in a lifetime thing.”

I shook my head. “It was a summer fling,” I snapped like an angry child, reaching for my anger because it hurt less when I felt angry. I wasn’t in the mood to feel anything else. And I definitely didn’t want to hear about forgiveness. “Nothing but a stupid summer fling.”

But Bridget wasn’t convinced and dismissed my comment with a little shake of her head.

“You don’t believe that. No-one does.” She sighed and I noticed how weary she looked. It was almost one thirty and we had been talking for more than two hours.

“So I should just forgive him for cheating on me?”

“I’m telling you to look at what you have before you throw it all away. And ask yourself if you can move past this to salvage this incredible love you two created.” She stood up. “Give yourself a couple of days to feel like shit. Then make up your mind. But at least give yourself a bit of time to think about it before making any decisions.”

“I hate him,” I said, even though I knew it wasn’t true. I loved him. But I hated what he had done to us.

To me.

Ugh! To that awful thing on the plane.

“Believe me, if he was here, I’d smack him right between those two charming dimples, for what he did to you,” Bridget said.

“If he was here, I’d let you.”

We were both exhausted and called it a night. Before I turned off my light I did what I had avoided doing all night; I checked my cell phone.

Eighteen missed calls. Sixteen from Heath. And my voice mail was full.

There were also eleven text messages.

Nine from Heath.

One from Piper asking me to call her.

And one from Jesse begging me to call Piper.

I quickly sent Piper a message.

I’m ok. Very tired. Will sleep on everything and wake up with a better perspective. I will call you tomorrow xx

Within minutes she had texted back.

Hope you’re ok. He’s a wreck if it makes you feel better L

It didn’t.

I turned off my phone and bedside lamp before crawling under the covers. As hard as I tried to turn off my brain I couldn’t get the mental image of Heath—my Heath—fucking that girl in a cramped airplane toilet cubicle.

Or the smug look on her face as she stood in front of me, not so subtly letting me know she had devoured my boyfriend the day before.

It took hours before I finally fell into a restless sleep. But it was a night of tossing and turning, and punching my pillow. My head was filled with images of Heath.

And a girl with bright blue eyes.

* * * * *

I woke to the smell of pancakes and forced myself out of bed.

My head was foggy and thumped with a mean headache. My reflection in the bathroom mirror was no better. A restless night had left my eyes puffy and swollen and no amount of makeup was going to help. So I didn’t even try. There was no point.

I splashed water on my face and toweled it off. I didn’t even bother running a brush through my hair. Instead, I left the bathroom in search of coffee. But as I walked into the dining room I stopped cold in my tracks. Bridget was in the kitchen moving pancakes around a fry pan.

And sitting at the dining room table was Heath.

A creaky floorboard gave me away. Heath jumped up from the chair but stopped as if he was suddenly unsure of what to do. At least I wasn’t the only one who looked like crap. He looked like he hadn’t slept at all.

I wrapped my arms around my waist. “What are you doing here?”

Bridget turned off the cooker and set the pancakes aside. “I’m going for a shower. Give you guys some privacy.”

My eyes didn’t leave Heath as she disappeared from the room.

“You shouldn’t be here,” I said.

“I had to see you. I need to know you’re alright.” His voice was hoarse with fatigue.

I shook my head. “I’m not. But then, that’s to be expected.”

I knew I looked like a train wreck. Puffy eyes. Pale skin. I didn’t want him to see me like this. He needed to go.

“I need you to leave.”

His jaw flinched. “We need to talk, Harlow.”

I shook my head. “Not yet, Heath.” I closed my eyes. The idea of hearing the sordid details made me nauseous. “I’m not ready.”

He nodded. “Okay. I understand. But when?”

Again I shook my head. “I don’t know. I need time to process all of this.”

“Time is good,” he said, looking hopeful. “I can give you time. Anything you need. Just please … please tell me you’re not going to give up on me.” His voice broke and he exhaled deeply. His eyes filled with tears.

Seeing him punched a big hole in my chest. I was so in love with him.

Was.

Now I was numb.

“I’m not promising you anything.”

“I know I don’t deserve your forgiveness. But I love you so much Harlow. More than I thought I was capable of.” He exhaled deeply. “God, baby I’m going crazy …”

“You need to leave.”

“Please,” he begged. “I know what I did hurt you. But it’s killed me.”

I crossed the room to the front door and opened it. “You can’t be here. Like I said, I need time.”

His face fell, his lashes casting a soft shadow across pale skin. He nodded slowly and crossed the room to leave but paused in the doorway. Pained blue eyes held mine. Dimples flickered either side of his mouth. He hadn’t shaved and he looked rough.

“This is the worst thing I have ever done. And it always will be. I will never do this again. I promise you.”

I saw the agony in his eyes. And across his face. I heard it in his voice. And I believed him. But it didn’t change anything. He had still cheated on me and I didn’t know if I would ever be able to forgive him.