“Yeah, for a couple of months.” Dani shrugs, not realizing—or maybe she did—how she was breaking my insides to pieces with her words. I hear Felicity start singing, and my heart pounds in my chest, my gaze moving back to hers, and I watch as the whole fucking bar falls in love with the only girl who’s ever owned my heart.
“Why—” I break off, unsure what the question was that I need answered. Because I had about ten dozen questions right now.
“I don’t have any good answers for you, Jax,” Dani says, putting her hand on my arm. “All I’m saying is, if this is a second chance for you both, don’t blow it.” She looks me in the eye and waits until I nod my head.
Not confirming to her what she wants, just acknowledging what she said.
Because before I can do anything else, I need to have a conversation with Felicity.
14
jax
I findher on the back patio after her set. It is a closed space for her to get some privacy, and Mitch had to okay me coming back here. She is sitting on an outdoor couch, drinking water, and talking to Juniper, who is moving her hands around excitedly.
“That was probably my most favorite night ever singing here.” I hear Juniper say, both women oblivious to my presence. There are some smokers lingering on the outside of the gates that enclose the patio, but no one seems to be bothering Felicity.
“You have some serious talent, Juniper. You could take it far.”
Juniper blushes and brushes some hair behind her ear. “I don’t know. I kind of like this town.”
“It’s a good one,” Felicity says, and I feel my heart squeeze. “But hey, I came back. You can too.”
Juniper blows out a breath and looks at her. “I have some things that keep me here.”
Felicity tilts her head, but I can’t see her expression. “A guy?”
A blush finds its way to Juniper’s cheeks, and I smile slightly. She is a few years younger than me, but she is a pure soul,innocent, has nothing bad to say to anyone she comes into contact with. Seeing her blush about a guy makes her all the sweeter. “It’s not really like that.”
“Well, I can understand not wanting to leave for that reason,” Felicity says, setting my veins on fire.
She could? She could understand wanting to stay and not chasing your dreams because of being in love? It didn’t feel like it.
I finally clear my throat, impatience throttling my chest, and Juniper’s eyes flick to me. She quickly stands and waves nervously. “Hey-a, Jax.”
Felicity turns in her seat, readjusting to see me, and gives me a kind smile that, frankly, I don’t deserve. Not after how I spoke with her the last time.
“Hey, nice set out there,” I say, feeling uncomfortable but meaning it. I had wanted to support Felicity every time she sang throughout her career, and I was experiencing a sense of loss that this was the first time in twelve years I’d heard her sing live.
“Thanks. Well, it was all due to Felicity,” Juniper says, humble as always.
“That is so not true,” Felicity argues fiercely. “You held your own. And you have the ear and vocals for this career, Juniper.”
“Thanks, Felicity.” She sighs and slaps her thigh with the palm of her hand. “Well, I’d better get back in there.”
She squeezes by me, giving my arm a pat, and I briefly wonder how much she’s heard about my and Felicity’s relationship. She’s only been around the last four years or so, so there was a lot of life that I lived here without the Weaver sisters.
No doubt that Logan has told Thea everything.
I step further onto the patio, breathing in the cool night air and trying to get ahold of my emotions. It wasn’t easy. I felt like I was choking on the need to lash out, to say everything on my mind that I’ve felt for the last twelve years.
Then I look to Felicity, her face calm and devoid of emotion, and I realize she is mad at me. Mad for what I said, for what I accused, for what I threw in her face.
“I’m sorry.” Guilt and remorse hit my chest like a stone, and I grapple with the words I need to say to make it better. To make it right.
“It’s fine.”
Fuck. That word. I may have been slightly inexperienced with relationships, but I have a mother and a niece, and I know that when they say “fine,” it’s anything but.
