But who am I to lie? Chase is fucking everywhere. Her hint of perfume still lingers in the air. The blanket she folded in that triangle is still on the couch. The goddamn kitchen island we made love on sits there as a reminder.

No regrets feels like it has a whole new meaning now.

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

Chase

“ARE WE GOING TO TALK about how you’re sitting at your desk—here in our office—and no one knew you were coming home?” Brexton’s voice asks from the doorway of my office.

“Just trying to catch up on work,” I say without lifting my head up.

Truth be told, I’ve been back in town for four days but this is the first day where my eyes don’t look like I’ve been crying.

“You couldn’t even peek your head out and say hi to us? We wouldn’t even have known you were here if Letty hadn’t told us,” she says, referring to our receptionist.

“I got in early.” I steel myself before looking up to meet her eyes to make sure I won’t cry when I do. And if I don’t look at her, she’ll know something is wrong. “Did you see the stack of shit on my desk to do?” I meet her eyes and give a quick, tight smile. “It would have been nice if you guys helped out a little. Christ.”

I’ve given her enough of a look and a semi-bitchy comment, so when I avert my eyes, I assume she’ll walk away.

Instead she sits down in front of my desk.

“I don’t have time for this right now. Maybe we can catch up after work?” I offer, full well knowing I’ll bolt out and say I have to deal with a client and dodge her.

“No. We can catch up now.”

Silence settles through the room and even though I keep typing away, not really having any clue what I am, in fact, typing, the weight of her stare grows heavier and heavier.

“You’ve been gone for seven weeks. You cut off communication with us except for the obligatory emoji response to our texts after you asked Dekk and me for advice. And now, out of the freaking blue, you just show up to work without warning? All that and you don’t think I’m going to plop my ass down in your chair and demand to know what in the hell is going on?”

My fingers are flying over the keys as the tears threaten. All I can do is keep my head down, staring at my monitor. “Everything is fine. I promise.”

But I never should have added those last two words because when I do, my voice breaks. It breaks in front of my sister—who gets me way too well and knows exactly what that sound means.