Page 69 of The Fall

He sighs and gives me a sad smile. “Forever friend-zoned.”

“I said I was sorry.”

“I’m just messing with you, Sav. Anyway, I think I’m gonna take off.”

I point to his plate. “You haven’t finished eating.”

“I know. I, uh, kind of lost my appetite after that conversation. I think I need some time to process this information on my own, you know?”

I nod and stand to give him a hug.

“I’m sorry it couldn’t be me, Sav, but I’m happy for you, alright? I’ll be fine. I just need to sleep it off. See you at the airport tomorrow?”

He releases me from the hug and takes a step back. I nod.

My shoulders sag in relief as he walks out the door.

It went better than I thought, but I can tell he’s sad. Max has always been so good to me, and this feels like I’m letting him down. I know you can’t help who you fall for, but it really sucks breaking your friend’s heart.

Kelsey cracks her door open. “You ok?”

I nod, but I can feel the tears coming. She comes out and wraps me in her arms. I’m so happy that Logan and I have what we have, but I’m sad that this chapter with Max is coming to an end. Even though we’re still partners and friends, I know things won’t be like they used to be. I know I broke his heart, which hurts the most.

“You did the right thing, Savannah. At least now he knows where he stands,” she tells me as she rubs my back.

“I know. I just hated seeing him so hurt.”

“He’s a big boy. He’ll be ok.”

She holds me until I stop crying, and then we sit on the couch, snuggle under a blanket, and watch a movie together. Logan texts asking if everything went ok and offers to come over, but I tell him I need the night alone. Kelsey assures me that everything will be ok. By the time I go to bed, I think I might even believe her.

TWENTY-FOUR

LOGAN

“Good Morning.” I quickly kiss Savannah and hand her the coffee I picked up for her. Her eyes are a little puffy, so I can only assume she was crying last night. I wish she had let me come over, but I understand why she needed some time. It’s obvious that she and Max have a tight-knit relationship, and I never intended to come between them. Hopefully, we can all move on from this.

“Morning.” She takes the cup and looks at where the barista wrote “the most beautiful woman in the world” on the cup. Her face lights up with a smile, which is exactly what I was hoping for. “Did you ask them to write this?”

“Oh, sorry, that one’s mine,” I say, pretending like I’m going to take it back.

“You’re such a cheese ball.”

“Good thing cheese is on your list of favorite things.”

She smiles and kisses me again.

“You ready to go?” I ask, looking around her for her bags.

“Yep. Just finished zipping up.”

She sets her coffee down and walks down the hallway to her room. Kelsey pops out of the bathroom and heads in my direction.

“Hello, loverboy.”

I chuckle at the nickname. “Good morning, Kelsey.”

“Before she comes back out, I just want to tell you that if you do anything to hurt her, I’ll hunt you down and… well, you know what comes next.”